Heil Valley Ranch / Lyons, CO

Heil Valley Ranch is a public open space with multi-use trails made possible and maintained by Boulder County.  I had my first encounter with this trail on my last trip to Colorado in July 2011.

Heil is a beautiful trail situated in the foothills of the Rockies near Lyons Colorado.  The trail works its way through pine forest along relentless rock embedded singletrack named Wapiti for 2 miles to the top of a butte.  There are two loop options here, Ponderosa Loop and Wild Turkey Loop.  I had the good fortune to befriend a local who gave me the tour of Wild Turkey when I visited.  No turkeys were seen unless your count the other bikers who passed me!  (silence) ...sigh... 

The loop alternates between smooth singletrack to rock laden bouncy fun, offering views of open valleys and the Front Range beyond.  The grade remains mostly level throughout the loop with some mild technical ups and downs.  The ride back down from the butte is 2 miles of sweet sweet loveliness!  Speeding down the trail is a rush as you negotiate rocks, rocks and more rocks, along with roots, loose gravel, and wide switchbacks.  Expect to be out of the saddle for most of the descent unless you have industrial strength padded bike shorts.  A fantastic ride that can be connected to Hall Ranch for one epic day!

Mapquest map