Great short hike that spits you out on the far side of Hidden Mesa Open Space. There are lots of…read morecool sites and we saw tons of birds, butterflies, rabbits, and one snake. Running by the creek is cooler and shaded at times.

I feel this route needs a solid review from someone who is mathematically, grammatically and…read morealpinistically (I just made that up), "inclined". First of all, this is probably the most beautiful yet somewhat challenging short hike in town. If you want a snapshot of the grandeur awaiting you beyond the I25 corridor (and cell phone range) this is it! Absolutely beautiful. The short: for the average person of moderate or lacking fitness level, it should absolutely be doable. I would say the normal person could knock it out in less than 4 hours (with picture/selfie taking along the way and up top). Decent fitness levels should be up and down in less than 2 hours... Don't bring the cat-dog looking micro mutt as you will either be carrying it or burying it somewhere about the first hour of hiking. There is water throughout the trail so regular dogs should have a blast here. There is an issue with dog poo littering the parking lot and trails (despite free poo bags being offered at trail head... This hike is no joke. Wear proper shoes with decent traction. You can get hurt here! I would bring at least a liter (Nalgene bottle) of water during hot days. Although covered with trees throughout, the sun will beat down on you throughout the hike. I only say this because I passed a family of 5 about half way with no water. As far as short local hikes go, Stanley Canyon gets a Five from me. Awesome!

This hike is not for the faint of heart. It's a pretty steep hike up and coming back down can be…read morevery difficult if you have bad knees or don't have excellent tread on your hiking boots. Scree for days! But it's a beautiful one and a great workout.

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!

I did this as part of a larger loop last weekend. The trail conditions for this segment were really…read moregood. It's a long trail, but not too difficult for a reasonably in shape person. Usually, you can walk two abreast and the river crossings are not hard. Lots of nice campsites every mile or so, visible right next to the trail. Once you get away from the trailhead, firewood is plentiful. Some camp sites are right next to water, so you can filter it and you're good. Others, you may have to carry water there. We did have some wet weather, which wasn't bad if you have good raincoats. Naturally, if you go to higher elevations, the rain comes down as snow, or hail, even in June. If you're just doing Goose Creek, within the first 7-8 miles, it's super easy to follow. However, good maps are available for free from the USGS web site. We also had a good map for Lost Creek from Amazon. Not too hard to get to the trail head, although you do have to drive about 15 miles of windy dirt road. It takes about 45 minutes for that part, especially if you have to back up to let someone go the other way on one of the single lane parts.

When Spring hits Colorado snow is most likely still in the mountains... but towards the end of…read morespring there is one wilderness that most locals know will most likely NOT have snow, and that is why the Lost Creek Wilderness becomes so popular. People want out of their homes and into the mountains and they want it now, so they all go. This is a great trail to either take a short hike on or a trek. I did a one night day/trek and saw my first bear in person! I am still so excited to this day that I tell people about seeing my first bear in person. He saw us first and was walking away from us, but I was scared the rest of the trek. We found the most amazing camp site under these beautiful grove of Aspens and by a nearby running river. At that particular time, we were allowed to have fires, so we made a nice controlled fire, had an amazing dinner of burritos and rice and enjoyed ourselves as the night grew cooler. You better bet your booty that we hung all of our food, wrappers, and trash in a high high tree, far, far away from our tents... You are not a true hiker if you don't! Make sure to see the shaft house.. The short mile hike will grant you awesome sites of gigantic boulders and rock formations... A sure different view then the rest of the hike. * Star one for my first bear sighting ** Raise your hands tall or talk low star two is for learning what to do if a bear approaches you talk that lasted a mile *** Wow this is old star three is for the old not-in-use shafthouses that are a perfect short trek off of the main trail **** Fire fire star four is for the first mile which shows you in person how a much a forest fire rips apart a wilderness... But the star is for the new growth... I am so cheesy! 239.

We loved our hike to st marys falls. St Marys is a moderate hike around 6.5 miles and 1394 feet of…read moreelevation gain. The main road to the falls parking lot is closed and you have to take gold camp road over. This is around 3 miles of dirt. Its narrow with some pot holes and also 2 tunnels you will need to go through. A lot of the road is very narrow and really only wide enough for just one car. So be prepared for a little bit of a hairy ride. it will be the 2nd parking lot on your right. There is a fairly large parking lot, however it fills up quickly especially on a weekend. If you want to do this you will want to arrive sooner rather than later. Dogs are allowed but are supposed to be on a leash. The parking lot for saint marys is the same as for some other trails over there, seven bridges and silver cascades being 2 of them. You will have to walk around 1 1/4 miles up a dirt road until you get to the trailhead. The trail follows a creek most of the trail. It is rocky and at times a little slick with the loose rock. It is beautiful, surrounded by forest. It was very magical and lovely. it felt so nice to be out in the woods. Mountain bikes and motorcycles are also allowed to use this trail. We did not see any motorcycles but there were a few mountain bikers. And they dont necessarily signal so well beware. There is a trash can at the trail head. Be sure to PACK out what you pack in! My friend and i were picking up garbage that people had left along the trail :( There is no reason to leave your garbage. Please take it with you.

Inadvertently found this trail while looking for a different place to hike with the pup, who is…read moreyoung and just learning how to be a good off leash hiking dog. I'm not 100% certain, but I think that you are allowed to take your dogs off leash on this trail. I certainly never saw any signs stating otherwise and out of maybe 10 dogs we saw, half were on leash and a half off. It was a beautiful hike however we were not prepared and did not have water or maybe a hiking stick for me, at least. The beginning part of the trail is a wide open fire lane, but once you get back there it's a trail with a gradual uphill climb the entire way that turns even steeper towards the end. I was definitely asking "how much longer" for the last half-hour and really regretting that I didn't have water with me as my sensitive back started to ache. On our way down as we passed other hikers, they were asking the same question about "how much longer". The gradual uphill climb the entire way can be a little much if you're not prepared for it and the journey back down to the car is much quicker since it's basically downhill the whole way. Took half the time to get down than it did to get up. The waterfall and stream were beautiful and soothing. Walking with shady tree cover much of the way and a stream next to us was a plus for the pup to get his first experience of playing in a stream. The pup definitely enjoyed himself most of all. We took this hike in early June and on our way back we got hit with a rainstorm that dropped the temperature about 20° and we were freezing and poured on by the time we got back to the car, so be prepared when coming here in the summertime!

Incredible 360 views where you can see Denver, Pikes Peak, many other 14ers…read more It is a unique view of Colorado from above since Devils Head is kind of isolated from other mountains. The trail I think is the perfect length, it does feel a little longer than 2.8 miles out and back. I'd say this is a moderate hike. You can bring dogs on this trail. I don't think it is super friendly for young children. I personally would get pretty exhausted if I had to backpack up my toddler. But for the older kids it would be a good one. Definitely add this one to your list! I think it is my favorite hike I have done so far on the front range!

Plenty of parking space and an overflow lot. Trail is well maintained and it's a quick in and out…read morehike. The views at the top are gorgeous.

I really enjoyed this peaceful hike and would definitely recommend doing this in the spring,…read moresummer, or fall. It was around 2-3 miles round trip and very flat for most of it so it would quite easy for the beginner/intermediate hiker. On the way there we passed by several beautiful flower fields and even saw some wild deer! The monument rock itself was a nice sight to see and I guess you could say stuck out like a sore thumb!

I have been taking my Truck to Bobby since 2018. Each time I do, I have been extremely satisfied…read more He and his colleagues have exceeded expectations. I continue to highly recommend Monument Auto Clinic

We are locals and ventured here on the motorcycle during a weekday when it was not tourist season…read moreand IT WAS PERFECT! Loved it, it was beautiful and PEACEFUL, and we will definitely come back here again!

The hike was only about a mile to get there and back. And the views were great the entire time…read more There's a small waterfall and area to swim as well as cliffs to jump into the water. The cliffs are very high and there are rocks at the bottom so bring shoes and be safe. The water was also freezing but super refreshing.

First time to do the main trail here. Props for having a nice facility with bathrooms. Of course,…read morethey're closed until 4/1, so the one porta potty would have to do. The trails themselves were nice, other than the frequent horse poop that had to be dodged. Also, a little odd that the surface changed frequently, from gravel to dirt, to a reddish sand. And of course, a few areas of mud and ice but not too bad. Points for a few trash cans, along with picnic tables and benches. Not the best hike in the world, but it was fine and relatively easy. And not a ton of views, other than a couple of glimpses of Pikes Peak and a bit of the front range.

This park is so nice and much needed out here in Peyton! Every time I go it's clean and well…read moremaintained, perfect for all ages because of its jungle gym and pond with a dock. The best part would have to be how big it is there are a lot of long trails that go all over the parks acreage and you can even ride your horse!