Biking & mountain biking
Hwy 12 (The Scenic Highway of Legends) is a beautiful road for bicycling, and plays host to an annual century ride from La Veta to Segundo and back. It is moderately traveled but lacks wide shoulders and becomes quite steep as you progress towards Cuchara Pass. The ride from the cabin to Monument Lake and back is relatively short and features a thrilling downhill cruise through the stonewall gap.
The road south, county road 13, runs a few miles with a steady, moderate elevation rise through open country until the road plunges down a hill to the junction with C.R. 12, the Torres road. Turn right to follow the Torres road or left to go to Tercio. On the Torres road you can ride in a loop if you stay right at the first fork and then stay left at each subsequent turn, bringing you back to the junction with C.R. 13. If you take C.R. 13 to Tercio the road runs a couple of miles until it dead-ends next to the ghost-town’s cemetery (which is worth a visit). From the cemetery if you look down the road past the gate you can see the old abandoned mining company store further down the valley. Unfortunately the road is gated and trespassing is prohibited. Wildlife viewing on the Tercio road includes Elk, bobcat, and the occasional bear, all of which are most likely seen around dusk.
The road north from Picketwire, county road 13, runs past Russell Lake to a junction with county road 21.6 at the site of the Trinidad water works and water tower. Taking the left fork leads to HW 12 at North Lake. From North Lake you can return to the cabin via highway12 in a mostly downhill ride. The right fork of CR13 leads to HW 12 at Vigil, the location of the little Catholic church you see on the right about 2 miles before reaching the cabin. From Vigil HW 12 climbs steadily but not steeply until it reaches Picketwire.
Off-road mountain biking trails are located in the San Isabel National Forest in the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, at the Bear Lake campground. The Indian Creek trail begins above the campground and runs 14 miles to the Sulphur Springs campground near La Veta. A shorter ride results from leaving the Indian Creek trail at its junction with the Dodgeton trail, which terminates near Cuchara. Maps and information about these trails can be found at