CENTENNIAL TO ELK MOUNTAIN – 68 miles

After leaving Centennial, riders will begin ascending into the Snowy Mountains area of Medicine Bow – Routt National Forest. The first part follows paved twisties on Barber Lake Road through Libby Creek Recreation Area before returning to the highway.

After a couple miles of pavement on Highway 130, watch for a right turn which soon becomes Towner Lake Road, a rugged scenic track below the Snowy Mountains. Look for moose which frequent the small lakes along this road. You’ll find campgrounds galore in this area north of the highway. The brief dirt thoroughfare connects back to pavement and heads westward on Highway 130. You should stop at one of the two signed viewpoints along this section to photograph the mountains.

As Highway 130 descends you’ll have to decide again whether to take an harder section. This one involves a deep water crossing and rugged roads for eight miles. Early in the riding season this creek crossing might be too deep and fast flowing to attempt. If so, just take the main route. Soon a 6.5 mile long side trip leads up to the summit of Kennaday Peak (elev. 10,810 ft). Early in the year snow will linger and after the first snows of fall appear this summit might not be attainable. At other times, it’s worth the extra time as the riding is top notch and the views at the summit are rewarding.

The rest of this section heads north through typical forest roads before the skies open again to treeless farmlands and wide fast roads leading to the town of Elk Mountain (pop. 194). We recommend filling up at the gas station where the track crosses Interstate 80 as it has high octane fuel and the one in Medicine Bow does not.