Explore the best rated trails in Colorado Springs, CO. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Legacy Loop and Woodmen Trail. With more than 53 trails covering 377 miles you're bound to find a perfect trail for you. Click on any trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
Loop is a easy one, the only downside was the trash piled almost everywhere.
Rode the northern end of this trail from the 17th and Laredo area. Such a disappointment. Lots of broken glass as well as many homeless camps. Also quite a few stops to cross busy streets.
The greenway is beautiful and a wonderful ride! However, south of America the Beautiful Park there are multiple homeless encampments, especially under the bridges.
This is a fine trail for hiking, but not for biking. Trail surface is mostly loose gravel, there is usually one track on the side that is firm enough to ride on. This trail is not suitable for kids and occasional riders because of the loose material and steep grade. I have ridden rail trails in 42 states and this one is the steepest I have encountered, probably because it was a narrow gauge railway. The steep grade, high altitude and loose material make the trail challenging for casual riders. I was constantly in the lower two gears of my mountain bike, and uphill averaged 4 mph with breaks.
The portage around the collapsed tunnel is an unimproved hiking trail and will be difficult for kids and older adults. It would require a stout person to handle the portage with an electric bike.
A better bike ride is the gold camp road. Although there is some car traffic the surface is much better. Start at pullout No. 1 near the Bear Creek Nature Center (245 Bear Creek Road) and ride up hill 5 miles to the parking lot near Hellen Hunt Falls. That is 3 miles of asphalt and 2.3 miles gravel with one tunnel, turn around and coast back to your car.
Nice trail for a walk or bike ride if you have an hour or two. The trail ends at an observation point that extends over the canyon for a nice view of the royal gorge bridge and the river canyon. It is an easy bike ride except for the detour around a collapsed bridge which is more like a single track. If not comfortable riding single track, jump up on the road until the road meets up with the trail on the other side of the bridge. Stay on the trail to avoid flats caused by cactus and sand burrs.
Parking area is easy to miss, look for Royal Gorge Ranch & Resort sign which is at the first big curve south of US-50 highway.
Holy moly! Harder than I thought. Did it then ran back down to my motel we stayed at in Manitou Springs! Very cool area.
Easy, walkable. Bit muddy on the south end after rain or snow but peaceful and unexpected trail. We’re renting in the area for a few months and this trail has been a little haven for a morning run, walking the dogs and enjoying birds and mtn views. Playground on the northwest side is in good shape. Trail is mostly flat and doable with small children, someone with limited mobility or starting an exercise program. Typically see people fishing, many, birds, people walking dogs, kids from nearby school.
Starting in downtown Denver and heading 40 miles southeast to Franktown, the Cherry Creek Trail is a true gift to the bikers, runners, and walkers of the city. For the first five miles from downtown, from the scenic falls where the creek meets the Platte River, we rode nearly on the edge of the rock-strewn creek. The trail runs below street level, hence there are many overhead bridges and on/off ramps from nearby neighborhoods. Riding at 9am, most of the trail in the downtown area was shaded by the high-rise apartment and office buildings on the east side, but the trail is otherwise short on leafy canopies and is likely to be brutally hot mid-day. There was no shade whatsoever further along the trail. The creek’s path became less managed by rocky revetments after about seven miles, instead, alternately diverging and converging among beds of brown grass and scruffy plants.
Except for occasional neighborhoods and the four golf courses we passed, it definitely felt like we were riding in the Wild West!
Prior to hitting the suburbs, we passed numerous homeless people lying under blankets aside the creek or tucked up under the eaves of bridges - more than we’ve come across in other cities. There were also retaining walls along both sides of the trail that featured both true works of art and plain old graffiti. We had to stop at only one intersection where construction forced a slight detour; otherwise, we flew along the concrete path as it climbed almost imperceptibly out of town.
The Cherry Creek trail is more like a network of paths, several of which we took accidentally because there is very little signage on the trail. A yellow painted line along the center of the trail helps at some of the Y’s and intersections, but it’s conspicuously missing at many of them. We really enjoyed this trail and would have loved to have completed the 80-mile roundtrip, but we were limited by both time constraints and lack of ambition.
There is no shortage of great breweries in Denver, including a fantastic one with a crazy variety of beers right off the trail in the Glendale area.
We rode from the Woodmen parking area north to Monument. This trail is well maintained. Just need to watch for the fast riders around some short turns.
Visited Fountain Creek Regional Park this morning with my husband and our two dogs. One is a Great Pyrenees mix at 60+ lbs and growing and the other is a 25lb rat terrier mix. There are multiple side trails off the main trail and a good portion of it follows the creek. It was great for beginners like us. The trail was relatively clean and flat. It would be nice if they had a garbage can or two along the way but the only one we saw was at the parking lot. We went around 830am and walked for about an hour. It wasn’t crowded but there were enough people around that you didn’t feel all alone in the woods. It was gorgeous. We will definitely be back!
The southern 26 miles (upstream from Cherry Creek Dam) is definitely 5- Star (Arapahoe and Douglas Counties). The southern part has many areas in natural and beautiful settings and the use is moderate. Very pleasant. Parker and South-Suburban does a great job keeping them nice.
The Northern 14 miles (Downstream from dam) is 3-star (Denver City & County). It is urban, lots of local road traffic as well as high use. Watch out for the bikers and the Lance-Wannabees who will not call themselves out as the pass and ride between 15 - 30 mph. They can ride in pelotons dominating the path and get angry if you are in there way. Many though are courteous. Be very careful though if you are out with your kids and leashed dogs. There are also an increasing amount of e-bikes as well that are riding fast even though they are forbidden on the trail. Denver does not patrol their paths and trails
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