Bike Home From Buena Vista, CO — Ride There for the Day, or Ride to Another Bus Stop
▼ 2,765 ft net descent to Denver Union Station
Buena Vista is the far end of the best point-to-point trick in the book: West Line up to Frisco, ride the Colorado Trail south through the Tenmile and Collegiate Peaks country, and the Outrider brings you and your bike home from the corner of Railroad and Chestnut — 365 days a year, twice a day. The ride home to Denver over Trout Creek Pass and South Park is a genuine century with Fairplay as the natural overnight; riders staying put have the Midland singletrack rolling straight from the stop.
🚲 2 rack spaces guaranteed — more usually fit underneath
Bustang's published limit is two bikes on the rack, first-come first-served, with no reservations. In practice the under-bus luggage bay takes more: riders regularly get three or four bikes on a mountain run. Mountain bikes go in the bay with the front wheel off; gravel bikes usually fit underneath as-is, wheels on.
- Take an early departure — the bay fills with luggage later in the day.
- Pull your front wheel before you get to the curb, especially on a mountain bike.
- A group of four should plan to split across two departures if the bay is full.
- Nothing comes inside the cabin, and nobody is responsible for damage. Pack accordingly.
Rack rules:
Bustang FAQ. Real-world capacity from riders who have done it — treat the bay as likely, not guaranteed.
Rocco & Wolf’s Pick
Planned in Pedal from a sentence — a one-way ride on the Colorado Trail — then ridden for real, start to finish. The bus covers both ends: West Line at Frisco, Outrider at Buena Vista.
Buena Vista → Frisco on the Colorado Trail — 96 mi
The same ride, ridden north: off the Outrider at Railroad & Chestnut, onto the Colorado Trail through the Collegiate Peaks country, over Searle and Kokomo passes and down the Tenmile Range into Frisco — where the West Line carries you and the bike back to Denver. Almost all dirt, and gravity slightly on your side.
The ride back to Union Station
Same start, same finish, three different bikes — the route changes with what you are riding, not just the surface mix. All three finish at Denver Union Station; plan it to your own address if you live somewhere else.
Road bikeroad
Pavement the whole way, on the quietest roads that still go where you're going.
About two days of riding northeast on paved roads, covering nearly 166 miles with roughly 9,700 ft of climbing. Fair warning: this route lives on busier roads, so you'll want to stay alert through traffic for a good chunk of it. Front-load your energy and plan for a solid overnight stop midway.
Gravel bikegravel
Dirt where dirt is good, pavement where it isn't.
This is a three-day point-to-point gravel tour heading northeast, about 145 miles on a mix of gravel and pavement with roughly 12,200 ft of climbing spread across the days. You'll spend most of your time on well-graded dirt, with minimal traffic and quiet roads throughout. Pace it as a multi-day bikepack and let the mileage and elevation settle in across the stages.
Mountain bikemtb
Singletrack allowed — the trail gate opens for mountain bikes only.
Head northeast on a point-to-point pack that strings together quiet gravel and pavement over about three days of riding, about 14,971 ft of climbing across the distance. You'll spend most of your time on gravel, with traffic barely a factor on these backroads.
Routes at the stop
Riding there rather than home? Start and finish at the bus.
Short spin
An hour to shake out the bus legs.
Head out on quiet pavement mixed with about three miles of gravel, climbing about 509 ft spread across the loop. You'll catch a short stretch on a busier road to connect, but most of it rolls on side streets. A solid hour's work with steady climbing throughout.
Half day
The best half-day ride from the stop.
You're looking at nearly 2,700 feet of climbing over 24.7 miles on a mixed loop of paved and trail sections, so pace yourself accordingly. The riding stays quiet with almost no traffic, and you'll move between pavement and singletrack throughout, so bring a bike that handles both. Plan on roughly two and a half hours in the saddle.
Gravel ridegravel
Dirt roads out of town.
You're heading out on quiet trail and gravel, mostly dirt through the ride with just a bit of pavement to connect, about 3,784 ft of climbing packed into 35 miles. This isn't a lap, so you'll finish somewhere different than you started, and the elevation is real work, so pace accordingly and carry enough water.