Turquoise Lake

Description

The Turquoise Lake ride is a 15.5 mile loop around beautiful Turquoise Lake near Leadville.  The ride features high altitude views of Turquoise Lake, the White River National Forest, Mount Massive, and Mount Elbert as you climb, descend, climb, and descend again.

The Route

Start from Leadville Junction, a little parking lot built for just this purpose.  From there ride south alongside the train tracks on road 9D.  Make your first right on Turquoise Lake Rd and head west over the train tracks passing Sugar Loafin' Campground. Continue along Turquoise Lake Rd. as you climb up to the dam and around the lake.

Hazards

The ride features a number of sharp corners on some crazy fast descents.  Also, the road is in very poor shape in some areas and it is unlikely it will be repaved anytime soon.  

Difficulty

With roughly 1800 feet of climb total at 10,000 feet this is not an easy loop around the lake.  If you think the high altitude climbing and the crazy descent fits your style try out the annual Lap the Lake race held each year where you can race others in 1 - 3 loops around the lake.

Overall Rating:

This ride has some great high altitude views of Turquoise Lake, Mount Massive, and Mount Elbert. It also has some good climbing efforts and some crazy descents.  If you are near Leadville don't miss it.