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Foothills-Pine Ridge Loop

RECOMMENDED ROUTE
Easy/Intermediate Easy/Intermediate
 3.0 (37)
  1. Areas
  2. CO
  3. …Front Range
  4. …Fort Collins
  5. Maxwell Natural Area
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“A fun, fast ride for beginners with short intermediate sections. ”

Jared Crockett
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Map Key

7.0

Miles

11.3

KM

70%

Singletrack

5,287' 1,612 m

High

5,141' 1,567 m

Low

328' 100 m

Up

328' 100 m

Down

2%

Avg Grade (1°)

9%

Max Grade (5°)

Dogs Leashed

E-Bikes Unknown

Parts will close for mud after rain and snow. Pay attention to yield for horses and pedestrians.

Overview

A multi-use trail for bikes, runners, walkers, and horses that runs along the foothills with short climbs and descents and generally good trail conditions. Some sections of the trail have been over-leveled for runners and have lost character in the past 2 years. Side trails to Spring Canyon Park and connectivity with the remainder of the Foothills Trail System makes for ride extensions. Bring your eastern friends to see prairie dogs.

Need to Know

Parking is located at the north and south ends (across a small hogback on the south) and in the middle just off Country Road 42C.

Description

Start at the north end and take the Water Tank Access Road from Banyan Road to the fork in the trail at the base of the foothill. Take the left fork and head south on the Foothills Trail over mixed smooth and slightly rocky singletrack. After a hard left and a rocky, short descent to the Stadium... grab some air, but don't land in the irrigation ditch as those concrete culverts hurt. Head south past the parking lot and cross the County Road.

Go through the small gate on the south side of the road and at the top of the small climb, veer right through the trees and along the shore of Dixon Reservoir. Watch for bald eagles in the trees and fishing in the lake.

Climb away from the west side of the lake over a small bridge, then head south again. At the fork, go right on Timber Trail and up a short, increasingly steep climb. Don't go around the rocks for erosion control - hop them, you know it's good for you!

Follow the rolling singletrack in and out of the pine forest and take advantage of little jumps and fast rocky patches. Travel due south until the trail bends to the left on South Loop Trail and eventually back to the north. Follow the single to doubletrack on Valley Trail through the prairie dog colony. Side trails to the right head to Spring Canyon Park. At the south end of Dixon Reservoir, either stay straight on the singletrack and cross the dam, or head left and re-ride part of your outbound trail (both part of Reservoir Loop Trail).

After the dam, its the same trail you took out all the way to Banyan.

Contacts

Land Manager: City of Fort Collins, Colorado

Shared By:

Jared Crockett
Full Details

Trail Ratings

  3.0 from 37 votes

#1

in Maxwell Natural Area

#1844

Overall
  3.0 from 37 votes
5 Star
3%
4 Star
22%
3 Star
57%
2 Star
14%
1 Star
5%
Recommended Route Rankings

#1

in Maxwell Natural Area

#331

in Colorado

#1,844

Overall
40 Views Last Month
11,685 Since Sep 3, 2013
Easy/Intermediate Easy/Intermediate
57%
14%
29%
0%
0%
0%
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Photos

Timber Trail
Nov 25, 2015 near Laporte, CO
Timber (Blue) - Lory State Park - Fort Collins - Colorado
Mar 13, 2024 near Laporte, CO
Trail runners abound
Jul 14, 2013 near Laporte, CO

2 Comments

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Weather

Current Trail Conditions

All Clear 52 days ago
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Check-Ins

Sep 21, 2024
Bonnette
Dec 23, 2023
Daniel Hartwig
Clear and dry. A little crowded even in December so start early. 9.3mi — 0h 57m
Nov 12, 2023
Jasmine Taylor
7.1mi — 1h 00m
Nov 27, 2022
Alex Wright
muddy took the road home 12mi
May 10, 2022
Noah Dennison
5.2mi — 40h 00m
Apr 24, 2022
Adam Wright
Couple significant climbs at start but not too bad after that. When coming back, there's a gated access road to the right to avoid hill climb. Gate…
Sep 23, 2021
Domenic Hartman
Aug 1, 2021
Michael Stewart

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