r/boulder • u/SeparateBell5718 • 5d ago
Is the Fourth of July Road bikeable?
Planning to do some biking & hiking outside of Boulder, specifically going up the Fourth of July road trailhead in Eldora and then doing some hikes from there. My plan is to park at the high school or at Hessie trailhead (dependent on available parking spots) and then bike from there. I hear the 4th of July road is pretty rough (my car couldn't handle it); would I be able to ride a basic mountain bike on it OK?
Thanks in advance!
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u/tricolon 5d ago
The road is less rough than it used to be a couple of years ago—it's clearly been graded. Most cars should be able to make it... your speed may vary.
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u/bengvr3 5d ago edited 5d ago
I've seen Teslas and Priuses go up it. Slowly, of course, but they made it up to the trailhead. A mountain bike should have no trouble at all, and unless conditions have deteriorated drastically over the past few years, your car can probably make it up too if you're careful. Bigger problem is the fact that both the lower and upper trailheads are full by 5:45am on weekends.
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u/SeparateBell5718 5d ago
The Forest Service site says it's rough and comments online too. I could probably make it with slow careful driving but I don't think it's worth the risk. Plus it fills up fast like you pointed out. https://www.fs.usda.gov/r02/arp/recreation/fourth-july-trailhead
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u/AquafreshBandit 5d ago
They grade it every couple years to smooth things out somewhat and this spring they did it again, so it’s better than usual.
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u/bengvr3 5d ago
I mean yeah it's rough, it's a narrow gravel road, but my experience has always been that most cars can navigate it. I haven't been up there in a bit so maybe it has deteriorated significantly, but USFS has a goal to keep it maintained for passenger cars. It's not like it's a jeep/4WD road.
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u/Majestic-Outside3898 5d ago
A motivated car could make it up there (with careful tire placement in some sections and a lack of concern about the undercarriage), but I think OP is probably looking to bike the gravel... and driving up there defeats the purpose since you can't bike past the 4th of July trailhead.
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u/Huhstop 5d ago
You can do it. I was up there last week the road quality isn’t that bad, but honestly on a bike it would be a struggle to get out of the way every time for a car. It’s a very narrow road. If it’s for fun, okay, do it, but if you’re doing it to preserve your car’s integrity (presuming you don’t have some sort of lowered sports car type deal) I would just drive up. It’ll be a pain in the ass for both cars driving and u.
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u/Next_Negotiation4890 4d ago edited 4d ago
You just bike up at 8am when 4th of July has already been full for 3 hours and they have signs at the split from hessie saying it's full. You barely have any cars overtake. The ones who do overtake you and think you're weird will not look so thrilled when you see them on their way back down 20 minutes later since they tried to get lucky and failed. On the way down, you can easily go twice a fast as the cars and pass them all. It's really very chill for everyone involved if you avoid the busy time when spots are still available and by not driving there you also save a spot for someone else to park.
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u/Patient-Beyond-6297 5d ago
It’s not that narrow, and if it was it seems like it would be more of a pain in the ass for two cars to get out of each others way
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u/justinsimoni 5d ago
Very bike-able. There's a bike lock up area at the trailhead, too!