Newman > Bicycling > Blue Sky Trail
The Blue Sky Trail is a relatively new trail west of Fort Collins. It connects Horsetooth Mountain Park to the Coyote Ridge trail and to the Devil's Backbone Open Space near Loveland. The trail is mostly smooth and flowing dirt trail that is not particularly technical. It's great for fit beginning and intermediate mountain bikers. Larimer County has a web page on this trail including maps. The ride I will describe here (see the map below) begins at the Soderberg Open Space, follows the Blue Sky Trail to the Indian Summer Loop, does the Indian Summer Loop, and returns to the Soderberg Open Space trailhead. The total distance is about 13.35 miles, but since this ride is out-and-back, you can turn around at any point.
The trail begins at Soderberg Homestead Open Space, which is north of Inlet Bay Marina (a Google Map of this location and the following route is available here).. To get there, take Harmony Road (aka County Road 38E) west from Fort Collins, continue around the southern end of Horsetooth Reservoir and go past the entrance to the South Bay Area, where there is a boat ramp and camping. Go up the hill and pass an overlook on the right, then descend a steep hill from which you can see the Marina to your right. Continue on around the sweeping right turn and turn right onto Shoreline Drive as if you're going to the Marina. Follow Shoreline Drive past the marina and the camping areas until you see the trailhead on the left. Larimer County also has directions to this site. The parking area here requires a parking permit, which I believe is $6 for the day. If you have an annual County Parks pass, you need not buy a daily parking permit.
To get to the Blue Sky trail from the Soderberg Open Space trailhead, you need to take the Inlet Bay trail back to the south through the Inlet Bay campground toward CR38E. At the end of the Inlet Bay trail, which is crushed gravel, a dirt trail continues on to the south. Although it is not signed, that trail connects to the Blue Sky Trail. In a short distance from the end of the Inlet Bay trail, the trail goes under CR38E via an underpass. This is what I consider to be the real beginning of the Blue Sky Trail. If you ride up CR38E from Fort Collins, it's possible to get on the trail north of the underpass by turning right down the dirt road just before the underpass, which is near the bottom of the steep downhill that begins as you pass the Horsetooth Reservoir Overlook on the right.
Once you are through the underpass, the trail is flowing singletrack for about three miles to an intersection with the Coyote Ridge Trail. The trail climbs gradually for about two miles, descends gradually for about a mile, then makes a short climb to the intersection with the Coyote Ridge trail. In the first couple of miles there are a few blind corners, some of which are sharp. The trail winds around some large rocks, and riders should be cautious so as not to collide with other trail users on these blind corners. The trail descends quickly from the intersection with the Coyote Ridge trail down into the valley. There is a sharp right turn at the bottom of the descent, so watch your speed. There is a small gully after the turn, and then an intersection with a dirt road. The Indian Summer Loop goes up the hill on the west side of the valley. The Blue Sky Trail continues to the south on the jeep road. I like to climb the Indian Summer Loop from the north.
From the north, the Indian Summer Loop begins with some moderate climbing and there are a couple of mildly technical sections including some rocks and a hairpin corner. They're not very technical, but beginning mountain bikers may need to walk some short parts of the trail here. The scenery in this area is great, and the trail is fun. The Indian Summer Loop weaves around on the western slope above the Blue Sky Trail doing some climbing and some descending until it joins an old road that switchbacks down the hill to rejoin the Blue Sky Trail. The road is loose, rocky, and overgrown so riders should watch their speed. At the junction with the Blue Sky Trail, one can go right about 1.4 miles to get to the Devil's Backbone trail, or one can turn left onto a short section of singletrack that eventually hits a jeep road and returns to the intersection with the Indian Summer Loop described above. From there, you can retrace your steps up to the intersection with the Coyote Ridge trail and then on to the Soderberg Open Space. The Indian Summer Loop is about 2 miles, and it's about 3/4 of a mile from the south end of the Indian Summer Loop back to the North end via the Blue Sky Trail.
The trail is mostly dirt, and should not be ridden when wet. The trail is fairly popular, and you should watch out for other bicyclists, runners, and horseback riders. There is water and a pit toilet at the Soderberg Open Space trailhead, but there is no water elsewhere along the trail, and in spite of how close the trail is to Fort Collins, much of the trail has no cell phone signal. The ride I've described here is about 13.35 miles, and involves about 1000 feet of climbing.
Newman > Bicycling > Coyote Ridge
Last Modified: 29 September 2007
By: David Newman