[firch]

Has anyone ever done this trail? I was planning on riding there tomorrow morning and was curious if it is a good one. I am planning on starting at the Indian Creek campground and then hitting the Ringtail trail and the Swallowtail trail then back to the campground. Let me know what you think.

Thanks,
Luke

 

[Bulldozer]

Has anyone ever done this trail? I was planning on riding there tomorrow morning and was curious if it is a good one. I am planning on starting at the Indian Creek campground and then hitting the Ringtail trail and the Swallowtail trail then back to the campground. Let me know what you think.

Thanks,
Luke

I think that the IC area is on fire and you would be smart to avoid the area. As for the trails that you speak of, I haven't ridden them.

 

[silverstreak]

Go early. The climb back up is one you don't want to be doing mid day. It's a great little trail with a good 3.5 mile downhill section. Swallowtail is a pretty scenic loop too. It's a great ride, just be prepared for the climb out.

 

[casey]

Silverstreak is right...

you will be exposed and it will get hot. When you take off on Ringtail from Indian Creek, there is a gentle singletrack climb in the forest for about 1.5 miles. About 1/2 mile from there, you break out of the forest into the open and start to descend on an old dirt road. You drop about 1000+ feet down to Nelson Ranch Open Space Park and the Swallowtail trail. There are two short loops that are ok in my book, but nothing special. The trail tread will be overgrown due to lack of use. Once you do the loops, you get to climb back up the way you came. And it will be hot. I usually save this ride for early spring or late fall when everything up high is snowed in. If you need a map (if you want to call it that), go to the Douglas County Open Space Parks web site and look for Nelson Ranch Open Space Park. Happy trails.

frmbp.org - paying it forward

 

[tnorris]

Depends on what style of riding you like. It's a combination of forest svc road and single track. It doesn't get a lot of traffic like some of the Jeffco open space parks. I personally like it a lot but if you are looking for technical riding this is probably not for you.

 

[firch]

Thanks for the info.