denver trails / commuting downtown to tech center

to anyone who might have info to sha

i live downtown denver and recently starting biking a few times a week to my
job in the tech center, off 25 and belleview - well not all the way, i ride
down to the I-25 and Broadway park and ride, and catch the commuter bus to tech
ctr, (which is very efficient with no stops), then bike another mile or so to
my work.

now that i've done it a few times i'd like to tackle the entire route, about
10-12 miles each way. i'm going to pick up a trail map but curious if anyone
knows good off street paved trails or bike friendly streets to get down to SE
Denver. i know there's paved trails along buchtel and yale - or one that ends
up near happy canyon and hampden.

anyone have any good route secrets?

and i don't know why i JUST started doing this. my bike isn't great - just a
middle-line mtn bike, but it's great to be out in the cool morning air, and
breaks up a day of being in the office. plus my gym is on south broadway too so
easy to stop in. and if i get to worn down the first time i can easily ride
bus back - which all have free bike racks.

i also just read some posts from the "is cycling dangerous" thread and laughed
i've had my private pilot's certificate for a few years and always read
"rev.aviation.piloting" and "rec.aviation.student". if you google the threads
"are small planes dangerous" the answers are EXACTLY the same.

i.e. don't be reckless, be thinking several steps ahead, and know your
limitations on the road - just like i wouldn't fly fatigued on a visual flight
into instrument conditions, (clouds), with potential icing.

it generally seems to be a reckless person, not the mode of transport that's
responsbile, but what gets the blame?

anyway thanks in advance!

james...

kcuspam (Tune2828) writes:

i live downtown denver and recently starting biking a few times a week to my
job in the tech center, off 25 and belleview - well not all the way, i ride
down to the I-25 and Broadway park and ride, and catch the commuter bus to tech
ctr, (which is very efficient with no stops), then bike another mile or so to
my work.

now that i've done it a few times i'd like to tackle the entire route, about
10-12 miles each way. i'm going to pick up a trail map but curious if anyone
knows good off street paved trails or bike friendly streets to get down to SE
Denver. i know there's paved trails along buchtel and yale - or one that ends
up near happy canyon and hampden.

anyone have any good route secrets?

The Cherry Creek Trail runs along Cherry Creek from downtown Denver to
Cherry Creek Reservoir with only a few street crossings and it'll take
you to within 1 - 1.5 miles of I-25 & Belleview. From downtown, catch
the trail somewhere along Speer Blvd and take it southeast. When you
get near the reservoir (you'll see the dam), the trail will take you
past Kennedy Golf Course and then under I-225. As you come out of the
underpass, the trail curves to the left and goes up a short but somewhat
steep little hill. When the grade starts to level off, you'll see
another trail head off to the right -- take that and you'll end up at
Union & Dayton near Cherry Creek High School. From there you'd probably
want to continue west on Union to wherever you need to go in the Tech
Center.

Note that the trail currently has a detour around where Speer becomes
1st Ave. Follow the signs and you'll end up back on the trail at the
entrance to the Denver Country Club.

Another possibility would be to catch the Platte River Trail (aka
Mary Carter Greenway) near REI and take it south to Oxford and make
your way east of Santa Fe and south a couple of blocks to Quincy.
Head east on Quincy and you'll end up at the Quincy/Happy Canyon/
Monaco intersection. Head south from there to wherever you need
to go. Quincy is usually a good street to ride and in places it
has a trail alongside if you'd prefer not to ride in the street.

The Denver Bicycle Touring Club (DBTC - www.dbtc.org) publishes a
map that you should be able to find in bike shops and maybe some
book stores. This map is useful for finding trails and on-street
bike routes.

A site you might want to check out is the Colorado Dept of
Transportation's Bike/Ped Home:

http://www.dot.state.co.us/BikePed/

and i don't know why i JUST started doing this. my bike isn't great - just a
middle-line mtn bike, but it's great to be out in the cool morning air, and
breaks up a day of being in the office. plus my gym is on south broadway too so
easy to stop in. and if i get to worn down the first time i can easily ride
bus back - which all have free bike racks.

Congratulations on getting started!

--
Michael Fuhr
http://www.fuhr.org/~mfuhr/

i live downtown denver and recently starting biking a few times a week to
my
job in the tech center, off 25 and

This is from memory a few years back when I commuted by bike from my home in
the DTC to Westminster (28 miles). I have since moved to Parker, and it is now
34 miles, which is just a bit too much. So it is sort of murky in my mind, but
here goes.

You can take the Cherry Creek Trail S to the Cherry Creek Mall, go across the
creek to South Cherry Creek Drive South and there is a residential cut off
which takes you south to the east-west street which crosses Colorado just south
of the I-25 interchange.

Head south on the residential street paralleling Colorado until about Yale or
Dartmouth, go west to Colorado and cross at the light at Hampden.

Head south on Colorado (a 2 lane road that dead ends at Quincy) to Quincy, and
from there go south to Orchard or east to wherever you work in the Tech Center
or E. to Holly (with bike paths) and south.

Greenwood Village and Cherry Hills Village both have a lot of on-street but
separate lightly used bike trails, and there are ways through, but I would have
to know specifically where you want to go.

A good route over I-25 is S. on Holly just past Orchard to Fair in the Palos
Verdes neighborhood. Cut through Palos Verdes to Locust, right on Locust to
Caley, and follow Caley East across Quebec and cricle Fiddler's Green where it
crosses I-25 and you end up at Dayton and Caley.

The route you will take depends upon just where in DTC you work. Lots of ways
to get there.


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Just a couple of more thoughts as I think about it more.

1. Cross I-25 at Steele south from Cherry Creek Trail.

2. Work your way south to Iliff, go east crossing across Colorado. Then head
south.

Or, you may give me a call for better directions!! Sorry, it has been several
years.





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thanks for the replies! this helps - and i've seen some of the cherry hills
village trails too.

i'll post a report - although my first attempt will probably be one way in the
morning.

most of my biking is around parks or renting when going to mtn towns, and i'm
really enjoying splitting the day up with a ride to and from work -and weather
here in denver has been stellar last week

I was really tired yesterday am and my thoughts were not together.

Better route:

Iliff east past Colorado to Dahlia

S. on Dahlia to Hampden

Cross Hampden, SE on Happy Canyon.

You can head east across I-25 on Quincy (if the bridge is rebuilt) or

continue s where Happy Canyon crosses Quincy and changes to Monaco, and go S to
Belleview - left to DTC, or go through GV on Monaco to Orchard and East to DTC.

Sorry, but this route is much faster.

Good luck and have fun..



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(Denver C. Fox) writes:

Better route:

Iliff east past Colorado to Dahlia

S. on Dahlia to Hampden

Cross Hampden, SE on Happy Canyon.

You can head east across I-25 on Quincy (if the bridge is rebuilt) or
continue s where Happy Canyon crosses Quincy and changes to Monaco, and go S to
Belleview - left to DTC, or go through GV on Monaco to Orchard and East to DTC.

I've ridden that route and it wasn't bad. Making the turn onto
Happy Canyon at that five-way intersection can be a little hairy
if there's a lot of traffic, which there probably is during rush
hour.

Sorry, but this route is much faster.

Depends on where you're starting and how much traffic there is. I
usually prefer streets to trails, but not if stop signs and traffic
signals (which I obey) slow me down more than a trail would.

For regular commuting, varying the route can help keep the ride
from becoming a boring chore. Try going different ways and pick
the routes you like.

--
Michael Fuhr
http://www.fuhr.org/~mfuhr/

thanks again for replies

i've decided from my neighborhood in governors park:

cherry creek trail to downing (which has bike lanes), south on downing thru
wash park, then south on franklin over I-25, then SE on buchtel (trail runs
along part of street). hop down to iliff or yale to take east to dahlia, south
on dahlia which turns into happy canyon which turns into monaco, and i'm there.

i'm right by monaco and belleview, not deep in tech center

sorry to all non-denver people for local references, maybe this will help
someone!

going to try it sometime this week for work - will let others know!

Nice little climb on Dahlia makes you sweaty when you're late.

cheers,
Robert

i've decided from my neighborhood in governors park:

cherry creek trail to downing

Consider CC Trail to Steele

Good Luck, have fun.


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