Right near town, the Bear Creek/Methodist Mountain Loop takes you up steep climbs, but rewards you with beautiful views of the Arkansas River Valley. After you make the brutal climb up there is a quick descent down a fireroad that leads you back into town. This trail meets up with the Rainbow Trail which helps to make it a loop. <br />
This is a multi-use trail so please practice caution.
This loop is a Salida mainstay. This trail has it all, a grueling gut-buster of a climb, sweet singletrack, a technical decent, and some pavement to round things out. The loop can begin/end at any number of locations. The following description starts in downtown Salida. However many people begin their journey at a pullout on CR 101 3.2 miles from US Hwy 50. By the way, the rainbow trail is dirt bike friendly so don't be shocked if you see a few.
http://www.tripleblaze.com/trail.php?c=3&i=1687