Lots of skid marks on the trails. After a while on these trails you get a sense for what's good riding, what's good for the trails and what isn't, as well as becoming somewhat protective of them. IMO constant skidding is not cool. Bike handling skills?
Looking north over part of Golden, with Rocky Flats in the upper right:
Green Mountain in Lakewood:
What I assume is the usual elk herd was lounging around on the hillside:
This run was on the late side, but I had a headlamp and didn't want to cut it short just because of lack of light. The forest quickly got rather dim even on the way up, and was pretty dark on the way down. There was crusty snow, so I'm glad I had the lamp.
About a mile from the turnaround at the top of the canyon:
There are some large, solitary rocks on the Enchanted Forest trail, which are covered with moss. This section of trail is my favorite for sure. The shapes were eerie in dim evening light.
Looking back up the trail with a couple of miles to go:
Distance was 8.78 miles, time 2:12 (moving 1:44), elevation gain/loss 1,841 feet, avg. pace 15:08 (moving 11:54), and best pace 7:36.
