We were given this route from the very nice folks at Geared Up bike store in Pinedale.
This is the (original) 28-mile route used by The Drift, a fat bike race that happens in March!
The route starts with a flat stretch on Green River Lakes Rd past Dollar Lake which apparently follows the path of the country’s oldest running cattle drive. The scenery is quite stunning with snow capped mountains in the distance and a beautiful flowing river to your left.
At mile 13 you’ll turn off onto a more rugged, chunky and narrow trail (Gypsum Creek Road). This climbs up into the forest and gives you pretty much all of the elevation gain at once. You'll need your climbing legs and adventurous spirit, but again, the scenery is center stage with more jaw-dropping mountain views and lots of wild flowers in the summer.
Once the trail heads back down, the surface “smooths out”, but you can tell it had been muddy at some point. (Expect some rolling, lumpy road surface but not many rocks). The lower you go, the smoother the surface gets and the faster you can descend. Fun! Fun! Fun!
Mosquitoes!!! In July, they were especially thick and vicious starting from the parking lot through the first several miles. We were prepared with bug spray but honestly they didn’t care and were pretty damn pesky.
The initial road was wide and relatively flat, and so we assumed this part would be fast and "easy", but it had a pretty thick/partially sandy surface with occasional washboards which slowed the pace.
Do this ride if you want a true remote Wyoming Gravel biking experience in the Bridger-Teton area - rugged, wild and beautiful!
We parked at the intersection of Green River Lakes Rd (352)/ and Redstone Rd, just as you enter the National Forest. There is a large parking lot here and a vault toilet. (It is about 31 miles/35 min drive from the town of Pinedale.)
This is a remote route. Besides the vault toilets at the start/finish, there are zero services- no places to buy food or refill water unless you are using a filter. No cell phone service either. Plan ahead and make sure you bring everything you will need to stay fueled, hydrated, bug-free and bear-free.
The Wind River Range is home to both grizzly and black bears as well as moose, elk, mountain lions, wolves, coyotes and many other animal species. You are unlikely to see any of them, but it is wise to take bear spray and ring a bell or talk when you are in areas where you might come around a corner and surprise an animal. (The only animals we saw were cows, and they were parked right in the middle of the road!)
The Green River Road was the only road with any car traffic. Usage was very light and cars/trucks were generally slow and friendly.
(ATVers do come to this area as well, but we didn’t encounter any on the road or trails even on Fourth of July weekend.)
If you are looking for pre or post-ride food/drinks, head to the town of Pinedale. We recommend Pine Coffee Supply for coffee and burritos, and the Wind River Brewing Company for adult beverages and pub food.
The folks at Geared Up bike store in Pinedale were helpful and friendly when we need to stop in for a little bike maintenance issue. Not only that, but Pinedale is right on the Tour Divide route, so if you are there in the summer you are like to run into riders or racers on their epic bikepacking adventure- so cool!!
Laura & Rose
Laura Karpinski and Rose Barcklow are the creators of Gravel Bike Adventures. Click on the About page to learn more about them.
