This piece of county-maintained open space is a beautiful mix of forest and high meadow or pasture…read moretrails. The upper route winds through tall pines with great overlooks. The lower meadow trail opens into peaceful grasslands. Had an unforgettable moment on the high meadow. Spotted a mountain lion 700 or so hundred feet away croached near a melting snow berm. Then, I rounded a bend in the distance and it disappeared behind a thicket. I walked backward for 30 minutes with a snapped-off branch of scrub oak. Wild. Beautiful. Humbling. Colorado at its best.

Tis was an occasion where I joined this photography/hiking meetup group. It was at 8am on a…read morebeautiful Sunday and about 10 of us gathered at the beautiful hiking trail for a quick hike with our SLRs (for mw, it was my iPhone !!!) to take stunning photos. Sounded like my kind of thing so I joined. And I'm glad that I did. It had been very pleasant when it came to the temperatures for the last week or two in Colorado. None of us were prepared for the snow covered trails so definitely bring your spikes or chains to wear on your shoes or it might be a bit dangerous to hike this trail during cold(er) months; it was very slippery. The hike is pretty moderate so this is a great place for beginners and families with small kids. But this is not to say that the hike doesn't contain stunning views; with that being said, this is a hidden gem. Per the organizer, he and his wife sometimes get up early in the morning like 3am(!!) to catch the sunrise as this is one of the best places for it. I guess I will try that in the near future but I honestly don't know if I'd get up at 3am!! The trail is well maintained and very easy to navigate. This is a popular spot for people who live in Castle Rock or Sedalia but it's also for someone like me who live in Denver; it's about 30/35 minutes away from it. Not bad!

We parked off 83 and it was a short walk to the bridge. There were people riding horses and…read morewalking dogs. Righter after the bridge is the paved bike path. This path had tons of prairie dogs and they were all chirping at each other. I'll have to update this review after I go through the Mesa Rim loop, but for this time around it was just a casual walk without many sights.

We parked at the #2 Trailhead off Castle Oaks Drive. There are only about 10 spaces, but this lot…read morehas a bathroom, trashcan, and dog bags. We chose this trail because its only about 2.8mi to do the Mesa Rim Loop trail v the Cherry Creek Trail to the loop (about 6 mi). This hike is very exposed to the elements so come prepared (hat, water, sunglasses, layers in non-summer). There are lots of prairie dogs along the trail, but that also means rattlesnakes and coyotes, so please keep your dog on leash despite the wide open temptation to let them run free. There are also many cyclists on the trail. The trail is well-marked with great views of the mountains and is easy enough for young kids, too.

Absolutely wonderful trail for biking with great signage along the way. Beautiful scenery and…read morewildlife. Definitely would recommend this trail.

I love rollerblading on this trail I also love walking and…read morebiking here It's beautiful and safe

Much better trail conditions than our last time attempting to hike here, when it was a swampy mess…read more Trail is now completely dry. Tons and tons of bikers and hikers out on a clear Saturday morning. It's not the most exciting trail, but it's close if you live in Castle Rock, and the views of the front range are decent.

Don't go on a hot day. There is no shade. But beautiful views, needed breezes one is at the top…read morenear the water tanks

I wanted some vibes like Garden of the gods but did not want the crowds so I checked out Red Rock…read moreCanyon Open Space! I was really impressed with this open space. Parking was easy, they had plenty of spots while I was visiting. They've got something for everyone! Hiking trails, bike park/paths, rock climbing (permit needed), an off leash dog park. I specifically went for the hiking trails. They were great for my 4 year old. When I go with him I try to look for trails under 3 miles. My only complaint is I wish they had real bathrooms by the parking lot. The porta potty was pretty gross. P.s. you can see garden of the gods from this park! They are pretty close to each other!

Colorado is the healthiest state in the US (this is fact, you can look this up on the CDC website)…read moreand I can see why. With such amazing hiking available, that is free to residents and visitors, all over the state, it encourages you to get outside and enjoy what mother nature has to offer. Red Rock Canyon Open Space has a series of canyons and ridges sculpted by erosion of the area's uplifted rock strata. The ridges and canyons offer beautiful views that are photo worthy for those wanting to post to their social media (or hey, just keeping these photo keepsakes in your own camera roll is also fine too). Red Rock Canyon Open Space is dog friendly, with some off leash areas (where noted), and 11 trails that you can hike. The trails are anywhere from 1.7 miles to 5.4 miles, with a lot of pretty easy trails for those that are not as active but still want to partake in the journey. You can also see views of Garden of the Gods, which is nearby. Red Rock Canyon Open Space is not nearly as busy as Garden of the Gods (but highly recommend a visit there too, which is also dog friendly). From May 1 and Oct. 31, you can enter Red Rock Canyon Open Space between 5 a.m. and 10 p.m.; during the rest of the year, the park closes at 9 p.m. There is free parking available and also one porta potty at the beginning of the trail (but I did not use it) and also trash cans (I did not see trash cans anywhere else in this open space). My husband and I visited Red Rock Canyon Open Space with our little girl dog. We came on a Sunday afternoon, a little after 1 pm. It was an overcast day, which was nice. But it was rather busy but not crowded. We were able to find a parking spot without any trouble. We only did 2 light trails but enjoyed the views. The trails we had were pretty easy for the most part. We also did see a handful of dogs during our visit. Please note that there is hardly any shade so make sure you plan accordingly (hat to shade your face, plenty of water, etc).

Awesome park with a variety of activities for families and friends! They have a mountain bike park…read morefor beginners and experienced levels to practice in; disc golf, several kids' playground, public bathrooms, and sports field for soccer and baseball. Great spot to spend the day with family and friends! Definitely coming back here!

The Village Greens mountain bike trail is a great place for beginners and I'm sure some of the more…read moreexperienced riders, although I wouldn't be able to speak to that since I'm not one. Did you have a mix of easy and more moderate obstacles. We parked at the Dayton station rtd parking lot which seems to be closer for toddlers to make it over to the park compared to the other parking lot. I had great fun as a beginner mountain biker and the kids on their strider as well as my almost 5-year-old had a ton of fun. It got hot fast so I would definitely recommend bringing water and maybe snacks.

We did a 6 or so mile hike. The views were okay, but what I liked the most were the rocks on the…read moretrail (smaller ones that were red, orange, yellow, clear, and metallic). We did this in the snow, so wearing spikes helped. The trail was shaded a lot, which would be great in the summer.

Beautiful space for hiking, biking - right outside Golden with a pretty scenic drive. Parking is…read moreample, views are gorgeous, altitude isn't bad and I have to say that spring is a nice time to visit as everything is so green and the lack of tree cover isn't unbearable - yet! Perfect place to come for an easy hike or ride, with lots of spots for a picnic lunch. The history of this park is interesting and I love the random barns scattered throughout the space.

My family and I went on the 6 zipline course. It was amazing! Tony, Mikey and Tanya were fantastic…read moreguides! The course was beautiful, safe, and fun. We went on both the longest zipline and the fastest zipline in Colorado. They provided water and snacks as well. I highly recommend doing this at least once in your life.

Sometimes it's hard to impress 3 teen boys, but they loved the zipline experience, and especially…read moreStu, one of the guides. It's definitely worth it to check this out!

This service is amazing ! RMB confirmed the easy online booking, called to make arrangements,…read moreexchanged text messages to recommend a trail, met me at trailhead, brought and adjusted the perfect bike that just happened to be a new yeti, provided water and a snack and provided trail riding tips. This is really the only way to go if you travel to Colorado to mountain bike. I couldn't recommend them more highly.

We had a fantastic time working with Jessica and Chris. Leading up to our rental day, communication…read morewas great and Jessica was incredibly helpful matching our abilities and biking background with Denver local trails. The day of the ride, Jessica and Chris were waiting for us in the Staunton State Park Visitor's Center, and we spent 30ish minutes making sure our two bikes were properly fitted to each of us. Their process was very thorough- taking our weight into account to adjust the front and rear suspension, watching us pedal around the parking lot, and even installing SPD pedals for me. They also equipped us with a spare tube for my tire, mini bike pump, a bottle of water, and a snack. Before we left, we shared our trail plan for the day, and Jessica's incredible depth of knowledge gave us the insider tips and let us know what to expect and special spots we should stop at that we hadn't known about. Chris stayed with us for a little bit at the beginning of the trail, offering us tips to adjust our breathing for the elevation (we're coming from Michigan) and what to expect on the trail. At the end of the day, we'd considered the whole experience to be wholly worthwhile. The only drawback is that since we had less time than we'd have liked to adapt to Denver elevation, this seemed like the first time we'd seriously considered ebikes. I hope it's something they're able to offer in the future. Otherwise, please check out this business if you're looking for an MTB rental company. We look forward to seeing them again the next time we're in Denver.

Cool location in the middle of Castle Rock town. Great sunset viewing area and decent quick hike…read more Pavilion and parking at bottom of hike. Takes about 30 minutes round trip. To get to the top of the rock is a bit sketchy though since you have to climb up the rocks.

This park has some amazing views from the top and the bottom. We parked our car and started up…read more There are two trails to get to the top. When we reached the split in the trail we went to the right on the way up and came down the other way. Both trails are clearly marked. There are some stairs but mostly it is gravel and rocks. I would say to bring some water and wear some sunscreen because there is not a lot of shade on the trail. Once you get to the top you will have some pretty good views. We only saw a few other hikers so not too busy or crowded feeling. I would definitely recommend coming here at least once if you are visiting the area. It's worth a stop.