Hey, I'm in Durango too, and I was reading this thread a few days ago for some tips. My favorite ride so far has been: starting at the Dry Fork Trailhead, climb up the Dry Fork Trail to the CT, and then climb up the CT to 'High Point'(when the CT starts descending steeply that's High Point), then turn around and descend back down the CT past the Dry Fork Trail intersection to Hoffheins Connector, to Dry Fork Trail, to Dry Fork Traihead.
1) Climbing for an hour in Durango is like climbing for 2 hours elsewhere. The first time I did the loop, I was so knackered at the Dry Fork Trail/CT intersection, I gave up the idea of riding to High Point. Today, I decided to press on to High Point. The trail gets steeper for awhile after the Dry Fork Trail/CT intersection before mellowing out. I had to stop several times at the side of the trail, bent over, panting trying to catch my breath. I burned all my matches riding up there, and on the descent I was so knackered, I couldn't pump over rocks, which made the descent a bit dangerous. The descent from the CT to Hoffheins Connector to Dry Fork Trail is awesome! It consists of rolling, ripping, banked curves with some mild tech sections thrown in. No drops over 8 inches and a log jump of about 15 inches on the side of the trail if you're game.
The first time I was out there, it took me an hour to climb to the Dry Fork/CT intersection, and then 20 minutes to descend all the way back to the Dry Fork Trail Head. Going all the way up to High Point took 3 1/2 hours. I'm sure locals do it in under 1 3/4 hours.
2) In Durango, you *want* to ride moto trails and you want to avoid mtb only trails. I was riding the Lower Hermosa Creek Trail my first day while trying to do a loop(without a map), and I couldn't find the turn off because the mtb only trail is barely a scratch in the dirt. A girl I met on the trail told me I was lucky I didn't find the turnoff because she had to spend the night out there when trying to do the same loop. An out and back ride up the Lower Hermosa Creek Trail(motos allowed) seemed like a fine introduction to Durango riding to me:
3) The vegetation on the side of the trail is thick and tall and at times you are riding *single* track through a narrow slot of green with ferns and grasses slapping your arms and legs. You cannot see where you are in those sections because the forest is so thick, so I can see how it could be easy to get lost.
4) The forest is absolutely beautiful here. Wild flowers, aspen groves, the scent of fresh cut pine. I wish I was in good enough shape to ride in the high country, but 3 hours is about all I've got.
5) Horse Gulch ain't so great. It's easy to get lost because the vegetation is so thick and there are unmarked trails branching off the trail you are on. Lots of signs out there though, so if you keep riding you should run into a sign, which along with a map should get you unlost. That's not to say that I won't ride out there again, but it does not offer the same beauty as the other trails I've ridden.