The Grizzly – Helena Trail
By Gene Iley, Jr. (970-204-9946)
This trail is in two parts, North and South of Lone Pine Creek. We usually go one way on Saturday and the other on Sunday.
SOUTH TRAIL
The South trail is fairly difficult. It is made up of almost all single track with a few very short jeep road connectors. The trail is mostly dirt, narrow, rocky in places, and has a steep pitch to the east on most of it. There are three creeks to cross. Lone Pine can usually be crossed if one is careful. Roaring Fork and Norris Creeks, however, are generally impassable this time of year and we go around via County roads. There are several challenging sections on this trail including sharp switchbacks, a short steep rubble hill, and a rock garden! Intermediate riders can also do this trail with a little patience and/or help getting through the tough sections listed above. Novice and beginner riders should leave this trail alone.
Near the southern end, the single track intersects a steep
jeep road that takes you about 2 miles up to Aqua Fria Lake. The lake is simply
beautiful and the view, breathtaking. There is also a canyon you can see to the
downstream side of the lake. There is a small dam on the lake that has raised
its elevation several feet and in the spring the outflow of water is a little
tricky and generally considered impassable. 
The north trail is mainly ATV width, but there is an alternate single track path along the first couple of miles. The single track and ATV trail meet about two and half miles north of Lone Pine Creek and it is ATV width the rest of the way. The single track is mostly intermediate in difficulty with one advanced section of long uphill rubble. The ATV trail is intermediate in difficulty for dirt bikes and ATVs. There are three creek crossings (Bear, Ute, and Shafer Creeks). Bear and Ute are passable if the riders are careful. Shafer Creek now has a bridge over it. The trail is a mixture of nice dirt sections and some rocky sections. Again, there are some spectacular views along the way. This is a fantastic Rocky Mountain ride.
DIRECTIONS TO THE STAGING AREA:
On the South side of Walden, turn West on to 12W road from CO HWY125 . Go West on road 12W for 5.5 miles to the intersection with County Road 18. Turn North and continue on 12W (which eventually turns back to the West) for about 6 miles to a “T” intersection with County Road 16. Go South then west on 16 (graded) for 1.5 miles to Lone Pine Creek Ranch. Continue west past the Ranch (slow here) on 16 for 2.5 miles to the National Forest boundary. Parking and primitive camping areas are along this road once in the National Forest. There are 3 trailheads along this road (ATV trailhead on the north side of the road just after entering the National Forest; then two single track trails at 1 and 1.5 miles beyond the National Forest boundary).
