The Skim: Beautiful 3.3 mile loop for easy-to-moderate hiking! Lots of shaded areas and easy access…read morefor on-leash dogs. Not-so-great parking situation. This trail is great! It's far enough away to have the serene 'mountain' feel but close enough to be convenient. You can bring your dogs and walk them on-leash (they'll love this trail!). The trail seems to be popular for trail running and biking, but you cannot bike here on Wednesday/Saturday. So those days are the best for hikers. There are also picnic areas available for picnicking as well! Plenty of shade for cooling down, too. The only downside is parking. There are two VERY SMALL lots with one overflow lot. On the weekend it gets busy and finding a spot can be a real struggle.

Great trailhead and general area for hiking and trail recreation. I group this along with Doudy…read moreDraw and Fowler TH since they are all pretty close, and you can hike to each within a few miles if parking fills at one. That said, it gets busy here even on weekdays, and except a tough search for a spot on a nice day. There's a fee for non Boulder Cnty cars. It's a great place to recreate, with access to likely a few hundred miles of trails. Many peaks to climb, like Bear and South Boulder make this a popular place to start your Boulder hike. It's a bit less crowded than something like NCAR or the flatirons, and there's a lot of trails that branch off. Do download a dedicated map application like Strava or alltrails, and pack some supplies. It's enough trails it can get confusing even to veteran hikers. Have a great time and happy trails!

Pretty darn steep hike. Really after the first two miles it's all up hill. Barefooted it until…read moreabout .1 miles from the summit of South Peak. Kept my spikes on for Bear Peak as well and a bit on the way down. Overall conditions aren't that bad, few patches of ice - last half mile all packed, icy snow. $5 fee for parking if you're not a Boulder resident.

What a fantastic trail! There's views for miles here. The parking area is fairly large with…read moretoilets, and there's another a bit fatter for non Boulder county folks who don't feel like paying. Come now for the best flower show! With lupines, sunflowers and more, plus roaming cows, the pastoral scene here will take you away from the bustle of nearby parks. There's a big loop trail up the hill, and numerous bike paths to follow. I had a lot of fun here!

Located at the intersection of HWY 93 and Marshall road in south Boulder, Marshall Mesa is a great…read moreplace to go hiking or mountain biking if you like steep and rough terrain. Trail maintenance is very little if not at all so get ready for some extremely rocky, muddy, and partially washed out trails. The good thing about Marshall Mesa is its expansive trail network, one can connect up to the Marshall Valley Trail, Coal Seam Trail, Cowdrey Draw Trail, Greenbelt Plateau Trail, and Community Ditch Trail. All trails are hiker and mountain biker friendly but most of them are very narrow and only allow a single direction of traffic at one time. Good hiking footwear or a strong, well built professional grade mountain bike is required as well as sunscreen and a couple of bottles of water since most of these trails are fairly long (10+ miles long one way). There is a large free parking lot across the street from the entrance or a pay for parking lot on the park property itself. So go out and enjoy the sights and sounds of the great Colorado outdoors.

The Aquarius Trailhead is an access point on the Lafayette/Louisville town line for the Coal Creek…read moreTrail. There's parking for a dozen or so cars, some signage about the surrounding nature, and a small picnic shelter. Very popular spot with runners, walkers, and bikers. Conveniently located but the traffic can be a bit fast going by. Excellent spot for sunsets and western views into from Pikes Peak very far south, Boulder and the Indian Peaks to the west, and north to Longs Peak and Wyoming. Lots of wildlife including bald eagles, prairie dogs, and coyotes.

We planned to do the first and second flat iron hike while passing through Boulder on our way from…read moreGolden to Estes Park. Unfortunately, we were the day after the big September snow storm (that shouldn't be a thing). We didn't want to just sit around though, so we decided to still do the hike. It was kind of icy in the snow, but it wasn't terrible. It was pretty in the forest with all of the snow. It was very foggy, so we really couldn't see any views. We ended up turning around a little before the top because I couldn't feel my feet (my shoes were soaked and it was 30 degrees) and there were no views to see anyway. I'd love to come back to Boulder sometime and do this hike when I can enjoy the views and feel my toes!

An absolutely STUNNING trail!! Parking was free for us because we went during the off season on a…read moreweekday. Pay for parking from memorial day to labor day plus weekends. We went on a wednesday in September and did not pay! Make sure to stop by the ranger house to get a map! The ranger who helped us was super helpful in recommending trails that would fit our level. She warned us that first flatirons is one of the more challenging trails but you get a great view, so we took the challenge. There were some other options, including one where you can see stone furniture! The park is large and there are many trails overlapping and out of the way, so make sure you know before you start! We used the AllTrails app and it was super helpful in knowing which split in the trail we were in. The beginning uphill looks easy and not too steep, but.... it got us. It was a bit disappointing to see how out of shape we were, given that we werent even on the trail yet. If you feel exhausted before getting to the trail, DONT GIVE UP IT GETS BETTER. The next hardest part were the rocky crossings we had to do, but it is exciting and the trails are so well maintained it is safe and steady. The views are absolutely stunning and the flowers are so beautiful all throughout the trail. Theres also a loop you can take on the way down for a view of Boulder! Even if you arent a master hiker, I would definitely recommend it!

This is a super lovely and quiet trail. Lion Gulch Trailhead is located on Hwy. 36. Thirteen miles…read morewest of Lyons and 8 miles east of Estes Park. From Estes Park travel to the 8-mile marker on Hwy. 36. It has a smaller parking lot probably could hold 10 cars. It starts off with a pretty steep climb, but there is a fair amount of shade and some water crossings along the way. This is a great trail in my opinion if you have dogs especially on the warmer sunny days. There is a bathroom at the beginning of the trail but there is not however any trash cans, so when you go you need to go with the intention of packing out all the bring you in. Including your dog poop. I can't remember if there were dog poop bags at the trail head so if you have a dog be sure to pack some with you (and then take them out with you) There are lots and lots of ways to go on teh trail and a variety of old homesteads to see. It is really quite cool. There are signs with some of the history along the route as well. Right now about half the trail is covered in ice, so if you dont have yak traks or spikes it would be best to not go until later as there are parts that are a sheet of ice.

Fantastic trail. A little muddy today but nothing we couldn't deal with wearing hiking shoes…read more Absolutely no steep uphills or downhills. Dogs everywhere but all on leash. Also a lot of bikes on the trail, but very friendly and courteous. views were amazing. Most of the Mountain views were in the distance. Plenty of meadows and wildflowers. Public bathrooms at the beginning.

Very nice place for nature! Flowers were going off a week or two ago. You can make a 3 mile long…read moreloop, or connect to other trails east and west. This is a great place to see wildflowers and nice mountain views!

A nice spot close to the heart of Boulder to have a picnic, go on a hike, or enjoy the warer. I…read morealso saw a few people fly fishing. The bathrooms were not operational during our visit (early July 2024) which was pretty inconvenient when you want to eat/drink by the water. The parking lot will fill up but there is some additional parking across the road. This spot could benefit from 1-2 more picnic tables.

Beautiful public access spot in Left Hand Creek Watershed! A great place for a picnic and walk…read morealong the creek!