When deciding on the trail of the month I took a very scientific approach. I unfolded a Colorado map and pinned it to the wall. Backed away from the wall about 5 feet, closed my eyes and walked towards the map with my finger extended until my finger touched the wall. I decided that when I did that the closest trail to where my finger touched would be the trail of the month. First attempt I ended up right in the middle of the Hayman wildfire. A little too extreme for our Trail of the Month so I figured I should try again. The second attempt landed me in the Big Thompson Canyon west of Loveland. I found the nearest trail, which happened to be Round Mountain. I thought to myself, "Well that's a lot less extreme than riding through a wildfire." I thought wrong.

Round Mountain has two trails that start from the trailhead. The first trail is a Nature trail that follows a fire road up the mountain. This is a great warm up for those that are mountain biking the second trail called Summit Trail. The Nature trail has a great deal of climbing but the road is very wide and is not technically challenging at all. If you are a beginner and you are interested in taking your time up this trail, there is a pamphlet that you can grab at the trailhead. The map has descriptions written on it. As you bike up the trail you come to posts with numbers on them. Those numbers correspond to the descriptions on the pamphlet. This gives beginners a chance catch their breath while they learn something new about the environment, which is always a bonus. The end of the Nature trail has a small rock built cabin that allows everyone to sit back for a minute and enjoy the surrounding views.

After you have gotten your pictures it's time to turn around and head back towards the Summit Trail junction. Just a word of warning to those continuing on to Summit Trail, when you leave the Nature trail and get on the Summit trail it can only be compared to leaving the paved paths of Heaven and jumping onto the twisty trail to Hell. You can expect four things when riding Summit Trail. First the singletrack is narrow. Second, there isn't more than a couple feet here and there that isn't extremely technical. Third, you will ascend at an incredible rate. Finally, plan on this trail being a Hike-A-Bike. Don't come to this trail thinking you can ride the whole thing and more importantly don't be upset with yourself if you can't ride the whole thing. Hans Ray would have trouble getting over some of the obstacles on this trail.

This is a fun trail for the advanced mountain bike riders. The trail follows extremely rocky singletrack up the side of a mountain. As you ride you get deeper and deeper into the forest. The trees are thick which makes it nice and shady for a cooler ride even on the hot days. This ride gains a great deal of altitude as well. Be sure when riding at the higher altitude that you come prepared for changing weather. Morning is the best time to ride due to afternoon weather that is often times unpredictable in the higher country. We rode early in the afternoon and ended up getting wet from an afternoon rain shower . Getting wet isn't so bad but the lightning can make you nervous escpecially when we saw a couple of trees that were obviously struck by lightning.

The views you are treated to when you are riding the trail are incredible. As you ride higher and higher you will you begin to see over the surrounding mountains and get views of the eastern plains and western Rocky Mountains. I have no doubt that anyone that rides this trail will have plenty of opportunities to take a look around since the rocky singletrack will make you dismount often. I want to emphasize again that doing a Hike-A-Bike trail is fun. Mountain biking isn't just about being able to ride through the mountains. It's also about getting you places faster so you can explore what is out there. Sometimes in order to explore Colorado you just can't get there by bike. It's worth putting your trusty steed on your shoulder to see what is at the end of the trail.

For those beginners out there I would recommend leaving the bike at home and strapping on a pair of hiking boots to take on Summit Trail. For those that are advanced this is what mountain biking is all about. An opportunity to test your ability, lungs and strength while you enjoy a great forest trail. Enjoy!