5.8 miles
Distance
34 ft
Climb
-1,723 ft
Descent
00:55:15
Avg time
Supporters, Builders, Maintainers & Land Managers of South St Vrain Trail

South St Vrain Details

  • Activities
    • Mountain Bike
    • Hike
    • Trail Running
    • Snowshoe
    • Nordic Ski
  • Riding Area
    Brainard Lake and Peaceful Valley
    Ward, Colorado
  • Ref Number
    #909
  • Difficulty Rating
    Double Black Diamond rate
  • Voted Difficulty
    Black Diamond (3 votes)
  • Trail Type
    Singletrack
  • Bike Type
    AM, XC, Fat
  • Direction
    Both Directions
  • Climb Difficulty
    Double Black Diamond
  • Physical Rating
    Hard
  • Dogs Allowed
    Yes
  • eBike Allowed
    No
  • TTFs on Trail
    Rock Garden
  • Global Ranking
    #47630 in Mountain Biking
  • Local Popularity
    60 in Mountain Biking [+]
    • 5 in Trail Running
    • 45 in Hiking
    • 5 in Snowshoeing
    • 5 in Skiing
  • Land Manager
    Boulder Ranger District

If you like techy rock riding you will love this trail, if not, you will hate it. Best ridden from the Brainard Lake area as a downhill but can be ridden from Peak to Peak if you enjoy steep technical climbing. This could also be done as a shuttle in a number of different ways. Probably the most technical "legal" trail in Boulder County.

This trail is also open to fat bikes in the winter.

Local Trail Association
Traditionally Indigenous Territory
More Stats for South St Vrain mountain bike trail trail
  • Altitude change
    -1,689 ft
  • Altitude min
    8,757 ft
  • Altitude max
    10,475 ft
  • Altitude start
    10,446 ft
  • Altitude end
    8,757 ft
  • Grade
    -5.5%
  • Grade max
    -28.7%
  • Grade min
    11.5%
  • Distance climb
    1,204 ft
  • Distance down
    5 miles
  • Distance flat
    912 ft
  • Avg time
    00:55:15
  • Avg reverse time
    02:13:23
  • view trail stats
Status:
on Jun 30, 2022
Dry
Avg: 4.15 (12 votes)
Your vote: 0

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  • Basemap 
  • Trail Style 
    • ?
  • Activity Type  
Trail Conditions
  • Unknown
  • Snow Groomed
  • Snow Packed
  • Snow Covered
  • Snow Cover Inadequate
  • Freeze/thaw Cycle
  • Icy
  • Prevalent Mud
  • Wet
  • Variable
  • Ideal
  • Dry
  • Very Dry
Trail Flow (Ridden Direction)
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The colour categories are based on what percentage of riders are riding a trail in its intended direction.
  • > 96%
  • > 90%
  • > 80%
  • > 70%
  • > 50%
  • < 50%
  • bi-directional trail
  • no data
Trail Last Ridden
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  • < 2 days
  • < 1 week
  • < 2 weeks
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  • > 6 months
Trail Ridden Direction
The intended direction a trail should be ridden.
  • Downhill Only
  • Downhill Primary
  • Both Directions
  • Uphill Primary
  • Uphill Only
  • One Direction
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  • Description
  • Photos
  • Description & Photos
  • Videos
Trail Popularity ?
Trailforks scans ridelogs to determine which trails are ridden the most in the last 9 months. Trails are compared with nearby trails in the same city region with a possible 25 colour shades. Think of this as a heatmap, more rides = more kinetic energy = warmer colors.
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Radar Time
x Activity Recordings
Trailforks users anonymized public ridelogs from the past 6 months.
  • mountain biking recent
  • mountain biking (>6 month)
  • hiking (1 year)
  • moto (1 year)
Activity Recordings
Trailforks users anonymized public skilogs from the past 12 months.
  • Downhill Ski
  • Backcountry Ski
  • Nordic Ski
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      Directions to south-st-vrain trailhead (40.081850, -105.578770)
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      South St Vrain Trail Reports

      statusdatedescription
      Jun 30, 2022 @ 10:09pm
      Jun 30, 2022
      Jun 19, 2022 @ 8:13am
      Jun 19, 2022
      		 A couple splashy parts near the lake. 3 big downed trees between Waldrop and Sourdough intersections. Otherwise ready for summer riding!
      Jul 12, 2021 @ 4:48pm
      Jul 12, 2021
      		 SSV figure 8 is money right now. only a couple of downed trees on the whole loop
      Jun 15, 2021 @ 8:57pm
      Jun 15, 2021
      		 There’s a few snowy sections and several downed trees the first miles or two. After that it’s dry and clear.
      Jun 13, 2021 @ 6:08am
      Jun 13, 2021
      		 Still too much snow from brainard lake. Rode from Waldrop down. Some snow, water, mud taking that route but dries out quickly as you head down.
      view all reports »

      Recent Ridelog Activity on Trail

      Past Week
      • 1 rides
      • 18 miles avg distance
      6 Months
      • 4 rides
      • 12 miles avg distance
      All
      • 105 rides
      •  

      Technical Trail Features (TTF)

      Photos

      more »
      109 |
      Aug 9, 2021 @ 7:59pm
      Aug 9, 2021
      95 |
      Aug 9, 2021 @ 7:59pm
      Aug 9, 2021
      91 |
      Aug 9, 2021 @ 7:59pm
      Aug 9, 2021
      94 |
      Aug 9, 2021 @ 7:59pm
      Aug 9, 2021

      Trail Lists

      Routes with this trail

      titledistance
      South Saint Vrain - Figure 8 featured16 miles
      South St Vrain - Figure 8 and a Half28 miles
      SSV Winter Figure 814 miles

      Trail Products

      2 Reviews & Comments

      • + 1
      anthobroncos (Feb 24, 2019 at 9:35)
       There's only one short section of trail which qualifies as a double black. The rest is squarely a single black.

      Overall grade is low but steady. Lots and lots of rocks on the upper part. Watch for hikers on the weekends.
      [Reply]
      • + 0
      TSole12 (Oct 9, 2020 at 19:34)
       Most of the trail is a black diamond, some super technical sections which definitely qualify as a double black. Lots of fun if you like janky tech
      [Reply]





      Videos

      more »
      youtuber Mountain Biking the Sourdough Trail
      5:04 | 731 | Jun 11, 2018 , Ward
      youtuber FAT Bike ❄️ | Brainard Lake | Trials and...
      12:55 | 235 | Mar 27, 2020 , Ward
      youtuber Shredding South St Vrain | Ward, CO
      502 | Jun 7, 2018 , Ward
      youtuber Vanlife, Dogs, and Backcountry Mountain...
      10:59 | 202 | Sep 6, 2020 , Ward

      Nearby Trails

      Brainard Lake and Peaceful Valley

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