Lyons, Colorado

This is a great hike/trail run in Boulder County. It is located between Longmont and Lyons and is part of Boulder County Open Space. Rabbit Mountain has over 5 miles of trails and 2,733 acres of beautiful open space. The views are incredible as most of your hike you are looking out at the entire ...

The trailhead is about eight tenths of a mile from the parking area. You pass some sport climbs, a man made waterfall, and some large boulders in the North St. Vrain Creek.The trailhead is clearly marked on the left. There is some elevation gain at the beginning but nothing difficult. Once the el...

County Road 47 is between Lyons and Estes Park. It's an easy drive from Denver and is a great place to get away for the weekend. I have camped here in the summer, fall, and winter. I have to say that snow camping was my favorite. I didn't see anyone the whole weekend and had the entire area to ex...

Coulson Gulch is a lightly used area of the Roosevelt National Forest which makes it perfect for a weekend getaway without the crowds. This is a great place to camp out under the stars!To get to Coulson Gulch From Lyons, head west on U.S. Highway 36 for about 9 miles. Turn southwest onto Larimer ...

Cutting through the forested hills surrounding Estes Valley, the Kruger Rock Trail is a well-marked 4 mile loop to the top of Kruger Rock. The trail begins in Hermit Park Open Space, located just a few miles southeast of Estes Park and is a moderate hike with around 1000 feet of elevation gain. C...

Sandbeach Lake is best known for (as you can probably guess) its wide sandy shore. At nearly 50 feet deep, it is one of Rocky Mountain National Parks deepest lakes. If you are looking to fish at the lake, make sure to bring barbless flies and lures. There are six official campsites (1.8 miles Hol...

This is a mix of trails that will bring you on an easy loop to the peak of Mt Sanitas, but will keep you away from the usual crowds of the more well-known paths up. The hike is a clear path that brings you 5+ miles from around 5,500 ft in elevation to 6,800.  You'll start at the Centennial Trail...

First off, these are two different hikes but both stem from the same parking lot and Settlers Park is a mere 5 minutes away from where you park so why not kill two birds with one stone? One of the more popular hikes in Boulder, Mount Sanitas is a 3 mile hike that quickly scales nearly 1,350 feet...

From the trailhead, follow the trail through the woods until you reach a meadow with a steep slope. Some portions of this slope reach an angle of 30 degrees and may feature slight avalanche danger in the winter. However, the trail is used enough that such conditions would make themselves known ...

The Devils Backbone Open Space offers great hiking in the Front Range foothills. The main feature is the rock formation running along the western boundary of the park, but the open space also supports a large wildlife and plant population. Here, you'll find great opportunities for year-round hiki...

This sign is on the mountainous decline just before you reach town. There's a small parking lot that fills up quick in peak season, but most people only spend a few minutes here on their way in to Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park. It is easy enough to have people take your picture, jus...

Parking is available on either Canyon or Sunshine Roads. During the weekends it tends to get crowded around sunset so plan accordingly. The entire trail is a loop and is a little over 1 mile in length so it doesn't take too long. The main feature is the massive red sand stone rocks that jut out o...

The Betasso Preserve features two loop trails that are accessible to both hikers and mountain bikers.  Drive up (west) Boulder Canyon about 15 minutes outside of Boulder and turn right (north)  on Sugarloaf Dr.  After another 5 or so minutes you'll see a sign on the right-hand (northeast) side of...

The trailhead starts close to 9,000 ft elevation. It continues at a gradual slope through the forest for a long way. The trail does not exit the tree line until close to the top, where there is a boulder field, of sorts (slightly over 11,000 ft). Don't worry, there is a nice trail all the way to ...

Lily Lake allows boating in non-motorized watercraft and is only a short carry from your parking area by 7. Parking can be limited so get there in the morning early so that you can enjoy the morning wildlife and decreased crowds. You can spend an hour or so here kayaking slowly around enjoying th...

Pear lake is a beautiful alpine lake in the southern Wild Basin region of Rocky Mountain National Park. Once used as a reservoir, Pear Lake has been restored to its natural state and lies in scenic basin below some of the most isolated mountains in the park. The trail to Pear Lake passes through ...