After decades of work, the City of Fort Collins says the Poudre River Trail is now a complete, continuous trail through city limits.
The iconic path connects multiple destinations throughout Northern Colorado running from Bellvue to Greeley, and provides a paved path for pedestrians and cyclists. The final section in Fort Collins, which runs from Colorado State University鈥檚 Environmental Learning Center connects the trail in the southwest corner to Rigden Reservoir.
The first section of the trail opened in 1978, but that works closely with the path, the idea of the complete concept was first announced in 1994 with a ceremonial groundbreaking. The completed paved path will connect a total of 45 miles.
Multiple communities from Fort Collins to Greeley, along with Larimer and Weld counties worked to make the path a reality. As of now, about 18 miles of the path are in Fort Collins, with the remaining spread through Timnath, Windsor and Greeley, along with unincorporated sections of the surrounding counties.
The most recent and final section of the trail received $2 million in funding from Great Outdoors Colorado (GOCO).
鈥淲e are very thankful to the many collaborators involved in trail building, including Colorado State University and the Great Western Railroad (OmniTrax). They are integral partners who enabled the City to construct this portion of trail on their lands and complete these connections,鈥� said Dave 鈥淒K鈥� Kemp, senior trails planner and co-project manager in a released statement. 鈥淥ur partnerships provided a unique opportunity to build a city trail on state land and on, and along, a historic, active rail line.鈥�
The City of Fort Collins plans to hold a public opening on Monday, November 25. While the path now provides a continuous path through the region, work on certain segments will continue into next year.
Fort Collins officials say they will hold a celebration in the coming months to celebrate the achievement of finalizing the trail, with work continuing on a segment in Larimer County between Timnath and Windsor.
This article was updated to clarify that the trail is completed in the city limits of Fort Collins. - 11/25/24.
