Garfield County Mountain Bike Rides: Red Hill

Garfield County offers a wide variety of mountain bike trails — smooth dirt and rocky descents; short, rollercoaster funfests; and long, challenging epics. Plus, terrain spans rocky, desert riding to lush, forest scenes.

There are lots of trails close to towns (or in them), and some that require a long drive into national forest land.

See if you can pry secrets from local bike shops, or at least get advice on trail conditions.

GETTING THERE

For access, park just north of the intersection of Colorado highways 82 and 133 about a mile north of Carbondale’s roundabout.

TRAIL TALK

This area offers a wide variety of singletrack ranging from casual meadow rides to technical climbs and descents. Within easy riding distance of Carbondale, it is popular with bikers, hikers and dog walkers; but the farther from the trailhead you go, the more solitude you’ll find. The easiest riding is also farthest from the trailhead.

THREE GULCH

Distance — 1.1 miles

Difficulty — Difficult

THE DIRT:

This trail offers a technical, fun, and challenging grunt of a climb into the generally flowy Red Hill trail area. This is the easiest way up, though “the ramp” near the end challenges most riders.

BLUE RIBBON

Distance — 1.3 miles

Difficulty — Difficult

THE DIRT:

This is a popular way back down the hill. It’s a harder way up than Three Gulch, but after the junction with Three Gulch, riding is easy until a steep climb to the top.

ELK TRAVERSE

Distance — 1.6 miles

Difficulty — Moderate/Difficult

THE DIRT:

This trail is a fun and sometimes technical sidehill route that connects the Red Hill Loop with the farther out (and less-traveled) Northside Loop and associated loops.

NORTHSIDE LOOP

Distance — 4.9 miles

Difficulty — Moderate

THE DIRT:

The longest trail in Red Hill is a mostly easy ride through meadows, but it also includes some rocky sections in pinyon-juniper.