GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colorado — It’s that time of year again. The piles of snow are gone, the daylight stretches into the evening hours and cyclists can be seen nearly everywhere.

Garfield county has become a popular destination for visitors throughout the year. And during the warmer months, people are hitting the pavement on bikes to get a more scenic look at Garfield County.

“Of all the visitors to Glenwood, about 20 percent of them utilize bikes while they are in town,” said president and CEO of the Glenwood Springs Chamber Resort Association Marianne Virgili. “And we see about 2 million visitors per year, so take 20 percent of that and you’ve got a lot of people riding bikes.”

Virgili said the chamber tracks activities visitors partake in while in Glenwood, and biking is very popular. Virgili was positive with the recent addition of the Rio Grand Trail — a 33 mile path that extends from Glenwood to Aspen, giving cyclists a safer ride away from the traffic of Highway 82 — will attract even more.

“The addition of the trail has added to the magnitude of trail biking in our area,” Virgili said. “With the addition of that new trail, you now have a destination no matter which direction you go from Glenwood.”

The last section of trail, from the CMC turnoff to Carbondale, is currently being worked on and is expected to be finished sometime in June or July, according to Roaring Fork Transit Authority executive director Dan Blankenship.

“June 15 is the target date for getting it open to the public,” Blankenship said. “We will have a grand opening for the entire trail in July.”

Virgili pointed out that the Rio Grand Trial now makes Glenwood a prefect hub for cyclists with routes taking off in all directions from town that are easily accessible. The Rio Grand Trail is just another option besides the popular Glenwood Canyon Bike Path that recently opened for the season, and several road routes that extend to the west all the way through Garfield County.

Local cycle enthusiast and Two Rivers Cycling Club coach James Otis said that the areas south of the river from New Castle to Parachute provide exquisite scenic rides for any level of rider.

“Starting in March, people who really like to ride, really start to ride from New Castle into the country,” Otis said. “Around Silt, with all of the natural gas exploration going on around there, each time they go further and further into the hills, we are getting more and more good roads to ride on.”

However, in Otis’ opinion, Garfield County is still a hidden secret for more serious cyclists.

“It’s amazing the amount of people that go to Fruita or Moab and pass right by here without even thinking about stopping for a ride,” Otis said.

But as for the vacationing community, biking is a hot topic in the summer. With the snowy months of March and April so far, business has been a little slow at Sunlight Ski and Bike shop.

“These are the busier months for us,” said bike technician Tyler Berg. “But this year has been crazy with all the snow that is pushing the season back a little further than it should.”

But Berg said that even with the cloudy days people have already shown interest in the rental bikes at the shop. A lot of whom are return customers from prior years, according to Berg. And it’s the addition of the Rio Grand Trail that has some of the return customers talking.

“That is one of the smoothest trails I’ve been on,” Berg said. “A nice trail with a great riverside view, that’s been a big thing. It’s a good cruising trail, you can pull anything out of the garage and go ride.”

Contact John Gardner: 384-9114
jgardner@postindependent.com


Post Independent, Glenwood Springs, Colorado CO