The earliest mode of transportation used by the growing number of settlers in Granite and the surrounding area was horseback and pack mules or burros. The Santa Fe Trail, built in 1822, had a north fork up to Denver (founded in 1858), and by 1877 the Leadville Stagecoach Road was running from Canyon City, through Granite, Leadville, and north to Denver. Reliable transportation was important to deliver supplies for the growing communities, and the route was used more as a supply and mail route than for transportation of passengers.An old schedule from 1980 with the stage stops from Canyon City to Leadville shows that the trip was 126 miles and took 26 (jarring) hours. The distance today is 120 miles, illustrating the fact that in these high mountains the routes for passage are very limited. However, with modern-day transportation the trip now takes only about two hours. The distance to Granite was 108 miles and the fare was $13.50 The Canyon City to Leadville stage ran three times daily.