Description: I know what you are thinking.  "If I had a nickel for every time I wished I could get on a bicycle and pedal to a great micro-brewery I'd be rich."  Well, here you are.  And we're not talking just one brewery here.  No no no.  We're talking bike riding to SIX great breweries in Boulder, over some of the best multi-use paths and dedicated bike lanes in the country.  Boulder is one of only four towns to win a Platinum award as a 'Bike Friendly' town from the League of American Bicyclists.  And it's home to many seriously good and nationally known breweries.  A perfect marriage, n'est pas?

This route selection has been developed through 2 years of dedicated beer taste testing, cycling, and sometimes falling into ditches.  We've put some serious effort here.  And based on our extensive experience I can tell you it is very likely you won't make it to all of the breweries on this list.  And that is probably a good thing.  However many you do visit, remember to drink responsibly and catch a bus if you've have too much to drink.  Boulder buses all have bike racks for two or more bikes.  Or call an Uber, or Boulder Ztrip.  You don't want to be huffing it back to Boulder with too much alcohol in you.  It's illegal and it can make for a messy trail, if you get my drift.

Now that we have that out of the way let's talk about how much fun this ride is on a nice day.  Probably 80% of this ride is on beautiful multi-use paths along Boulder Creek, South Boulder Creek and Goose Creek.  Where there is riding on roads there are dedicated bike lanes to keep you safe.  Even without the breweries sprinkled in this is a fantastic ride. There are really two ride options here, a shorter 8.5 mile loop that cuts off the east side Upslope and Uhl’s breweries, and a longer double-loop that lengthens the trip to 12.5 miles. Either ride will be give you a great view of Boulder’s famous bike trails and breweries.

If you are planning a meal on this ride, which I highly recommend, the earlier you eat the better.  Many of the breweries offer great food menus to compliment their beers.  All breweries also offer beer flights or tasters which allow you to try beers in 3-4 oz pours, helping to keep down your intake of alcohol.

Brewery Hours:  Most breweries are open by 2-3 pm, with those serving food opening earlier for lunch. However, some may have different hours or may have closing days on the weekend or during the week. No worries as there are more breweries on this route than you will likely care to stop by!

Challenge Level: Easy, 8.5 To 12.5 Miles, 300' Elevation, 6 Breweries, Take As Long As You Like.  We've had visitors who haven't ridden bikes in many years ride this route with little difficulty.  That said, sun, heat and alcohol all will have an impact on how far you can comfortably ride.  It's recommended this ride be done as a lunch ride, when it's cooler.   Take a water bottle with you and refill it often at the breweries.  Note that this ride is not optimized to just hit breweries, but to give you both a flavor of Boulder beers and our great trail system.  Certainly you could cut out a good section of the trail riding, but you would be missing some beautiful scenery in East Boulder if you do.  So don't.  Besides, you want to burn off those beer calories, right???

Trailhead: This ride starts from University Bicycles, located at 839 Pearl St., Boulder, CO 80302, as they have the most bikes available for rental in the downtown area.  If you are staying close to downtown this is an easy walk from your hotel or B&B.  The staff at UBikes is very friendly and will get you rolling on a great bike in no time, along with a helmet, lock, and tire repair kit.  Don't forget to add your own water bottle or pick one up at UBikes.  

Before You Ride:  I try to be as clear as possible on directions in the Trail Guide, but this route can be a little confusing at times.  I highly recommend checking out the photo directions on the EveryTrail map below.  There are also directions for downloading the EveryTrail GPX file and uploading it into MotionX GPS ($1.99) for the iPhone, if you are interested.  Click on the EveryTrail link below and look at the Tips section of the route.  For just tracking mileage to the next turn or direction, download Strava, free for the iPhone and Android.  Just fire it up and start tracking before you leave University Bicycles.  It will accurately track your distances and you'll have you're own record of the ride.

Map Resources: Boulder Bike and Pedestrian Map  

Trail Guide: For this ride, because there are so many trails you will travel and cross I'm going to provide more of a dry list of directions.  My apologies, but better a dry list of directions than a lost rider!

1. From University Bicycles cross Pearl, heading south on 9th, crossing Walnut and Canyon. After Canyon take the path to the right just before the bridge over Boulder creek which will take you to the statue of Chief Niwot.

2. Turn left onto Boulder Creek Path traveling east/southeast. Boulder Creek Path is well marked and will always parallel Boulder Creek, either on the north or south bank. There will be a lot of people on the trail, so just ask if you are not sure. Enjoy the scenery! Rest when you need or want to. You will cruise for about 5.5 miles on a slightly downhill trail to your first brewery.

3. At 2.7 miles you will pass under the double bridges of Arapaho Rd. Just past the bridges make a right turn on the connector trail up to Arapaho, cross the creek and on your right you will see SKA Street Brewstillery. The SKA brewery in Durango is one of my favorites and it’s a treat to have them in Boulder since 2020. Enjoy some good brews, food and head back to the Boulder Creek Path when you are ready.

4. At 4.1 miles you will pass the left turn for Goose Creek Path. If you are opting to take the shorter route today, turn left onto Goose Creek and skip to step #13 below.

5. At 4.5 miles you will pass under 55th St. Continue on across the wooden bridge toward the business office ahead. Past the office watch for a sign toward Stazio Ball Fields, heading toward the fields. Here Boulder Creek Path changes to South Boulder Creek Path.

6. At about 5.1 miles you will see the last sign for Stazio Ball Fields indicating the fields are 0.1 miles to the left. DO NOT turn here but continue straight on South Boulder Creek Path. You will pass under a small railroad bridge and come to a second Arapahoe Rd. underpass. Take the connector trail up to Arapahoe instead of taking the underpass.

7. Turn right on Arapahoe staying in the painted bike lane until you come to 55th St. If you are not comfortable with the traffic on Arapahoe, the sidewalks are extra wide here and allow bikes.

8. At 55th turn right. After about 100 yards you will see a divided entrance to a business park on the left. Turn left here, and then quickly turn right after the first building. In the back corner you will find Uhl’s Brewing Company at 5460 Conestoga Court. At Uhl’s they love their Hazy IPAs, which makes me love them! Enjoy!

9. Return to 55th, turn left, cross the railroad tracks and at the next intersection turn right on Central Ave.

10. About two blocks down Central, near the corner of S. Flatiron Ct., and at the 7.4 mile marker you will find the new digs of Upslope Brewery (1898 S. Flatirons Ct.) with their signature grain silo and outside seating area. Rinse. Repeat. Three breweries down, how we doing? Still feeling strong, my friend? Okay, let's continue.

11. Return down Central, turning right 55th and continuing on the bike lane. At about 8.2 miles you will come upon a connector path with a large boulder identifying it as the Boulder Creek Path. Aha! You have returned. You will take the connector down, across the wooden bridge, and head back west on the Boulder Creek Path toward downtown.

12. After about 0.4 miles on the BCP you will come to the turn we mentioned above in step 4. Turn right onto Goose Creek Path. Watch for, and listen for the chirp of, prairie dogs. You should see many of them along this section if the weather is nice.

13. After about 0.3 miles on GCP you will come to a split. Stay on Goose Creek Path to the left toward East Mapleton Ball Fields.

14. Not long after the split you will come to a bridge road headed into and industrial park on your right. Turn into the park, turn left and look for a green rows of shops that houses Kettle and Spoke Brewery. Relax and refresh yourself, heading back across the bridge on right onto the trail when done.

15. After a short 100 yards GCP will cross 47th. Turn right, then turn left and down the underpass under Foothills Parkway (following the sign for GCP and East Mapleton Ball Fields). After the underpass turn left crossing the wooden bridge and continuing along GCP (Do not take the trail that parallels Foothills Parkway.)

16. Stay on Goose Creek Path and continue following the creek, under several overpasses, until it ends at Edgewood Drive at 11.3 miles.

17. Turn left on Edgewood, using the bike lanes, to 19th St.

18. Turn left on 19th, going up a small rise. Here the road becomes 20th. Take 20th to Pine and turn right onto Pine.

19. After you pass 17th St. look to the right for 1619 Pine St. Do you recognize this house? This is the Mork and Mindy House. Don't remember Mork and Mindy. Well then, Nanu-nanu to you. If you are old enough to remember it, here's a little trivia to lay on your friends.

    1. What TV show did Mork first appear on? - Happy Days

    2. Which comedian joined the show in later seasons as Mearth? - Jonathan Winters

20. Okay, enough Earth Humor. Continue a little further on Pine to 16th and turn left. This will take you to Pearl St. Turn right on Pearl and quickly look on the right for Mountain Sun Brewery (1535 Pearl St.) a few doors down. If you still have any ability to sample beer you should definitely try Mountain Sun's selection. It's incredible. NOTE: Mountain Sun is a cash-only business. There is an ATM in the back.

21. Continue on Pearl where you will be forced to turn right on 15th. One block later you will turn left on Spruce.

22. Cross Broadway and turn left on 11th, then right on Pearl. Two blocks down is University Bicycles where you can return your bikes. Congratulations!

23. Ah, but that was only FIVE breweries and you promised us SIX! Well, turn left out of Ubikes, cross 9th St on Pearl and you will find yourself at Oskar Blues where you can sip a stellar brew and swap stories of your great ride around Boulder!

Après Hike:  Yeah, I'm thinking we don't need one today!

Restrooms: You better hope so!

Cell Service: Good coverage.