Exploring new cycling routes in pursuit of fitness goals

In a fog, thinking about how to meet the federal guidelines for 2½ hours of moderate exercise per week, I bumped into my neglected bicycle in the garage. Tires flat. Shine gone. Brakes sticky. Chain strained.

That sad scene unfolded in March. By mid-April, my 12-year-old bike sparkled after a $125 tuneup at a local bike shop. A new $27 chain added efficiency and enjoyment to my revived neighborhood rides. I also replaced my helmet after learning head-protecting materials lose their integrity over time.

Ideally, these investments will boost my chances of more frequently meeting weekly goals for moderate exercise. As a bonus, recreational biking brings back opportunities to meander through neighborhoods and get to know their housing designs, landscaping, parks, ebbs and flows.

Paved trails on the edges of development or adjacent to arteries of Southern Nevada’s flood-control network allow cyclists to ride past desert-hardy plants such as creosote, desert willows and mesquites as well as to glimpse Gambel’s quail, desert cottontails, lizards and ground squirrels.

After a short time of pedaling back into a cycling routine, my ambitions turned to making a to-ride list of trails that are new to me. In Southern Nevada, that’s a tall order as master-planned communities can’t seem to resist adding more shared-use paved paths that are wider than sidewalks and open only to the likes of cyclists, walkers, runners, skaters and wheelchair users. Unlike bike lanes on roadways, shared-use paths are physically separated from car traffic and its inherent dangers.

While more multiuse mileage is being added to neighborhoods, there are also major new bike- and pedestrian-friendly paved projects coming online, including the recently finished first mile of a planned 19-mile Red Rock Legacy Trail; a forthcoming set of safety and efficiency improvements to the 215 Beltway Trail, visible above the busy highway; and recent upgrades to the Duck Creek area of an already impressive trail system at Clark County Wetlands Park.

Big and small, those improvements and expansions pair up well with longer, more intense existing rides like the 34-mile River Mountains Loop Trail and Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area’s 13-mile driving loop, where bikers share the one-way road with cars. Both paths are arduous with spectacular scenery that attract riders on standard bikes and e-bikes.

Southern Nevada has hundreds of miles of cycling options, although bike racks or larger vehicles are necessary for those venturing beyond their neighborhoods. A tolerance for early-morning alarms is another requirement this time of year, as temperatures in the country’s driest desert will rise miserably in the coming weeks and months. Sunscreen, snacks and plenty of water are imperative, no matter the season.

With help from the Regional Transportation Commission of Southern Nevada’s bike map, I made a short list of desired bike rides. In my quest to avoid street traffic, I stuck to the map’s green lines designating shared-use paths. The city of Henderson also has helpful biking resources on its website. My lineup of future rides excludes many of Henderson’s best paths, like Pittman Wash Trail, because I was focused on what would be new to me.

Red Rock Legacy Trail

The first mile of the planned 19-mile Red Rock Legacy Trail opened in late April as the start of a safer biking alternative parallel to busy state Route 159. In the coming years, the $100 million bike trail is expected to connect Summerlin to the entrance of the 13-mile driving loop at Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area and ultimately continue all the way to Blue Diamond Road.

For now, cyclists who wish to ride on the 13-mile Red Rock loop have one safer mile en route to the start of their destination. But until the next phases of the Red Rock Legacy Trail are complete, most of the bicycle ride out to Red Rock’s entrance will still be spent next to busy traffic on state Route 159.

This ride is at the top of my to-do list because one mile is better than none, and I’m looking forward to being able to say I was among the first several thousand to ride on the Red Rock Legacy Trail. There’s a new public parking area at the start of the trail near Sky Vista Drive and West Charleston Boulevard.

After enjoying the views while riding a mile out and a mile back on the Red Rock Legacy Trail, I plan to extend my ride by searching for the shared-use paths in the general area of Sky Vista Drive noted on the RTC bike map.

Riding beside Henderson rails

High on my priority list is a 4½-mile section of Henderson’s Harry Reid Union Pacific Railroad Trail that opened about four years ago. That segment of shared-use trail, which mostly runs parallel to fenced-off working freight train tracks, helped connect Green Valley Park on Pecos Road near Warm Springs Road with Acacia Park near the interchange of the 215 Beltway and Interstate 11.

In past years, I’ve biked the Union Pacific Railroad Trail south from Acacia Park to Nevada State College, but I’ve yet to ride on the newer segment. Avoiding car traffic and getting to Acacia Park via a practically hidden path are top appeals, followed by the option of stopping to see ducks at Cornerstone Park.

Go with the flow

On the RTC bike map, there’s a lengthy, diagonal green line that uncoincidentally follows the flow of the Las Vegas Wash toward Lake Mead. Beginning in the north end of the Las Vegas Valley, the line represents the Upper and Lower Las Vegas Wash trails. The upper trail begins in the area of Deer Springs Way and North Fifth Street. The city of North Las Vegas shares information on its website about the Las Vegas Wash trails and an extensive system of paved bike- and pedestrian-only paths in the Aliante housing development.

About 15 miles of paved trail parallel the path storm water would flow in the event of flash flooding in Southern Nevada, and I intend to start my ride on a nonstormy day at Craig Ranch Regional Park, 628 W. Craig Road. I’ll cover a fraction of the trails’ distance and take the opportunity to explore Craig Ranch park after logging a few biking miles.

For newbie riders and avid cyclists alike, Southern Nevada has a bounty of paved shared-use paths that offer opportunities to reach weekly goals of 2½ hours of moderate exercise while enjoying the ride.