Monarch Mind Bender route

Name: Monarch Mind Bender
Address: Salida, CO
Rating: 5

near Salida, CO

80.4 miles

Distance

10,598 ft

Climb

-13,047 ft

Descent

2 miles

High Point

-2,449 ft

Altitude change

8,433 ft

Altitude min

11,308 ft

Altitude start

8,858 ft

Altitude end

-0.6%

Grade

-83.7%

Grade max

69.5%

Grade min

38 miles

Distance climb

38 miles

Distance down

4 miles

Distance flat

This ride is long, has multiple extended climbs, is at high elevation, and water sources are few. Bring plenty of food, lots of water, and ample layers. Weather can come in quickly in the high country, be prepared!

Put on your big kid pants, grab plenty of snacks, and earn your turns on five (more if you count parts of Rainbow Trail) amazing descents in a day on this grueling but amazing tour of the Monarch Crest area—South Fooses Creek, Crest, Silver Creek, Starvation Creek and Greens Greek. Don’t be afraid to ride your big bike with grippy tires and a dropper post to maximize the fun

Detailed Description

Monarch Mind Bender is a 80 mile popular expert route located near Salida Colorado. This mountain bike only route and has a extreme overall physical rating. This route includes 10 trails. This route climbs 10,598 ft with a max elevation of 11,965 ft then descends -13,047 ft.

Trail Issues on Route

Significant Issue / Amber: 2 trails (newest: Sep 6, 2025)

Stats

Distance

80 miles
Altitude change

-2,449 ft
Altitude min

8,433 ft
Altitude start

11,308 ft
Altitude end

8,858 ft
Climb

2 miles
Descent

-13,047 ft
Grade

-0.6%
Grade max

-83.7%
Grade min

69.5%
Distance climb

38 miles
Distance down

38 miles
Distance flat

4 miles

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Trails in Route

	South Fooses Creek				7 miles
	Fooses Creek				4 miles
	Marshall Rd Connector				187 ft
	CT - Marshall Pass				3 miles
	Silver Creek				4 miles
	Rainbow				11 miles
	Marshall Rd Connector				187 ft
	Connector				1,552 ft
	Starvation Creek				5 miles
	Green's Creek				6 miles

Details

Riding area

Salida
Primary Activity

Mountain Bike
Difficulty rating

Black Diamond
Route Type

Point to Point
Bike type

AM, XC
Physical rating

Extreme

Distance (Trails & Routes)

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Trail Conditions

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Unknown
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Trail Popularity ?

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ATV/ORV/OHV Filter

ATV - 50 inches
OHV, SxS - 60 inches
Jeep - 72 inches

Max Vehicle Width

inches

Ridelog Year

Radar Time

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mountain biking recent
mountain biking (>6 month)
hiking (1 year)
moto (1 year)

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Downhill Ski
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Winter Trails

Warning A routing network for winter maps does not exist. Selecting trails using the winter trails layer has been disabled.

trail	date	description
Green's Creek	Sep 23, 2025 @ 9:28pm (America/Denver) Sep 23, 2025	Had an absolute blast my first time down it. It’s running great!
South Fooses Creek	Sep 6, 2025 @ 10:06am Sep 6, 2025	Very wet from a big grauple storm up high and rain down low. Several inches of graupel in areas and major puddles down lower. Needs a few days to dry out.
CT - Marshall Pass	Sep 5, 2025 @ 7:25am Sep 5, 2025
Silver Creek	Aug 30, 2025 @ 8:54am Aug 30, 2025
Fooses Creek	Aug 10, 2025 @ 8:20am Aug 10, 2025	The trail as mapped here has probably not been a viable trail for a decade. While there was a bit of a foot trail, there are dozens and dozens of downed trees. Check out the sat map and stay on the dirt utility road if you really wanted to climb back up to the crest from the bottom of Foose, but don't expect to be able to ride it.