USFS National Forest System Trails · Rio Grande National Forest · Colorado · Updated June 2026
Alder Bench (USFS trail 799) is a 6.5 mi trail in Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado. Mountain-bike use here is accepted but discouraged in USFS data, with Class 1 e-bikes also designated.
Can I bike Alder Bench?
| Use | Status | Season on record |
|---|---|---|
| Mountain bike | Accepted but discouraged | — |
| Class 1 e-bike (pedal-assist, 20 mph) | Allowed | year-round |
| Class 2 e-bike (throttle, 20 mph) | Allowed | year-round |
| Class 3 e-bike (pedal-assist, 28 mph) | Allowed | year-round |
Zooming out: across Rio Grande National Forest, 0% of rideable trail miles are open to mountain bikes — a Bike Access Grade of F.
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About this trail
In Rio Grande National Forest, Colorado, Alder Bench (USFS trail 799) covers 6.5 mi of National Forest System trail. Everything below comes straight from the US Forest Service National Forest System Trails dataset — length, surface, slope-derived difficulty, and the specific bike and e-bike designations on record — so you can check legality before you load up. Underfoot, the trail is recorded as native material. Its grade-based difficulty is Advanced (grade band 12-20%) — a steep steepness profile derived from USFS slope data, not a technical mountain-bike rating. For traditional mountain bikes, use is discouraged according to USFS data. On the electric side, Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bikes are also designated — Class 1 being pedal-assist only, Classes 2 and 3 adding a throttle and higher assisted speed. The route is mapped as USFS Trail Class 2 on the agency's 1-to-5 development scale, where 1 is the most primitive, minimally maintained tread and 5 is the most developed. Treat this as a planning reference rather than a live conditions report, and verify any time-sensitive closure or order with the ranger district that manages Rio Grande National Forest.
Frequently asked questions
- Can you mountain bike on Alder Bench?
- Mountain-bike use on Alder Bench is discouraged in USFS records, though Class 1 e-bike use is designated. Confirm current rules with the managing ranger district.
- Are e-bikes allowed on Alder Bench?
- Class 1, Class 2, Class 3 e-bikes are designated on Alder Bench in the USFS data.
- How long is Alder Bench?
- Alder Bench measures about 6.5 mi in total, summed across its mapped National Forest System segments.
- What is the surface of Alder Bench?
- USFS data records the tread surface of Alder Bench as native material.
- How difficult is Alder Bench?
- Its grade-based difficulty is Advanced (grade band 12-20%), derived from USFS slope data. This reflects steepness, not technical mountain-bike difficulty.
How we read this data
Grade-based difficulty above is the USFS grade (route steepness), not a technical mountain-bike rating — a gentle-grade trail can still be rocky or technical, and vice versa. Bike and e-bike status come verbatim from the USFS managed-use fields for this trail; we never infer access we can't cite. See our methodology for how the dataset is built and what each field means.
Where it is
Approximate location of Rio Grande National Forest (USFS trail geometry isn't mapped).
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