My day job is Program Director at Texan by Nature, but most weekends you will find me riding my mountain bike all over the state. Riding a bike in Texas means you have thousands of miles of geographically, ecologically, and topographically diverse trails and roads ready to explore. From the dense Piney Woods to the rolling Hill Country, to vast beautiful deserts, Texas truly has it all for riders seeking adventure: year-round good weather, and amazing food choices for post-ride recovery.
As a cyclist who calls this amazing state home, I am here to tell you that if El Paso is not on your bucket list, you are missing out. Located at the very western tip of Texas, bordering Mexico and New Mexico, El Paso is probably not what you think it is. There is the desert and the occasional tumbleweed, but there are also beautiful mountains, a mighty river, miles of uncongested gravel and paved roads, and some seriously premium mountain biking trails. There are also friendly locals, affordable places to stay, and some of the best Mexican food in Texas.
Texan by Nature partners with conservation projects and programs across the state to offer consultative services, free of charge, helping them increase their impact via marketing, coalition building, increased investment from partners, and more. In 2020, we chose El Paso’s Paso del Norte Trail for one of our programs. After about 10 months of working to help them expand their audience, highlighting the incredible potential impact a 68-mile trail network could have on the region, it was time for a COVID-safe site visit to film a video highlighting the project, meet the incredible leaders making it happen, and, of course, a bike ride!
What started as a quick conversation with a corporate partner based in the region that I knew shared my passion for bikes, turned into the brilliant and fun idea to put together a group for the first-ever end-to-end ride of the proposed route. Soon after, I found myself on a plane with my bike packed away in my Airport Ninja bag, headed to El Paso to explore the trail myself.
Background: The Paso del Norte Trail
Serving a population of 2.7 million in the region between El Paso and their sister city of Juarez, Mexico, the Paso del Norte (PDN) Trail has the vision to improve environmental, economic, and public health conditions for Texans, and their neighbors, from all walks of life. This project is a community-driven, collaborative effort to develop a county-wide trail system in El Paso County.
The roughly 68–mile span of the PDN Trail is divided into five distinct districts, each broadly defined by their unique geographical, historical, and cultural context, as well as various amenities and attractions. The PDN Trail provides essential connections for community members to businesses, attractions, parks, and downtown areas, including the University of Texas at El Paso, Ascarate Park, the University Medical Center, and the El Paso Zoo. Connector trails and loops provide additional access to natural areas and outdoor spaces such as Franklin Mountains State Park and the Rio Grande River. The PDN Trail provides breathtaking views of the Franklin Mountains and showcases a variety of natural landscapes and terrain, including floodplains, deserts, rivers, mountains, and wetlands. To enhance the native landscape surrounding the trail and create an oasis for urban wildlife species, project leaders have also installed habitat enhancements such as Burrowing Owl tunnels, bat boxes, bioswales for stormwater management, edible plants, and more.
Paso del Norte Trail Bike Route Map
The goal of Paso del Norte Trail is to create a regionally significant landmark that promotes active transportation, preserves the history and culture of the region, highlights the Rio Grande river, supports economic development and ecotourism, provides educational and volunteer opportunities, and makes healthy living the easy choice for this unique, binational community.
If you live in a community that contains extensive trail networks, make sure to thank the leaders who made it happen. Trail construction is complex, requiring cooperation and funding from many stakeholders, enthusiasm from the community, and buy-in from decision-makers. The process is long, but the investment is always worth it for the added quality of life value brought by trails.
The Inaugural PDN Ride
When you go from Central to Mountain time, it makes a 4:45 am wake-up easier, but only slightly so. Our plucky band of riders met at a University of Texas-El Paso parking lot to load our bikes and bodies into a van (thank you, Sun Cycles EP for transporting the bikes safely!) to make the trek to the eastern border of the county in Tornillo. Although many of us already had our vaccines, we still were sure to wear masks and stay distant when possible. Of course, I was sporting a Texan by Nature mask with my Texan by Nature kit! As the sun rose on the horizon, I could only think to myself that it was dumb to assume it’d be moderately warm in the high desert in March. The 41-degree temperature meant my fingers were already frozen at mile 0.
Before the start of our ride, I shared my love of Tailwind Nutrition with the group, handing out sick packs of Green Tea and Lemon Endurance Fuel. Prizes of water bottles and buffs went to those who were willing to answer my Texas trivia questions. (Do YOU know what year Spindletop blew? The state flying Mammal? How many ecoregions exist across the state? Some people probably did, but not before sunrise!) When everyone grew tired of my nature-nerd inquiries at the early hour, I just passed them out to the rest of the group.
Since the trail is not complete, our route encompassed both paved trail where it exists and roads or levees where it has yet to be constructed. Tornillo is a quiet agricultural area that made for a nice calm start to our journey, and the flat landscape provided plenty of time to warm up. Well, warm up the legs, because my fingers froze in my Handup gloves until the sun finally thawed me out around mile 10.
As we pedaled closer to El Paso, traffic picked up and we began reflecting on just how life-changing trails for that side of the county could be. Current walkability is disjointed and road-dominant, making it difficult to connect neighborhoods and business districts safely. While many of us were experienced riders comfortable with the road, when we reached the first portion of the completed trail, with its wide paved surface, signage, and amenities, the stark contrast and lack of traffic noise created a peaceful silence that was almost deafening.
The safest, most enjoyable parts of the day were without a doubt the ones spent on the trail. We refilled bottles, chatted with new friends, spotted wildlife, and enjoyed the fresh air and sunshine as we progressed, mile after mile, ever westward. We made stops at the Playa Drain Trail, Ascarate Park for an interview discussing the trail with the local news station, and the Texas Tech Health Sciences Center to grab a bit of drone footage and a nice rest stop, courtesy of the Health Sciences School President and Medical School Dean who joined us for the ride.
This trail is not epic in the traditional cycling sense, with massive climbs or technical features. It is easy and accessible by design, ensuring all skill levels and abilities can enjoy recreation and transportation along the route. What it lacks in challenge it makes up for in scenery. The Franklin Mountains that dominate the city landscape (a mountain range INSIDE city limits!) draw you in and watch over you on every mile. The Rio Grande river dances around riders, first one side, then the other, blurring the lines between Texas, New Mexico, and blending into Mexico, which glides by in brilliant color as you leave town and follow the segment of Texas Department of Transportation paved path along the highway, linking with the levee system on the state line. When we ran out of pavement, we took our bikes along these levees that still irrigate agricultural lands throughout the county when the river flows from Elephant Butte, putting a little gravel in our travel.
After the levees, we hopped on the final segment of the trail, 12 miles of paved path winding along arroyos and through parkland, wrapping up what ended up being a 7 hour day of cycling. While certainly not fast, it was absolutely fun. By the end of the ride, we were toasting with cervezas and planning the next adventure, hoping to bring even more people along to explore the route with us next time. Although the ride was an absolute blast, I was definitely stoked to see our Podium FInish sag truck waiting at the trail end for a final check-in as we waited for the van to pick us up and take us back to our vehicles. The post-ride ceviche and tacos hit the spot. A day well spent, indeed.
Source: texanbynature.org
