Road Biking
Easy Ride to the Town of Lyons via Apple Valley
Apple Valley, named for its old apple orchards, has a unique beauty that
contrasts against the rugged mountains. Follow this narrow, twisty, yet level
road lined with a variety of deciduous trees, quaint houses, and country
scenery with hardly any cars. It's about 2.5 miles to the town of Lyons.
Apple Valley Road begins just a few hundred feet from Stone Mountain Lodge.
Go along Hwy 36 west (away from Lyons) about 500 feet. There. on the left, you will see
an arched wooden bridge across the Saint Vrain River. Cross the highway here
and start your tour through Apple Valley.
Mountain Roads
A Short Ride Close By: Blue Mountain Road
From Stone Mountain Lodge, go along Hwy 36 west (away from Lyons) about 500 feet. There,
on the left, you will see
an arched wooden bridge across the Saint Vrain River. Go right up Blue Mountain
Road (Colorado 71). Take this to the end of the paved road and turn
around. This is about 4 miles.
Ride to Raymond and/or Allenspark
This is a rigorous mountain ride that is pretty much all up hill until you
turn around and come back. This is not a very heavily traveled road and offers
spectacular mountain scenery. Give it a try and take it as far as you want.
Take Hwy 36 or Apple Valley Road east to Lyons. Take Hwy 7 from Lyons into the mountains. Raymond is about 14 miles and
Allenspark is about another 10 beyond that.
Rolling Hills and the Plains
Ride to the Town of Hygiene
This is a great ride from the mountains to the plains to the
charming little town of Hygiene. It's all rather level to gently sloping
terrain with bike lanes or lightly traveled roads the entire way.
From Stone Mountain Lodge take Apple Valley Road to Lyons then follow Hwy
66 east about 6 miles to Hygiene Road. Make a right and ride about a mile to
town. You can come back the same way or do the loop described below.
Loop Back to Lyons from Hygiene
This ride is somewhat up hill, but nothing like the mountains. This is very
beautiful country on a very lightly traveled country road. It is about 8 miles
to Lyons.
From Hygiene continue south, and take the right just before the railroad
crossing. Follow it all the way to where it ends at Hwy 36. Go right on 36 and
follow it back into Lyons.
A Great Ride to Boulder and Back
This is a very popular ride that cycling clubs do in reverse from Boulder all
the time. Its about 16 miles of rolling hills each way. There are bike lanes the
entire way.
Take Apple Valley road to Lyons, go east through Lyons and follow Hwy 36
right into the heart of Boulder (Take the first right that says
Boulder).
Mountain Biking
Hall Ranch
Hall Ranch has some of the most favored mountain biking trails on the Front
Range. It offers rides through meadows as well as good climbs. The trailhead
is a very easy and scenic bike ride from Stone Mountain Lodge.
More
Info on Hall Ranch.
How to get there: By bike, follow Hwy 36 west (away from Lyons)
about 500 feet from Stone Mountain Lodge to Apple Valley Road. Make a left and take Apple Valley
Road
into Lyons. Then stay to the right and follow Hwy 7 about 1 mile. Trailheads
are on the right.
Rabbit Mountain
Also popular for mountain biking, all Rabbit Mountains trails are
multiuse. Rabbit Mountain is right along the foothills that includes terrain
from sweeping grasslands to ridge top pine forests with views of the great
plains to the east as well as the Continental Divide to the west.
More
Info on Rabbit Mountain.
How to get there: From Stone Mountain Lodge take Hwy 36 east through
Lyons. Continue on Hwy 66 east toward Longmont about 1 mile past the
intersection of Hwy 66 and Hwy 36. Turn left on N. 53rd Street and continue
for two miles to the trailheads.
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