Rio Grande Trail

The Rio Grande Trail is a short, easy cross-country ski route on Bureau of Land Management land in the Colorado River Valley Field Office, about 0.1 mile from the town of Basalt, Colorado. The trail is an out-and-back with a total length of about 0.2 miles, and it sits at roughly 6,844 feet, with the high point at 6,852 feet. The climb is nearly flat, with no elevation gain or loss, and the steepest stretch is about 5% at 0.05 miles in. Winter is the natural season for skiing here. Typical averages from a nearby weather station in Aspen show January highs around 35°F and lows near 9°F, while June and July run in the upper 70s and low 80s. That station sits about 870 feet higher than the trail, so temperatures on the trail run a little warmer. The Basalt-Old Snowmass Trail and the Rio Grande Trail Soft Surface both lie about 0.1 mile away. For a change of pace, the Arbaney-Kittle hike is about 2.2 miles off, and the Roaring Fork River offers river fishing about 2.5 miles away.