Summary

Denver and Boulder residents, grab your boots and get outside! Using clear and entertaining narrative, 60 Hikes within 60 Miles: Denver and Boulder eliminates doubts about where to hike and what to expect when you get to the trailhead. To locate and assess the best hikes within an hour's drive of Denver or Boulder, this guide is indispensable.

Author Biography

Colorado native Kim Lipker is the author of a Rockies bed-and-breakfast guidebook. Her family travel articles and regular parenting column appear in Rocky Mountain Parent magazine. She and her family live in the Denver area where she grew up exploring many of the hikes featured in this book.

Overview Map
Acknowledgments	p. vii
Foreword	p. viii
About the Author	p. ix
Preface	p. x
Hiking Recommendations	p. xiv
Introduction	p. 1
Boulder (Including Foothills and Mountains)
Betasso Preserve: Canyon Loop Trail	p. 16
Boulder: Boulder Creek Path	p. 19
Boulder: Heil Valley Ranch	p. 22
Boulder: South Boulder Creek Trail	p. 25
Boulder: Walden Ponds	p. 28
Chautauqua Park: First Flatiron	p. 31
Eldorado Canyon: Eldorado Springs Trail	p. 35
Gregory Canyon: Green Mountain Loop	p. 38
Indian Peaks Wilderness: Devil's Thumb Lake	p. 41
Indian Peaks Wilderness: Glacier Rim Trail	p. 44
Indian Peaks Wilderness: Mount Audubon	p. 47
James Peak Wilderness: Heart Lake	p. 50
Walker Ranch: Meyers Homestead Trail	p. 53
Walker Ranch: Walker Ranch Loop	p. 56
Denver (Including Foothills and Mountains)
Alderfer Three Sisters Open Space Park: Ponderosa Sisters Loop	p. 60
Barr Lake State Park: Lake Perimeter Trail	p. 63
Bear Creek Lake Park: Bear Creek Trail	p. 66
Deer Creek Open Space Park: Meadowlark Plymouth Creek Loop	p. 69
Denver: Washington Park	p. 72
Elk Meadow Open Space Park: Sleepy S Loop	p. 75
Evergreen: Evergreen Lake	p. 78
Golden Gate Canyon State Park: Mountain Lion Trail	p. 81
Lakewood: Green Mountain Trail	p. 85
Meyer Ranch Open Space Park: Lodgepole Loop	p. 88
Mount Evans Wilderness: Hell's Hole Trail	p. 91
Mount Evans Wilderness: Mount Bierstadt	p. 94
Mount Evans Wilderness: Mount Evans	p. 97
Mount Falcon Park: Castle and Parmalee Trail Loop	p. 100
Red Rocks: Trading Post Trail	p. 103
Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge: Lakes Loop	p. 106
Westminster: Colorado Hills Trail	p. 109
White Ranch Park: Belcher Hill	p. 112
North of Denver (Including Fort Collins and Rocky Mountain National Park)
Button Rock Preserve: Sleepy Lion Trail	p. 116
Cathy Fromme Prairie: Fossil Creek Trail	p. 120
Fort Collins: Poudre River Trail	p. 123
Glen Haven: Crosier Mountain Trail	p. 127
Horsetooth Mountain Park: Horsetooth Falls and Horsetooth Rock	p. 130
Larimer County: Devil's Backbone Trail	p. 133
Lory State Park: Arthur's Rock	p. 137
Rabbit Mountain: Eagle Wind Trail	p. 140
Rocky Mountain National Park: Gem Lake	p. 143
Rocky Mountain National Park: Lily Mountain	p. 146
Rocky Mountain National Park: Longs Peak	p. 149
Rocky Mountain National Park: Storm Pass Trail to Estes Cone	p. 152
Rocky Mountain National Park: Twin Sisters	p. 155
Round Mountain: Summit Adventure Trail	p. 158
South of Denver (Including Colorado Springs)
Bear Creek Canon Park: Palmer Red Rock Loop	p. 162
Blodgett Peak Open Space: Water Tank Trail	p. 165
Castlewood Canyon State Park: Inner Canyon Loop	p. 168
Colorado Trail: Little Scraggy Trail	p. 171
Douglas County Open Space: Glendale Farm Trail	p. 174
Douglas County Open Space: Greenland Trail	p. 177
Garden of the Gods: Perkins Central Garden Trail	p. 180
North Cheyenne Canon Park: Lower Columbine Trail	p. 183
Pike National Forest: Devil's Head Fire Lookout	p. 186
Pike National Forest: Wigwam Trail	p. 189
Pine Valley Ranch Park: Pine Valley Ranch Loop	p. 192
Reynolds Open Space Park: Raven's Roost Oxen Draw Loop	p. 195
Roxborough State Park: South Rim Trail	p. 198
Waterton Canyon Recreation Area: Waterton Canyon	p. 201
Outdoor Shops	p. 207
Map Shops	p. 209
Area Hiking Clubs	p. 211
Index	p. 212
Map Legend
Table of Contents provided by Ingram. All Rights Reserved.

Supplemental Materials

What is included with this book?

The New copy of this book will include any supplemental materials advertised. Please check the title of the book to determine if it should include any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

The Used, Rental and eBook copies of this book are not guaranteed to include any supplemental materials. Typically, only the book itself is included. This is true even if the title states it includes any access cards, study guides, lab manuals, CDs, etc.

Excerpts

Round Mountain Hike
This challenging hike begins on the Foothills Nature Trail, an interpretive trail that is part of the Round Mountain National Recreation Trail. From the parking area, walk past the restroom, sign in at the hiking register, and continue up a wide gravel road. Do not be deceived by the undemanding start! The first 0.25 miles overlap with the easy interpretive trail but the majority of this hike is the Summit Adventure Trail, which takes hikers up the side of the Big Thompson Canyon, over the Continental Divide, and to the top of Sheep Mountain. The Summit Adventure Trail also serves as an interpretive trail with several information plaques. When I hiked with my friends Sarah and Shannon, we found that the plaques were spaced just right, giving us time to stop and catch our breath if we needed to, while learning about the natural history of the area.
The two trails split at a well-marked fork. Take a left onto the Summit Trail and begin an immediate climb on a dirt and rock trail that runs parallel to the Big Thompson River and the highway below. As the trail climbs, it narrows and produces steep drop-offs and exposed tree roots. Continue climbing and climbing and climbing. Instead of cutting directly across the ridge of the canyon, the trail begins a series of unforgiving switchbacks that route hikers up the mountainside. This steep incline, in addition to being a lung-buster, is heavily eroded in places. Natural erosion has even carved magnificent rock sculptures out of boulders along the trail.

Excerpted from 60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: Denver and Boulder: Including Colorado Springs, Fort Collins, and Rocky Mountain National Park by Kim Lipker
All rights reserved by the original copyright owners. Excerpts are provided for display purposes only and may not be reproduced, reprinted or distributed without the written permission of the publisher.