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    Lower Maxwell Falls Trail Head

    4.0 (45 reviews)

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    (4/30/21)
    Matt C.

    It seems the general consensus is shared: a nice hike close to Denver, the trail just gets too crowded. After doing my own research of Maxwell Falls and having it on my hiking list for some time, I knew when the temps warmed up last Friday I had to jet over to Evergreen. Major plus not coming on a weekend. I snagged the last spot in the parking lot, that only has around 15 spots. When I left cars were starting to line the roads. Now let's talk hike! Though shorts weather, the trails were still snowy and icy. This was the trade I settled for instead of coming on a Saturday. Still worth it in my opinion. I only slipped once! It's a fairly easy hike, though at one time in particular, extremely hard to navigate with all the snow. Myself and a few solo hikers got turned around here, eventually we veered back in the right direction. I doubt you'd have these issues in the summer. It's a very beautiful hike. Tall trees with that Evergreen glow, large boulders with the sun glistening off them just right. The Falls themselves were frozen, but still a sight for sore eyes. Other than the many icy spots, I really can't complain sneaking in a hike on the last day of April! Its close proximity to Denver makes it one of the more highly trafficked hikes, which shouldn't come as a surprise. Took me 40 minutes from my place in Sloan's. Cliff notes: avoid weekends, arrive before 10am, bring lots of water, the trail is dog friendly, there are many spots to relax and have a snack.

    Timothy R.

    I thoroughly enjoyed this trail. The majority of the trail is lined with towering trees. The gentle sound of the nearby river can be heard for the majority of the hike. I came out at the beginning of August on a 90 degrees summer day, yet the shade, refreshing river, and light breeze kept me cool for the entire hike. Other reviews complained about the number of hikers on the weekend, which almost made me avoid this trail. But I came here in a Sunday morning before 9am, it was well traveled by others, but nothing too uncomfortable. I plan to come back in the spring when there's more wild flowers and and more runoff to fill the river.

    Alisa J.

    Nice maintained trails and ample parking. The waterfalls are pretty and the trail has good shade coverage and is good during the summer. The trail is near the town too.

    Luna M.

    Don't follow the address that's attached to this it will led you to a residential are. Look up on google "Lower Maxwell Falls Trail" or "Upper Maxwell Falls Trail". I went on the Upper maxwell falls trail and it's was a really beautiful hike but it's really close to a residential area if you get off the trail you will run into houses. Oh and It's not a waterfall it's a really small creek.

    Trail
    Rowena B.

    Come early to beat the foot traffic! We came here on Mother's Day, arrived around 9.30am and got a parking spot in the little overflow parking just up from the trailhead parking lot. When we got back to the car around 12 noon there were cars all up the sides of the road and the trail was super busy!! I can see why it's popular, it's a beautiful spot and close to Denver. We were slow carrying out 15 month old, 30 lb baby. We were overtaken by a lot of people. But made it to the falls just fine, getting down to the falls when we got there was a little challenging because I had the carrier on the front and I had to climb down the rocks but I got there. The waterfall was still frozen on the top but you could see a little water coming through. The trail started to get slippery and muddy on the way back because of all the people and the little bit of snow remaining on the ground. We only saw one bad of dog poop left on the side of the trail near the start.

    Happy to be saved!!! Hiking her out to be reunited with her family
    Jamie B.

    Great hike in about 2.3mi (steep) to a waterfall. Terrain is decent enough to wear a good pair of trail running shoes instead of boots. Like adventurers lol we veered off the trail. Thank God we did because we found a dog!!! She was lost for 6 days in the forest and miraculously we were able to hike her out of here and reunite her with her family... Best birthday weekend ever!!!

    Lindsay A.

    We did the UPPER Maxwell Falls Trail, which is about 2.4 miles. It was a lot of climbing on rocks, and ups & downs, but beautiful. The biggest issue is just that there are a lot of people there. We brought our 3 kids and 2 small dogs, and it was challenging but fun! The waterfall at the end makes it all worth it.

    Small parking lot. Small overflow lot. Street parking
    Nicole W.

    Yeah for hiking close to denver! As mentioned, shaded for most of it. IF you start from the lower trail head it's a good up and down hike. It can be tricky to see the falls - pay attention when the mileage gets close! Lots of people and dogs. Lots of small children that just end up whining that it is too far! Tiny parking lot, tiny over flow parking, and parking on the side of the road leave you on a blind corner. So be careful! It was a fun hike, but go early, stay hydrated. FYI - there are no trashcans at the trail head, so pack it in, and pack it back out to your car - including dog poop! :)

    Iris S.

    Hosted an awesome all women's hike at this trail yesterday. The scenery is beautiful, gorgeous vistas if you combine your hike with the cliff loop trail. Even though the river is currently frozen we could still hear a gentle stream of water running. If you plan to hike on a weekend I would definitely recommend arriving early as the parking area is fairly small. I can't wait to return to this trail and have a totally different experience in the summer.

    Half way thru to the upper fall area... Dogs are taking a break...
    BlaundNordic V.

    If it's a sunny, hot day, the shaded hike is perfect... Over 2 miles of up and half a mile down and then up again, 3.4 miles total to climb down into the falls... Ya really need to climb down in to get to the falls, and cuz of the Monsoon the week before, the water is flowing immensely... If coming from upper trail, much shorter but many more ppl even for a weekday like this, lower trail had all of 2 ppl besides us... After hitting the top of the falls which includes 1/2 of the Upper Trailhead, we grabbed the loop that starts with a C and wrapped it back down to the bridge where you'll see it connect at the Lower Trailhead... All in all, 9.7 miles, and the pups loved every bit of it... BTW those with kids, the yelling at the falls DOES disturb the peace, the bristling of the leaves and the tranquility of the mountainside with rushing waters...

    Taking a break
    Nalz C.

    Great hike! Beautiful scenery! My dog loved it too~~ its not an easy trail, so people passing called her a trooper since she is a miniature pinscher and was trotting along the whole thing. Only downside is there are no bathrooms, not even anything near. So make sure to go before you get thhere. And no trashcans, so take your trash with you. When we were done with our hike, cars were parked in the lot, overflow lot, and up and down the highway! It gets crowded

    Incredible views by the parking spaces
    Alice Q.

    This hike was incredibly rewarding; I brought my sister here and my good friend who came back from the Navy as a hero. We hiked a total of 2.3 miles and saw lots of wonder and beauty. Along the trails, we managed to meet the light drops of drizzling level rain. There was even a deer spotted towards the end of our hike and we even wet our toes in the small stream nearby. The first trail is a little challenging, simply because of the steeper hills, the big rocks, the height of the edges and much carefulness is needed. I prefer to go hiking mainly in the late afternoon/early evening, much because of the harshness of the sun is gone. I tend to get a little dehydrated, but there is nothing more to fix that problem than gulps of water. Another cool thing was the fact that I have hiked here before back in 2013 and was disappointed that I couldn't finish the trail. It's almost like God wanted me to revisit an unfinished goal and to show me, "Look how far you've gone, look how much you've grown!" The trails were about 1 hour and a half. We managed to get out of here around 7:30 ish. It's always easier to hike back than hike for the first time in exploring the trail. There are lots of people that may pass you nearby to say hello and they often bring their little, furry friends and sometimes children too. My sister, she loved the hike. I'm incredibly thankful to have brought her here, simply because she wanted to go on a different kind of an adventure and she managed to see it young. I didn't hike much at all, and I want to open those doors to my little sister. 1 star less because unfortunately, we did not find that waterfall. Only a small stream and although we washed our feet, we were looking forward to finding that waterfall, and it just wasn't found. Someone even told us that we were on the wrong park-- but I knew that wasn't right either. We were much too tired to finish it, so we just went back and hoped to come back and try again. Some of the hikers told us to take a left on the trail sign that I took a photo of. We must go left on the crest and then go left. We did that, but it wasn't found. We'll try a different path for the future. Overall, it wasn't much of a waste of time. Still a glorious experience. I'm glad I'm alive.

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    6 years ago

    Absolutely beautiful! When it's not too crowded lol. Come early or on a weekday if you can.

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    9 years ago

    The directions on the yelp map were wrong. we used google maps and searched lower Maxwell falls trail head. Fun hike

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    Ask the Community - Lower Maxwell Falls Trail Head

    Review Highlights - Lower Maxwell Falls Trail Head

    If you do the full five mile loop there is a good amount of elevation change, but it is rolling not all uphill on the way out and downhill on the way back.

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    Mt. Evans Wilderness

    Mt. Evans Wilderness

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    A friend of mine had told me about this place and said we should give it a visit when in Colorado…read more We tried to do that the last time we were there, but it had already closed for the season. This trip, we were a week or so earlier, so we decided to try again. Fortunately, most of the area was still open. Only the very top was closed. Timed entry passes are required here, just like in many of the National Parks. I'm glad one of our group thought to get it. After a very nice drive up from Idaho Springs, we showed our permit and headed up. Part of the fun of this trip is that it's the highest paved road in North America (14,264 ft). We made it all the way up to one of the alpine lakes, and it was cold. I'm glad we were prepared for the cold and wind. We didn't see any wildlife at the lake, but we did see some on the way up. The area is full of deer, big horn sheep, and mountain goats, and we got to see 2 of the 3. Will I return? Definitely. However, if you want to see it all, you better go in the summer.

    Beautiful. Loved this hike…read more Come early. parking lot may fill up. We arrive at 6 am on monday 6/27/2021. summit lake lot was around half full. There are bathrooms available at the lot for use. Bring $5 cash to pay to park when you arrive. there is an envelope to fill out over near the bathroom for parking. Take the trail that doesn't go down close to the lake and then you will hang a left. There is some signage before you really start to incline. the elevation gain from the parking lot to mount spaulding was fairly intense. There are a lot of rocks. Would make sure you have good boots for this hike. Once you get up to mount spaulding you will start to DESCEND. the trail up to mount spaulding is relatively well laid out. however after you get down from mount spaulding. Well there is a rock area that is not marked at all. Take a peek at 14ers.com so you can see some pics of where you should go. once you get over the hump and down. Stay around 25 feet down below the ridge and look for the CAIRNS. Rock piles. These will help guide you to where you should be going. Thankfully all trails did pull up for me when we were in the spot that is absolutely not marked. just be prepared for that stretch. From spaulding on up to the summit was a lot of climbing around on rocks. It was fun but be prepared for that. There were not many folks on the actual trail. but once you hit the summit parking lot at the top there will be a fair amount of people up at the summit as a lot of people drive up there. They do have bathrooms at the top, that is actually kind of a nice treat. I really enjoyed this 14er. I would definitely be up for doing this one again.

    Red Rocks Park

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    (80 reviews)

    This place is BEAUTIFUL! We went around brunch time, and it was an awesome site to see. I can only…read moreimagine how much more breath taking it is during sunset or sunrise. There is nothing more magnificent than seeing natural beauty created by our awesome God. The amphitheater was a sight to see. It's amazing that it was man made. There are a total of three marked hiking trails. We hiked the difficult and medium trails. They weren't that bad at all. The different elevation did make it tough at times, but what an accomplishment it felt when we finished. Also, the view along the way was great. So don't forget to stop and just look around! They also have an easy trail, which is nice, especially if you're taking small children. The visitor center was neat as well with some fun facts and history. There is also a Trading Post where you can purchase souvenirs. The shirts are crazy expensive, but if you shop in the clearance section, it is more affordable. If you're hungry, there is one restaurant there with reasonable prices, but of course more on the pricier side. However, I think it would add to the experience if you brought your own food and picnicked along the way or eat at the end. You can definitely spend a whole day here! It's great for a family outing, date, friends hang out, or even just to enjoy solo. I highly recommend visiting this place, especially if you're from out of town.

    I visited this gorgeous park in November 2016. When you first arrive, the amphitheater is a…read moremust-see sight. If you're here in the morning, you'll see joggers going up and down the stairs. Also, the visitor center has a few exhibits on the history of the Red Rocks Amphitheater (and celebrities and rock stars who have performed here). But Red Rocks Park has lovely hiking trails beyond the amphitheater. Just make sure that you bring a bottle of water, hat, and sunglasses if it's a sunny day. It's also worth picking up a local map so you can estimate which hike to take based on the amount of time you have available. The trails do not provide any shade, so a hat and sunscreen are essential. If you have a few hours to spare while visiting Denver, be sure to plan a day trip here if the weather is nice!

    Lower Maxwell Falls Trail Head - hiking - Updated May 2026

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