mburgess86

I live in colorado springs this spring my wife and I want to start touring maybe start off with some shorter trips to go camping in the mountains on weekends. Has anyone toured the area and do you have any routes, tips or places you enjoyed riding or camping from here?

Connell

Hi,
I'm a bit further north of you, in Bailey and have had a couple of fun, short trips around the Lake George, Elevenmile, Hartsel, Fairplay area. You don't say if you're hoping to ride from home, but if you were willing to drive to say Woodlands Park you could avoid a long and at times dangerous hill from Manitou Springs.

Alternatively, the area along the Arkansas Valley is gorgeous.

Good luck

mburgess86

That hill does scare the heck out off me people drive like mad up there. So going from there does seem like the best plan. Did you camp? what spots did you liked best?

Connell

I've camped a couple of times at Elevenmile State Park, which is very pretty but a bit pricey. If you book ahead, you can select your own spot and the west side of the lake is comparatively secluded. I've also free-camped in the woods between CO77 and SR24, which is National Forest. No water there though. I've also camped at Royal Gorge. You pay to get into the park, but then the camping's included.

Shifty

Here's a great tour idea for you. Drive with your bikes to Florence to start riding (if it's a long weekend ride from the Springs) and go south on highway 67 to Wetmore, then 96 to Westcliffe. After a stop in Westcliffe take the paved roads west into the National Forest to Alvarado campground. Go home the next day the same route or go north from Westcliffe along Texas Creek then highway 50 back to Canon City then back to Florence on a back road (see a map). The views of the Sangre de Christo Mountains are incredible along this ride. Get an early morning start on Hardscrabble Pass (highway 96) it can be busy on weekends, but OK early.

cyccommute 

There's about a million trips you can take. Co Springs to Canyon City then to Hartsel and back. Downhill into the Springs from the mountains isn't all that bad even in the canyon since you are traveling fast down hill.

Or you could head north to Sedalia, over Rampart to Deckers and onto to Woodland Park. This one would be good with a mountain bike. You could come back down Rampart Range Road to near Garden of the Gods.

Another ride would be to head south to Pueblo, then to Colorado City/Rye. Head over to Westcliff and back to Canyon City. You could go back up Co 15 to the Springs. Here's a map of the loop around Pueblo.

That's just a few.

cyccommute 

Here's a route that few people will have ever considered. It involves some riding on I-25 (not as bad as it sounds) and there are some stretches that haven't got a lot of services but overall, it's a gorgeous route. I've been spending more time down in the Spanish Peaks area lately and it really is too bad that there's a bias for us northern Colorado folk against the southern part of the state.

You could do sections of this or make loops with various roads down there.

rdkopp0153

We did a fun trip from Pueblo to Boulder and back using as many urban bike trails as possible.
If you don't mind dirt/gravel roads, the Overton Road from Fountain to Pueblo is quiet and very scenic.
https://www.alternativecommutepueblo....-and-back.html