Emerald Mountain’s newest downhill biking trail is one step closer to earning its official name. 

A city survey collected 1,831 votes last month, showing favor to “Highway to Hell” as the name of the trail. It was approved unanimously by the Parks and Recreation Commission during a Wednesday meeting. 

Survey results:

1. “Highway to Hell” (42%)
2. “Steamroller” (39%)
3. “Fault Line” (14%)
4. “Pandemonium” (5%)

The four names were chosen by Routt County Riders board and staff as well as city staff. Names were selected to reflect the trail character and geography or to complement other Emerald trail names. 

In this case, “Highway to Hell” appears to pair nicely with another Emerald trail — “Stairway to Heaven.” 

“Process-wise, this is a recommendation to City Council,” explained Parks and Recreation Director Angela Cosby following the Commission’s vote of approval, adding that her department plans to bring the proposed name to council in July.

Cosby said the trail is expected to open to riders by Aug. 1. 

The final trail design is 3.2 miles long and includes 27 berms, 11 step-up jumps, 27 rock drops and about 20,000 square feet of rock armoring. The trail will start by the radio towers near the Orton property and take riders along the ridge to the quarry before returning them to the Howelsen Hill stables area. 

The trail corridor will be all advanced-level terrain with opportunities to take things to the expert level. 

Because Emerald Mountain has a conservation easement from the quarry to the summit, features cannot be built in that area and only natural terrain can be used. 

To respect the easement, the trail will focus on large switchbacks with berms to keep speeds in check for the first section of the track before features become prominent on the bottom half.

In 2022, Routt County Riders met with city staff to discuss the addition of the advanced single-direction track on Emerald. It was a trail type the mountain did not possess at the time. 

After approval through the city process, the project was funded by 2A Trails in 2023 and discussion with contractors led to the city signing with FlowRide Concepts, the same organization that helped design the NPR (No Pedaling Required) trail a few years ago. 

The trail’s design was completed and accepted in October 2023 with construction beginning in May 2024. 

The contract with FlowRide Concepts specifies the contractor must follow up in 2026 to repair parts of the trail that have been damaged from its first summer and winter season. 

“This trail fit in with future planning to add more directional trails on Emerald and add a little more diversity with a more expert trail,” said Jenny Carey, the city’s open space and trails supervisor, during Wednesday’s meeting.