Best Trails Close to Campus

The Best Trails Close to Campus for Running and/or Biking

Throughout my time at Colorado Christian University, I have gotten into endurance sports. The Front Range has some awesome trails for running and biking, and CCU is less than twenty minutes from several of them. At first, I found it hard to find good resources online for what I wanted to do in a reasonable drive from campus. But with trial and error, I hope to save you the pain of figuring out what trails to use for your activities. For each local spot, I will give you the trailhead location. I hope this saves you the hassle of finding where to go and helps you get outside sooner!

Green Mountain 

Drive from Campus: 14 minutes

Trailhead Location: https://maps.app.goo.gl/aaQLAY8hZFCHBi3C9 

Green Mountain is right down Alameda and is a great place for a short tour or a longer activity when the weather is bad higher up in the mountains. With several access points varying 5-15 minutes from campus, it is a great access point for local recreation.

Running: 

Green Mountain has trails for all levels of running! If you want to trail run without running up the mountain, try the first half of Green Mountain Trail. If you park at the Rooney Road Trailhead and go right on Green Mountain Trail, you can run an out and back and make it however long you want it to be. You can make it up to 7.5 miles or however shorter you desire.

If you are looking for something with more elevation gain, you can go to Green Mountain Loop. This takes you on the Green Mountain trail to Hayden trail, up the service road, and down the Rooney Valley trail.

Biking:

While Green Mountain might not be the best mountain for biking in the Denver area, it is super convenient midweek. Rooney Valley trail is by far the best descent on Green Mountain. It is a fun, flowy singletrack with a few featured options.

North Table Mountain 

Drive from Campus: 18 minutes

Trailhead Location: https://maps.app.goo.gl/UySuv2fbhQRV9p6b9 

North Table is quite the local hotspot for outdoor activities close to Denver. It is in the cute town of Golden and hosts some stellar trails.

Running: 

North Table is more of a plateau, so it is a steep climb to the top, but then it is flat once you top out. This makes it great for an out-and-back run or even a hike to the top and then a run once you get up there. Keep in mind there are several ways to access this mountain if you decide this trail is not your favorite.

Biking:

North Table is loved for its biking trails. The trails are very featured and techy. The best biking loop, in my opinion, and other locals, is the North Table Figure 8 Loop. It is said to hit all of the best descents on the North Table trail system. Keep in mind that you can just do one of the loops if you want a short ride after class.

US 6 Trail (Clear Creek/Lookout)

Drive from Campus: 15 minutes

Trailhead Location: https://maps.app.goo.gl/A8HpxCXUcDEn6aUV8 

For those of you who like a paved trail, The US 6 Multi-Use trail is a great trail. You can access it from parking at Movement Golden. This trail is great because you can take it all the way into Clear Creek or up to Lookout Mtn Road.

Running: 

For a long run loop, I like to take the US 6 Multi-Use trail to Clear Creek. It is very scenic and highlights great views of Golden. The distance ends up being just over 8 miles. If long runs aren’t your thing, you can park here and just run through Clear Creek. That ends up being around 3 miles.

Biking:

Lookout Mtn is a classic local area for road bikers looking to get some elevation gain. If you take the US 6 Multi-Use trail to Lookout Mtn Road summit as an out and back, it is around 14 miles. Hit this up in the morning for a beautiful sunrise!