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Buck Gulch Mountain Bike Trail
Pine, Colorado
MTB TRAIL STATS
Avg Rating:    |
6 trail reviews |
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Status: updated 6/21/07 by lostcause |
Difficulty:  Intermediate |
| Length: 11 miles | Global Rank: #Not yet ranked. |
| Tread: Singletrack | Configuration: Loop |
| Ridden: 63 | Wishlist: 38 |
| Avg. Speed: 5.6 mph | Avg. Time: 2hr 38min |
| Elevation Gain/Loss: +1,877/-1,583 ft |
Description: This is yet another awesome ride in the Buffalo Creek area with well groomed singletrack and fantastic scenery. Take the Narrow Gauge Trail to the right for about 0.3 miles then turn left onto Buck Gulch Trail (crossing the bridge). Ride Buck Gulch all the way up a fairly steep climb to the intersection with the Skipper Trail. Take the Skipper to the left to a four way intersection with the Homestead Trail. Go right on the doubletrack to the intersection with Charlie's Cutoff. Go left on Charlie's cutoff, then left back onto the Homestead Trail. This will spit you out back at the four way intersection, go right onto Strawberry Jack Trail for a nice downhill back to the Buck Gulch Trail. Go right onto Buck Gulch and you're back at Pine Valley Ranch open space. This is one of the top rides in the area once you get past the initial climb (about 1000 ft in 3 miles) and offers some great singletrack, all completely rideable.
added on June 13, 2004 by 
SIMILAR TRAILS
Riders who liked this mountain bike trail also liked:TRAIL REVIEWS review this trail
reviewed by sspragu3 on July 26, 2010
Nice trail overall. Good climb to start out the ride, very steady. Some fun downhill singletrack, though by far the most sand of all the trails I've ridden in the area. Good trail for those looking to avoid technical areas, but still want an exciting ride.
Similar Trail: Anything on the Colorado trail
reviewed by mtbgreg1 on November 12, 2009
If you park at the open space parking lot, this trail is a long, steep climb up to the Buffalo creek area, with a speedy descent back down. The area got burned out several years ago, but the trail has since been repaired.
Similar Trail: Buffalo Creek
reviewed by RohoSombrero on August 4, 2007
Great ride. Not technical or difficult in the least (I think you could probably ride this with a street bike with very few walk-arounds) so you would have to rate it easy. Some will no doubt think this detracts but personally I enjoy a pure "exploration" ride once in awhile, maybe as much as a good hard technical ride. The scenery is beautiful and the first 3 miles will give you plenty of excercise. After that the real fun starts as you get to actually go down hill as well as uphill for a bit. I rode the trail map on Single Tracks exactly and quite enjoyed it. It was nice to be able to know ahead of time where the elevation tops out and plan the decent/ascent and have a reasonable idea of time and effort. I ate lunch on the last summit so I could finish fast on a full stomach and not have to climb. It was kind of late in the afternoon with a rain storm rolling in and I found it a pretty intense, almost spiritual experience. Do it alone and I think you'll find it enhances the experience. Unlike others that have weighed in, I found the charred trees to be quite striking and beautiful. In places you could see for miles in all directions through the trees due to reduced vegetation (nothing but more forest on all sides) and it seemed revelatory of what it must have been like before the fire. It was also fascinating to see how many trees survived and are generating new growth. The ride also includes a few areas that the fire missed entirely which is interesting for comparison purposs. I loved the narrow single track with the tall wild flowers on both sides with the ghost trees as constant observers. It was strikingly beautiful IMO. Well worth the couple hours drive from Colorado Springs. - Mike
reviewed by plexus on September 18, 2006
Uphill wasn't as strenuous as I feared, just a couple of steep hills. Still some treefalls you have to porter around. Found the downhill to be rather blah and actually enjoyed the climb better. Did go over the handlebars once because of cyclist stupidity (look at the trail, not the pretty rocks in the distance). Went on a Monday and saw one angler at the parking lot. Nice to be out with nobody around.
Similar Trail: Buffalo Creek trail system
reviewed by Ratchet_Jack on September 21, 2005
Starts out with a hard climb for about 3 miles. A few swtchbacks on this part but not enough to catch your breath. A couple of bridge crossings, some boulders that are great for slick-rocking around on, nice tight single track in places, well groomed and clean. A few technical areas and great dowhills. Seems to have it all. This is a 1997 burn area wich makes it unique. Trees still fall on the track and a few (2) were not passable without a carry. I got a spoke pinch flat on the last hardrock downhill section, while I was changing it, each rider passing asked if I had all the necessary gear. Very pleasant groups and I only encountered two groups on a beautiful mid-morning Sunday in September. I'd say this is a gem close to Denver.
Similar Trail: Walker Ranch - Boulder
reviewed by bonkedagain on August 2, 2005
This is not a real exciting ride. The three mile uphill gets kind of monotonous. A few fun turns here and there, some nice coasting back to the bottom. Save this trail for after you have exhausted yourself on the Colorado Trail to the north and all its feeder trails. If you still have some gas left in your tank then do this quick loop.
Similar Trail: Green Mountain Loop
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