In a few short years Trinidad, Colorado has gone from a relatively unknown adventure travel destination on the I-25 border with New Mexico to one of most talked about by Front Range gravel cycling enthusiasts.  When the Colorado Tourism Office supported Explore Las Animas gravel cycling tourism campaign was launched in 2019 by Backshop Bicycle Travel Supply, an experiential agency, the goal was to make southeastern Colorado a worthy bike destination in tandem with the growing gravel trend. Now, as the Santa Fe Trail celebrates its 200th anniversary, a host of multimedia cycling tourism related content and ride events in 2021 are poised to carry that objective further down the path as Trinidad reclaims its old west mountain trail town heritage by welcoming gravel cyclists to a distinct travel experience on the Colorado-New Mexico border.

Boosting expected summer cycling visitation this year is the new Trinidad-Las Animas County Gravel Adventure Field Guide developed by the City of Trinidad to assist visitors wanting to sample the over 1,600 miles of county roads accessible from downtown. The guidebook is produced in partnership with Backshop Bikes, Beneski Design, and People For Bikes. Its 64 pages highlight the region’s distinct culture and history, and includes 11 curated Ride Spot routes that are downloadable. The guide intentionally fosters an online and offline user experience. This handy jersey pocket sized book not only helps navigate the remote southeastern Colorado terrain, but also helps make a more enjoyable trip by directing visitors to local restaurants, shops, galleries, and museums. Accompanying the guidebook’s release is a Beneski short film shot by Justin Balog detailing its contents in a fun and quirky way.