Mountain Biking 101: Signal Peak – Gunnison, CO
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Whether you are recovering from an injury, need a place to ride with the kids, or just want some easier singletrack to ramp up some base miles, there are plenty of fun trails and zones all over Colorado where you can play and have some adventures too. Over the course of this summer and beyond, we will be featuring these zones in our Mountain Biking 101 series of posts.
South of Crested Butte lies the town of Gunnison. Although mountain bikers typically gravitate toward Hartman Rocks, good riding also exists at Signal Peak. Northeast of the Western State Colorado University Campus, Signal Peak is a great area for beginner riders. Yet, it can entertain expert riders as well.
Typically, riders start from the WSCU Campus and begin following a mix of singletrack and road toward Signal Peak.
Signs explain wildlife closures.
Getting closer to Signal Peak.
The trail steepens quite a bit at the summit of Signal Peak and we chose to leave our bikes down lower. The views from the top are pretty good!
Looking at the town of Gunnison.
We then descended Signal Peak.
Instead of going down the way we came up, we descended a trail called Chicken Scratch toward the Contour Trail.
We then followed along the very easy but scenic Contour Trail east, and then all the way west.
There’s definitely some fun riding to be had in the Signal Peak area!
Signal Peak Options
The map below shows a general loop that can be made from the WSCU campus to Signal Peak, down Chicken Scratch and then on to the Contour Trail. The total loop is about 19.6 miles. As the road nears Signal Peak, it becomes increasingly difficult. Beginner riders may choose to skip Signal Peak itself and descend Chicken Scratch with the Contour Trail. Last, the Contour Trail (6.2 miles one way) is the easiest of the bunch and can easily be done as an out and back – a great option for kids!
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