45 Miles. 50 Years. One Unforgettable Day.

​On June 13, 2026, Northern Colorado celebrated something that doesn’t come along often: the completion of a 45-mile paved trail three generations in the making.
The Connecting Communities: Poudre River Trail Celebration brought more than 1,500 people to Timnath Community Park for an official ceremony and community event honoring the final connection of the Poudre River Trail, stretching from Bellvue to Greeley. And that was just the crowd in the park! An estimated 3,000 additional trail users took to the corridor that same day, making the total community reach well over 4,500 people!

​A Milestone Worth Marking
The morning opened with official remarks and a symbolic ribbon ceremony, where dignitaries from five regional partner organizations - Larimer County, the City of Fort Collins, the Town of Windsor, the Town of Timnath, and the City of Greeley - each connected a piece of ribbon representing their community’s role in building the trail. Over sixty-five confirmed dignitaries were invited to attend, reflecting the depth of partnership behind this project.
 
The celebration that followed featured 15 vendor and partner booths, food trucks, family activities, yard games, and a visit from Wilder, GOCO’s Generation Wild spokes creature. Fifty attendees were notified as gift bag winners, and the energy throughout the morning matched the scale of what was being celebrated.

Regional dignitaries raise a connected chain of color-coded ribbons — gold, blue, green, red, and royal blue — representing the five partner communities of the Poudre River Trail, during the official opening ceremony at Timnath Community Park on June 13, 2026.

The Numbers Behind the Day
Big Deal Company was proud to serve as event coordinator for this regional milestone, supporting 11 project and event partners, 21+ vendor partnerships, and nearly 15 volunteers alongside a 9-person BIG DEAL Company team. And best of all, it was all delivered under a $22,000 budget!
 
The story traveled far beyond the trailhead. Event coverage appeared across 26 media placements in 20+ outlets, including The Coloradoan, BizWest, CBS Denver, CBS News Colorado, The Denver Gazette, KUNC, North Forty News, and Yahoo News, among others.

What It Means
The Poudre River Trail is now one of Colorado’s longest paved multi-use trails. It’s a connected corridor linking parks, open spaces, neighborhoods, and communities along the Cache la Poudre River. The June 13 celebration wasn’t just a finish line. It was proof of what’s possible when communities commit to a shared vision over the long haul.
 
We were honored to help bring it to life!

FAQs
1. Can anyone use the Poudre River Trail, and where do I start?
 The trail is free and open to the public. The COTREX App at Trails.Colorado.gov is the recommended tool for finding access points along the 45-mile corridor from Bellvue to Greeley.
2. Who built the Poudre River Trail, and how long did it take?
 The trail spans five jurisdictions — Larimer County, Fort Collins, Windsor, Timnath, and Greeley — and represents more than 50 years of planning, funding, and construction across multiple generations of local government partners and grant funders.
 
Big Deal Company provides event coordination, communications, and marketing support for organizations across Colorado.
Learn more at www.BigDealCompany.com.

photo credit: City of Fort Collins

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