THE SAND CREEK EXPERIENCE DECEMBER 2012

I hadn't ridden Sand Creek the whole way for a while. I'd read in the Denver Post that a couple of spurs off this trail have just been funded by Lottery Proceeds. YAY! So I took an RTD bus to the drop zone to explore Sand Creek to see what is new. 

To get there I caught the RTD 15 Ltd downtown near 17th & Champa at the X Stop and took it to East Colfax and Salida, way the heck out there, past Airport Road. 

Here's a picture of the trail head.

"Wilderness In The City" is an excellent slogan. On this ride I saw a Bald Eagle, a Coyote, a Beaver Lodge and Dam and a fat Hawk perched above a Prairie Dog colony.            

Here's the trail heading South from Colfax. We're going North today. I never have explored the Southern route. I'll get around to it one of these days.

CRAPPY BRIDGE ALERT! 

This is the bridge that carries East Colfax over Sand Creek. Tens of thousands  of cars cross this bridge every day. Only a matter of time before it deteriorates and collapses because people here don't like to pay taxes. Maybe they assume the bridge fairy will repair it. 

Driving over it you don't see just how bad it is.

But enough about that Now we're off to explore the entire Sand Creek Trail. It's been widened and graded lately, maybe a paved surface is not far off. I used to live out this way and this path is much improved from the single track I used to ride. I used to get flat tires constantly despite Mr. Tuffy tire liners and slimed tubes. No tire piercing thorns on this ride.

It's a scenic ride with a lot of big majestic trees.

The underpasses under the road are paved, this is Airport Blvd.

Here's a map of Sand Creek.

The rules of the Sand Creek Trail.

There is some single track, intended for Horses. It gets really sandy and is hard to ride on a bike so I mostly kept to the wide path.

The arrows guide Horse traffic.

I saw many frozen Beaver ponds. There are tracks on this one.

Big healthy Tree.

It's a nice trail intersected every now and then by a road.

The Star K Ranch is a Nature Center. Horses and Bikes prohibited.

The picnic area is not off limits. I didn't bring a lunch today but I had a Cliff Bar here.

Under Chambers Road.

I'd seen evidence of Beavers but I started seeing a lot more. 

Here we see a frozen Beaver Pond with a hole in the ice to allow ingress and egress.

Hey there's the Beaver Lodge. The beavers enter and exit through underwater entrances. Nice and cozy inside the Lodge.

Beaver Dam, frozen pond in Winter.

Looking back the other way on Mr. Beaver's pond.

Pretty soon you come into an urban area. Hey, there's a 7-11 across the bridge. Get air for your tires or water and snacks.

Bikes can cruise on the sidewalk, Horses have separate paths along here.                           

There are a couple of unique bridges along this section.

This wide swath of nature along Sand Creek probably contains a lot of wild life. I bet there aren't many stray cats around here.

There's the second bridge.

In the distance you can see the bridge where Tollgate Creek & Sand Creek merge.

Over the bridge we go.

Frozen Sand Creek.

There is the Bald Eagle I saw.

Here's a small lake owned by Geese. Jeez too bad Eagles don't eat Geese. Look at all that crap!

A heck of a lot of birds.

The single track trail along here is closed for now.

Entering Denver.

Past the Bluff Lake Nature Center. Bikes prohibited here too.

You can see the city of Denver against the backdrop of the Rocky Mountains. The lone tower on the right was the Air Control tower at old Stapleton Airport.

Now we're riding into old Stapleton Airport. Looks like they planted a strip of grass along here.

Ever since I spotted that Eagle I was looking for a nest large enough for him. That could be it.

There it is from a distance.

Waterfall on Sand Creek.

There is a short section of the trail that is closed due to construction of the light rail line to the airport. I went through anyway. Unbeknownst to me there was a Coyote just beyond this barrier. In the distance you can see the concrete walls that used to support a runway at Stapleton.

As I approached I startled the Coyote who ran into the Creek and hid on the island seen in the middle of this picture. I hung out for 20 minutes to try to get a picture but no luck.

Just past the light rail construction is the new bridge.

Here we are looking back at the construction zone. The bike path used to come under that bridge. I came to a sign that said no pedestrians or bikes. I ignored the sign and carried my bike 100 feet or so over the rail line to here. No problem. There were heavy vehicles in the area but none where I crossed.

Then I saw the fat Hawk. There he is on the far left. He was perched over a Prarie Dog colony.

I got too close and he flew away. Here he is near the airplane junk yard near old Stapleton.

Wrecked planes.

Homeless encampment. Sure wish they'd clean up after themselves.

There is the new I-70 bridge over Sand Creek. The last time I was here the creek was flowing through a culvert. Looks like everything is hunky dory now.

You go by a motel in Commerce City. Cheap!

Go by the good ol' Sapp Brothers Truck stop.

Look at you, Commerce City. It's like you're proud or something. Way to represent!

The Sierra Club was instrumental in getting the Sand Creek Trail built.

It was like 3:15 PM and I realized it would be dark in an hour or so. The plan was to ride to the Platte, turn right to the Clear Creek path, then up Clear Creek to Federal so I could catch an RTD bus back to Denver.

Some sights along Sand Creek.

Waterfall on Sand Creek.

A rest area along the trail.

This is a park along the trail. It is also where a new trail has opened to the Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge.  

I need to explore that trail very soon. I didn't go to to trail itself but it was supposed to be completed Summer 2012.

Another waterfall.

I obeyed the sign. I ride slowly, examining the trees and fields for wildlife. If you're in a hurry you miss so much.

On my last night ride on Sand Creek I watched a Fox cruising along those train tracks to cross the creek. It wouldn't have done any good to take a picture at night but this is where I was when I saw the Fox. 

Ride slow. See more.

Yet another waterfall.

There is the Benzene pollution recovery effort at the Suncor Refinery.Still leaking Benzene into Sand Creek.

Crossing the Fisher Ditch with Denver & the Rockies in the background.

Looking East at the Fisher Ditch.

There is Sand Creek meeting the South Platte River. Now it's a mile to Clear Creek and a couple more up to Federal Avenue.

The sun is setting.

Clear Creek. 

It's a couple miles to Federal.

Good ol' Clear Creek.

Beavers gone crazy.

Geese on a frozen pond.

Nice sunset on Clear Creek. When I got to Federal I caught a #31 back to Denver. 

 
It was a fun relaxing ride with a lot to see. 

Four stars, my usual rating. In 35 miles I encountered no one and although I do enjoy my private trail maybe more people should enjoy it too.