Boulder Hiking Trails, 5th Edition

Glenn Cushman, Ruth Carol Cushman

Description

In this new edition of a classic hiking guide to the trails of Boulder County, a local couple leads you to all your favorite spots and hidden gems throughout the area.

Long-time Boulder residents Ruth Carol and Glenn Cushman lead you on their favorite and most scenic hikes through mountains, plains, and foothills, just a few minutes’ drive from Boulder. Walk in Chautauqua Park and view the Flatirons, explore Mount Sanitas, marvel at the Royal Arch, embrace nature in Eldorado Canyon State Park, find historical sites and beautiful lakes and waterfalls, and more. Boulder Hiking Trails features:

• A total of 84 trails, loops, and hikes, with 6 brand-new trails


• New color photographs along with updated maps


• Trail descriptions of each hike, including the highlights, distance, elevation, and difficulty


• Optional connecting trails for hikers who want more


• Historical tidbits and fun facts of the trails’ locales


• Directions and access to the trail

This guide is great for hikers of all levels to discover the best hikes found in Boulder, Colorado.

Sujets

• Sport
• Autres sports
• Sports de plein air
• Colorado
• US
• Mountain
• West
• United States
• Travel
• Flatirons

Informations

• Publié par: Turner Publishing Company
• Date de parution: 21 mai 2019
• Nombre de lectures: 0
• EAN13: 9781513262161
• Langue: English
• Poids de l'ouvrage: 12 Mo

Extrait

BOULDER
HIKING TRAILS
BOULDER
HIKING TRAILS
The Best of the Plains, Foothills, and Mountains
FIFTH EDITION
RUTH CAROL CUSHMAN AND GLENN CUSHMAN
2019 by Ruth Carol Cushman and Glenn Cushman
All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, or by any information storage and retrieval system, without written permission of the publisher.
ISBN: 9781513262147 (paperback)
9781513262154 (hardbound)
9781513262161 (e-book)
Printed in China.
23 22 21 20 19 1 2 3 4 5
Indexed by Sam Arnold-Boyd
Maps by Tony Moore; pages 25 , 30 , 55 , 82 , 141 and 224 by Lohnes + Wright
Icons: archaeology by Wireform from the Noun Project; Arrow by Lee Mette from the Noun Project; Binoculars by Erica Margini from the Noun Project; connection by Ralf Schmitzer from the Noun Project; cornflower by Arthur Shlain from the Noun Project; Cross-Country Skiing by johanna from the Noun Project; Fishing by Danil Polshin from the Noun Project; Golden Gate by CombineDesign from the Noun Project; leaf by Jason Dilworth from the Noun Project; Mountain by Chris Thoburn from the Noun Project; Mountain by iconcheese from the Noun Project; Pointy Rocks by Hamish from the Noun Project; Snowflake by Made from the Noun Project; Sumac by Laymik from the Noun Project; Waterfall by Hector Valle from the Noun Project; weather by Creative Mania from the Noun Project.
Cover photo: Flatirons with sumac.
West Margin Press
is an imprint of

WestMarginPress.com
Proudly distributed by Ingram Publisher Services.
WEST MARGIN PRESS
Publishing Director: Jennifer Newens
Marketing Manager: Angela Zbornik
Editor: Olivia Ngai
Design Production: Rachel Lopez Metzger
DEDICATION
To all who have walked and skied these trails with us and who share our love of open spaces and wild places, and to the memories of our parents, Florence and E. J. Scheerer and Eula and Ford Cushman .
We wish to add a special note of appreciation to the many people who work to preserve these wild places, not only for those of us who find recreation there, but also for the wildlife that cannot speak for itself and for future generations .
TABLE OF CONTENTS
Preface
A Brief History of Hiking, Parks, and Open Space in the Boulder Area
Best of the Best
Mindfulness
PLAINS
St. Vrain Greenway Trail
McIntosh Lake Loop
Pella Crossing
Braly Trail
Marlatt Trail
Lagerman Reservoir Loop
Coot Lake to Boulder Reservoir
Boulder Valley Ranch: Eagle and Cobalt Trails
East Boulder Trail
White Rocks and Gunbarrel Hill
Teller Lakes
Walden and Sawhill Ponds
Legion Loop Trail
Boulder Creek Path
South Boulder Creek Trail: Baseline Road to Marshall Road
Davidson Mesa Loop
Carolyn Holmberg Preserve/Rock Creek Farm
Cradleboard Trail
Coal Creek Trail
Marshall Mesa and Community Ditch
Coal Seam Trail and Community Ditch to Doudy Draw
Marshall Valley and Community Ditch Loop
Greenbelt Plateau to Marshall Mesa
FOOTHILLS
Button Rock Preserve Loop via Sleepy Lion Trail
Rabbit Mountain: Little Thompson Overlook Trail
Hall Ranch: Bitterbrush Trail and Nelson Loop
Heil Valley Ranch
Lichen Loop
Wapiti Trail
Ponderosa Loop
Bald Mountain Scenic Area: Pines-to-Peak Trail
Sugarloaf Mountain Trail
Interim Joder Trail
Foothills Trail
Anne U. White Trail
Betasso Preserve: Canyon Loop Trail
Forsythe Canyon Creek Trail to Gross Reservoir
Mount Sanitas Loop
Red Rocks and Anemone Hill Loop
Flagstaff Trail
Range View Trail to Artists Point
Gregory Canyon Trail
Saddle Rock and Amphitheater Loop
Green Mountain Loop via E. M. Greenman and Ranger Trails
Bluebell-Baird Trail
Royal Arch Trail
McClintock and Enchanted Mesa Loop
Mesa Trail
Walter Orr Roberts Nature Trail
Mallory Cave Trail
Bear Peak Loop via Bear Canyon, Bear Peak West Ridge, and Fern Canyon
Big Bluestem and South Boulder Creek West Loop
South Boulder Peak via Shadow Canyon
Towhee and Homestead Loop
Flatirons Vista North Trail to Doudy Draw
Fowler, Goshawk Ridge, and Spring Brook Loop
Walker Ranch Loop
Meyers Homestead Trail
MOUNTAINS
Wild Basin Area
Ouzel Lake via Calypso Cascade and Ouzel Falls
St. Vrain Area
Buchanan Pass Trail
Gibraltar Lake and St. Vrain Glaciers Trail
Red Deer Lake Trail
Buchanan Pass and Sawtooth Mountain Trails
St. Vrain Mountain Trail
South St. Vrain Trail to Brainard Lake
Ceran St. Vrain Trail to Miller Rock
Brainard Lake Recreation Area
Mount Audubon Trail
Blue Lake via Mitchell Lake Trail
Pawnee Pass via Long Lake and Lake Isabelle
Sourdough Trail
Camp Dick Campground to Beaver Reservoir
Beaver Reservoir to Brainard Lake Road
Brainard Lake Road to Rainbow Lakes Road
Caribou and Rainbow Lakes Area
Caribou Townsite and Caribou Hill
Caribou Ranch: DeLonde and Blue Bird Loop
Rainbow Lakes Trail
Arapaho Glacier Trail to Arapaho Glacier Overlook
Arapaho Pass Area
Arapaho Pass Trail
Arapaho Pass
Diamond Lake
South Arapaho Peak
Hessie Area
Devils Thumb Bypass Trail to Jasper Lake, Devils Thumb Lake, and Devils Thumb Pass
King Lake Trail to King, Betty, and Bob Lakes
Woodland Lake and Skyscraper Reservoir Trails
Rollins Pass Area
Forest Lakes Trail
James Peak via Rogers Pass Trail
NEARBY STATE AND COUNTY PARKS
Eldorado Canyon State Park
Rattlesnake Gulch Trail
White Ranch County Park
Rawhide Loop
Golden Gate Canyon State Park
Horseshoe and Mule Deer Trails to Frazer Meadow
St. Vrain State Park
Pelican Pond Loop
Barr Lake State Park
Gazebo Trail
Wheelchair-Accessible Trails
Bibliography
Index
Acknowledgments
Preface
This book describes our favorite trails, along with historical tidbits and a section on connections that allows hikers to plan permutations on familiar routes. Several major Boulder County trails are included only as Connections to make the book more concise. We ve tried to show why we love these particular trails and hope this book will help you choose which trail to take.
When possible, we ve taken elevations from websites published by the managing agency for that area. The National Geodetic Survey is developing a more accurate way of measuring elevation, called GRAV-D, that should be ready by 2022. (Predictions are that Colorado may lose a couple of fourteeners!) In the meantime, remember that measurement is not an exact science, so you will undoubtedly discover discrepancies.
Mileage is given from the most convenient parking area. In earlier editions, we took mileage from trail signs or USGS maps. For this edition, we used online government sites, but again, there will be some discrepancies.
Within each section of the book (Plains, Foothills, Mountains, and Nearby State and County Parks) the trails are arranged roughly from north to south. Rating the difficulty of trails is subjective, but generally we used the following guidelines: easy means less than 2 miles one way, with gentle gradients; moderate means between 2 and 4 miles one way and less than 1,000 feet in elevation gain; strenuous means either more than 4 miles one way, more than 1,000 feet in elevation gain, or a steep gradient.
Trails, like living organisms, tend to change. New trails are constructed, old trails are rerouted or closed, old bridges collapse, and (sometimes) new bridges are built. If you find outdated descriptions in our guide, please forgive us and keep in mind that any outdoor adventure may involve coping with the unexpected.
The final approach to Royal Arch is a bit steep!
Abbreviations
CR - County Road
CO - Colorado State Road
US - United States Highway
NFSR - National Forest Service Road
NCAR - National Center for Atmospheric Research
RMNP - Rocky Mountain National Park
USGS - United States Geological Survey
Map Legend

North indicator

Trailhead

Featured Trail

Featured Trail

Featured Trail

Other Trail

River/Stream

Falls

Lake

Wetlands

Glacier

Continental Divide

Paved Road

Gravel Road

Railroad

State Highway

U.S. Highway

Point of Interest

Mountain Summit Elevation in feet

County Road

Forest Service Road
A Brief History of Hiking, Parks, and Open Space in the Boulder Area
Ever since the first white settlement in 1858, hiking and nature study have been popular activities in the Boulder area. When the first gold seekers camped at Red Rocks that year, some of them climbed the hill to observe the last rays of the sun illuminate what they called Sunset Rock, possibly the edge-on view of the first Flatiron. In the late 1860s and 1870s, Martha Maxwell-one of the first women naturalists in the country-explored the Boulder area on foot and horseback. It was here that she gathered specimens for the collection she exhibited, to worldwide acclaim, at the Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition in 1876.
Soon after Chautauqua was established in 1898, the Colorado Chautauqua Climbers Club was formed and later incorporated as the Rocky Mountain Climbers Club (RMCC). The articles of incorporation listed various objectives, including to mark, build, and establish and maintain trails to points of interest. Edwin Chamberlin, a charter member, wrote: We had no trail in those days to Royal Arch, Green Mountain, nor Bear Peak. We just clambered around like mountain goats. Another group, The High Hikers, also constructed trails throughout the county. This group was organized in 1910 and later became the Boulder Chapter of the Colorado Mountain Club.

Golden aspen at the beginning of the Forsythe Canyon Creek Trail.

In the open spaces around Boulder you might see an osprey eating a fish, historic cabins such as the McGillvray Cabin, and blooming pasqueflowers.
A. T. Wheeler, who patrolled on horseback, was hired in 1911 as the first Boulder Mountain Parks ranger. In 1916 M. R. Parsons, who also patrolled on horseback, was hired. Parsons s extensive photo collection