The state of Colorado is almost synonymous with the word mountains. Stretching across about 40% of the state, the Rockies provide most of its beauty, culture, landmarks, and recreation. Colorado has over 1000 peaks that break 10,000 feet, and on top of that (no pun intended) 54 mountains over 14,000 feet – giving it the highest concentration of peaks that height in the Rocky Mountains!
I’d never even been to Colorado until a few weeks ago when I went with my family to Manitou Springs, located just outside Colorado Springs. After a long tiring journey across the desert in the eastern part of the state, we finally arrived at the Crystal Kangaroo Campground. Nestled up on the side of a mountain at about 6500 feet, the campground provides a great view of the mountains and Colorado Springs almost 1000 feet below. I knew there wasn’t even a decision to make about whether we would be going riding or not, so as soon as we arrived I began looking at different trail systems around us. It didn’t take long to realize that there’s no shortage of ATV trails in Colorado. If fact, there were so many that it was hard to choose which one would be best!
Something I highly recommend getting is Chuck Wells’ book, the Guide To Colorado Backroads & 4-Wheel Drive Trails. It has descriptions of the trails and roads, along with pictures, directions, elevation, and other need-to-know information about riding areas across Colorado. Even though it also includes many roads that are not legal for ATVs to ride on, we still used it to go for an afternoon drive up in the mountains and to help navigate the backroads leading to the riding areas.
The only thing required to ride ATVs or UTVs in Colorado is a little OHV sticker, which currently costs $25 dollars. We got ours at Apex Powersports, located in Colorado Springs. They also have a large selection of gear, parts, accessories, ATVs, UTVs, dirt bikes, motorcycles, and even an occasional trials bike! After looking around in there for a while, it seems like I need about $20,000 to get everything I want (although five grand would be plenty for now)…
A few days later we went without our ATVs to go check out the trails surrounding Almagre Mountain west of Colorado Springs. That turned out to be an adventure of its own! We had to drive for about 12 miles on a tight winding dirt road, averaging about 10-15 miles per hour. And about half way there a storm rolled in, with lightning striking the tops of the ridges around us. Thankfully, it stopped raining when we got to the trails just long enough that we could get out and see what they looked like. The trails start at about 10,000 feet and climbs up over 12,000, so it’s a good idea to be acclimated, which we weren’t! After a few minutes walking around, we headed back down the mountain to the campground, and decided it might be better to ride somewhere more easily accessible. Don’t get me wrong, it looked really great up there – but it’d probably be a good place to go camp for a few days, instead of having to drive all the way up there for just a day of riding.
Next we looked into, and finally decided on, the Rainbow Falls OHV Area. Located just off of Hwy 67 about 10 miles north of Woodland Park, it was a little bit farther drive for us, but well worth the trip! The staging area is at about 7500 feet elevation, which didn’t really cause much of a power decrease in my Honda 250EX (although it was more noticeable as we climbed up the mountains). The official parking area seemed pretty busy, so we kept going past it and parked in one of the many little dry-camping areas along Rainbow Falls Road.
Once the ATVs were unloaded, my dad and I geared up and hit the trails! According to our BLM map, most of the “trails” are actually considered to be roads – but many of them are too narrow for anything larger than a UTV. We rode up trail 350A and onto 350B, where we had a beautiful view of Pikes Peak and the valley below. There was also a huge boulder stuck into the side of a hill that the trail goes over, which was a great place to get some video on our GoPro helmet camera. At one point I accidentally turned the camera on the setting that makes it take several pictures every time you press the button. So, later when we looked at the pictures, there were 10 or 15 that I didn’t even know I took!
After stopping for some more pictures, we rode back down and ate PB&J sandwiches – not the best meal I’ve ever had while riding, but at least it was quick.
We then headed up toward the northern end of the riding area on 348, which continues all the way to the well known Rampart Range Road, before we turned off on 634 and then the tight and winding 631. This trail is definitely for ATVs only, as there were many places that were a squeeze even for my 250EX! Large car-sized boulders littered the hillside along the trails, with lots of pine trees in between. I only got stuck once our entire ride, and it was about half way down this trail on a few large rocks. Once I did some shifting, of the gears and my weight, I got out with ease and kept going after inspecting my tires for any damage.
At one point on 631, we climbed to about 9100 feet, which was the highest during our ride there. Even at this elevation our ATVs, neither of which are fuel-injected, didn’t seem to be affected too much – although I could definitely feel a loss in low-end power on hills.
We continued onto trail 351, which was fairly smooth and followed Fern Creek back down the mountain. This was one of my favorite trails, and there were a few small creek crossings that also added to the fun! This was one of the prettiest parts of our ride, and was quite a contrast to the fairly rough trail we had just come off of.
I realized during our trip out there that most of the trails that go up onto the mountains are rough, and then once up on the mountains, the trails get easier and less rocky. Although some of the trails are moderately difficult and require skill, the majority of the trails are easy enough that a beginner could ride on them without too much effort.
We ended up riding for about five hours, and then decided it was time to load up and head home. For some reason, packing up our gear and loading the ATVs back on the trailer always seem to be more tedious than when we arrived. I guess it’s because there’s usually no one who’s excited to leave, while it’s the opposite when we arrive!
Overall, it was a great afternoon of riding, and Rainbow Falls OHV Area is definitely somewhere I highly recommend visiting if you’re ever in the area! Check back again soon – we’re going to be riding several places in Colorado, so watch for more posts and pictures!
Note: Be sure to bring plenty of water while riding – the high elevation and dry air will leave you dehydrated before you’ll realize you’re even thirsty. I found out from experience and ended up with a bad headache.
Also be extremely careful and keep your speed under control. Many of the trails and roads are tight or one-lane, with lots of corners. And people that do not ride also come camp along the trails and roads. So, please be respectful of others!
