Rattlesnake-WoodsGulch-Larch-Sidewinder Trails

Larry Dent and Alden Wright


Starting Location: Rattlesnake Recreation Area Trailhead.

Distance: 12.75 miles
Cumulative Elevation Gain: 2224 feet
Moving Time: 1:35 hours
Type: Loop, mostly singletrack, some dirt roads
Climb Difficulty (range 1 to 6): 3.5



Cross Rattlesnake Drive and ride up Woods Gulch Road and the Woods Gulch trail to the 4-way intersection of the Woods Gulch Trail with 3-Larch and 2-Larch. Take the second left which is the 2-Larch trail. This trail follows a very old road slightly uphill to a logging road. When you come out on the logging road, go left for about a mile to where the most traveled trail clearly leaves the road going downhill. This is the 3-Larch single-track trail which follows the ridge for about a half a mile, then switches back and sidehills above Woods Gulch. You cross a side gulch where the trail does a significant drop followed by a short steep climb. Eventually you reach the 4-way intersection mentioned above. Follow the Woods Gulch trail to the ridge between Woods Gulch and Marshall, and follow this ridge down until you do a short steep climb to a high point. Sidewinder starts here. When you come out on a road, cross the road and continue downhill on the Son of Sidewinder trail. After crossing another road, you hit the third road which you follow to Danny O'Brien Gulch and then to the Woods Gulch Trailhead. From here, you can ride the extension of Lincoln Hills Drive west past a gate down to Tamarack Drive and Rattlesnake Drive.

GPS-derived map.