March can be a tough time to hit the trail running. It’s the snowiest month of the year for the mountains and Front Range, and even if the snows don’t come, chances are the trails are still snowpacked and icy. There’s only one thing to do: head west to Fruita.
Fruita (population: 6,500) sits on the Western Slope near Grand Junction in a pocket of particularly mild climate. While the mountains are still getting hammered with snow, residents in Fruita typically enjoy high temperatures that hover between 50 and 60 degrees Fahrenheit. Pair that with ample sunshine and Utah-like canyon country, and you’ve got the workings of a great trail running destination.
The premier local trail is Kokopelli’s Trail, originally built by local mountain bikers in 1989 with cooperation from the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service. In recent years, it’s gained a following among trail runners and hikers as well, and for good reason.
A desert environment. Red rock and slick rock stone formations. Views of the Colorado River below and the Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness just across the river. At least nine different species of cacti. Plenty of wildlife to go around: coyotes, mountain lions, desert bighorn sheep, foxes, desert cottontail rabbits, golden eagles, canyon wren, yellow-headed collared lizards and the plateau whiptail.
Kokopelli’s Trail was named for Kokopelli, a fertility deity common to some Native American tribes throughout the Southwest. If you’ve ever seen the hunched, dancing figure playing a flute and wearing a headdress, you’ve seen Kokopelli. The trail spans 142 miles from Fruita all the way to Moab, Utah. But unless you’re an ultramarathoner with a penchant for punishment, you’ll want to tackle a more manageable section of trail.
Try Mary’s Loop, which begins at the eastern terminus for the trail just outside Fruita. From Kokopelli’s Trailhead, climb south on a dirt road over a low ridge, and then descend to the Rustler’s Loop Trailhead at mile 0.5. From here, Kokopelli’s Trail continues up a short but steep hill that gains the top of a bench overlooking the Colorado River. Once on the bench, the trail levels off considerably as you run through piñon pines and juniper trees over alternating sections of hardpacked sand and exposed slick rock. The trees soon give way to open expanses of rock and sand as you hug the rim of the canyon below.
After 1.4 miles (1.9 miles total), you’ll reach a stunning overlook with unsurpassed views of the Colorado River, Black Ridge Canyons Wilderness, and the trail ahead. Horsethief Bench is below you. Views throughout the run are gorgeous, but when you reach this overlook, you’ll simply know.
Continue another 2.5 miles before the trail makes a hard right turn and heads up into the hills, destined for a saddle between the Moore Fun and Mack Ridge trails. About another 1.2 miles brings you to the junction with those trails. From there you have a choice. If your legs are ready for more, turn east onto the Moore Fun Trail, where it’s 4.5 miles back to the dirt road between Kokopelli’s and Rustler’s Loop trailheads. Or continue north for 0.2 miles to the Lion’s Loop Trailhead. Turn east onto a mellow dirt road and follow it for 2.3 miles back to Kokopelli’s Trailhead. Depending on your choice, your total mileage will be 11.1 or 8.9, respectively.
Alternatively, if you’re looking for shorter loops, Kokopelli’s is littered with phenomenal spur trails that offer equally enticing loops. From the Rustler’s Loop Trailhead (accessible by car), follow Rustler’s Loop for 3.6 meandering miles over rolling hills and beneath rock cliffs. From the Horsethief Bench overlook on Kokopelli’s, descend onto Horsethief Bench and run the same-named loop for 3.6 miles, returning the way you came on Kokopelli’s. Or, from the Lion’s Loop Trailhead (also accessible by car), head southwest 0.8 miles before turning onto Steve’s Loop, a 2.9 mile loop that runs along the edge of canyon rims and weaves its way in and out of numerous side canyons.
No matter what your choice, you won’t be disappointed.
Directions: From Fruita, drive west on I-70 and take Exit #15, Loma. Cross over the interstate to the south. At the access road, turn right (west), heading toward a weigh station. Shortly before the station, turn left (south) onto a gravel road and follow it for 0.5 miles to Kokopelli’s
Trailhead. For Lion’s Loop Trailhead, continue on the gravel road for another 2.3 miles. For Rustler’s Loop Trailhead, continue on the gravel road and
make your first left, continuing for 0.5 miles to the trailhead.
Peter Bronski (www.peterbronski.com) is an award-winning writer from Boulder, CO. He wrote about husband and wife runners Greg and Emily
Brinkman in a recent issue of Colorado Runner. His book, At the Mercy of the Mountains: True Stories of Survival and Tragedy in New York’s
Adirondacks is out this month from The Lyons Press.