I'm going to be in Denver for one day. There are a lot off places to bike. Where should I ride? What are the best trails, bike routes etc... And where should I eat, drink beer*, etc...? I have never been there before.
*420 is not a selling point for me, FYI.
The Cherry Creek Trail is nice. Starts near downtown, at the confluence with a larger river, across from a large REI store (which is in an old warehouse building). The trail has separate bike and ped zones, on opposite sides of the creek, in the busiest area.
Posted by: Purple Eagle | April 22, 2016 at 07:06 AM
On a brief visit to Denver, I found and enjoyed killing time at the Denver Bicycle Cafe
http://denverbicyclecafe.com/
Posted by: Ed | April 22, 2016 at 08:29 AM
I was briefly in Denver last month for a conference. The trail along Cherry Creek is pretty nice.
Posted by: Atlas Cesar | April 22, 2016 at 09:33 AM
Word of warning on the altitude: Denver is high enough that you will notice if you are exercising. My in laws in Denver used to chuckle when people came from out of town and got winded on a walk.
Posted by: SJE | April 22, 2016 at 10:40 AM
There is a trail running E-W (or maybe SW-NE) north of downtown that leads to Golden CO, which is a nice little town to enjoy lunch and a cup of coffee. Heading west and starting north of downtown., the rail parallels I-76, I-70 and CO-58 (I can only vouch for the part west of Sheridan Blvd). From there you can ride up to Red Rocks via US-6, US-40 and CO-93. This involves riding uphill along the shoulder of a highway. I enjoyed that ride. Red Rocks is a place where you can walk right in, assuming there is no event happening. Very beautiful.
In general, my experience in Denver is that they have nice trails but lousy bike lanes. Then again, most of my riding has been in the burbs (my sister lives in Arvada). Olde Town Arvada (yes they spell it that way) is right off of the Ralston Creek Trail and is another great place to stop for lunch or coffee. And they have a very nice used book store. It is about a mile off of the E-W trail I mentioned above.
Posted by: Jonathan Krall | April 22, 2016 at 10:50 AM
Checkout the Buckhorn Exchange for food unless you are a vegetarian. Interesting history and food. Has the first liquor license issued in Colorado.
Posted by: Kim | April 22, 2016 at 12:14 PM
Pics or it didn't happen.
Posted by: DE | April 22, 2016 at 01:52 PM
I live in Denver!
Definitely recommend the Cherry Creek Trail, High Line Canal Trail, and the trail referenced earlier that goes out to Golden. The Windy Saddle Cafe is a great spot for a mid-ride break, burrito, coffee stop, etc. I usually make a point of grabbing a bite there when I bike to Golden.
If you're really up for a challenge, head to Lookout Mountain. It's tough, so definitely heed the advice previously mentioned about altitude. It's real!
Huge shoutout to the Denver Bicycle Cafe as well. One of my favorite spots in the city.
Posted by: Will | April 22, 2016 at 09:12 PM
Platte river trail also good, leads to mountain roads or the town of Morrison near Redrocks. For in-town, do Cherry Creek from confluence park to Cherry Creek reservoir. Probably 13 miles one way. Do some recon on the 15th pbl, the 16th street mall (bikes allowed now), and Arapahoe pbl too.
Posted by: Will | April 23, 2016 at 01:58 AM