60 Hikes Within 60 Miles: Denver and Boulder

Mindy Sink grew up in Boulder and has lived in Denver for many years. She is the author of Walking Denver (Wilderness Press), which her daughter, Sophie Seymour, contributed to for the book’s second edition. Mindy is also the author of Moon Denver, Boulder & Colorado Springs (Moon Travel), and she contributes regularly to the Denver Post, Colorado Parent, and other publications both in print and online. She also works in healthcare communications. Before becoming a guidebook author, Mindy covered regional topics for The New York Times’s Rocky Mountain Bureau. She earned a degree in journalism at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Mindy lives in Denver with her husband, Mike Seymour; her daughter, Sophie; and the family’s nonhiking cat, Marvel. Kim Lipker grew up in Colorado, loving the outdoors from an early age; and she did most of the hikes in this book, never imagining that her frolics through the forest would ever land themselves in print. Kim coauthored the fourth and fifth editions of Best Tent Camping: Colorado (with Johnny Molloy) and Day & Overnight Hikes: Rocky Mountain National Park (both from Menasha Ridge Press). In addition to writing books, she works in the Department of Language, Culture & Equity at Poudre School District, and she has written a regular parenting column and other features for Rocky Mountain Parent magazine. Kim lives in Fort Collins, Colorado, with her three children.

“Everything a hiker needs to find a trail.”—Kerrie Lee Brown, Denver Life“Explore the pages of this smartly updated guidebook, and it’s clear that there truly is a wide variety of possibilities when it comes to hiking in and around Denver and Boulder.”—Monica Parpal Stockbridge, Colorado Traveler Magazine

• Overview MapMap LegendAcknowledgmentsForewordPreface60 Hikes by CategoryIntroductionDenver (Including Foothills and Plains)Alderfer/Three Sisters ParkBelmar ParkBluff Lake Nature CenterClear Creek Canyon Park: Peaks to Plains TrailDedisse Park: Evergreen Lake TrailDeer Creek Canyon Park: Meadowlark and Plymouth Creek TrailsElk Meadow Park: Meadow View, Sleepy S, and Elk Ridge TrailsGolden Gate Canyon State Park: Mountain Lion TrailGolden Gate Canyon State Park: Raccoon and Mule Deer TrailsMeyer Ranch Park: Lodge Pole LoopMount Evans Wilderness: Hells Hole TrailMount Evans Wilderness: Mount Bierstadt TrailMount Falcon Park: Western LoopNorth Table Mountain Park: North Table, Tilting Mesa, and Mesa Top TrailsPlains Conservation Center LoopRed Rocks Park: Trading Post LoopSilver Dollar Lake TrailWindy Saddle Park: Lookout Mountain TrailWilliam Frederick Hayden Park: Green Mountain and Hayden TrailsSouth of DenverCastlewood Canyon State Park: Inner Canyon and Lake Gulch TrailsColorado Trail: Segment 3 to Tramway TrailDevil’s Head TrailGreenland Open Space: Greenland, Luge, and Kipps TrailsMount Herman TrailPine Valley Ranch Park LoopReynolds Park LoopRoxborough State Park: Willow Creek and South Rim TrailsSpruce Mountain Open Space: Spruce Mountain Trail and Upper LoopStaunton State Park: Elk FallsWaterton Canyon Recreation AreaBoulder (Including Foothills and Mountains)Betasso Preserve: Canyon Loop TrailCaribou Ranch Open Space: DeLonde Trail and Blue Bird LoopChautauqua Park: Chautauqua, Royal Arch, and Bluebell Road TrailsEldorado Canyon State Park: Eldorado Canyon TrailHeil Valley Ranch: Wapiti and Ponderosa Loop TrailsHogback Ridge Loop at North Foothills TrailheadIndian Peaks Wilderness: Mount Audubon TrailIndian Peaks Wilderness: Pawnee Pass Trail to Lake IsabelleJames Peak Wilderness: South Boulder Creek and Crater Lakes TrailsJames Peak Wilderness: South Boulder Creek TrailMount Sanitas, East Ridge, and Sanitas Valley TrailsRocky Flats National Wildlife Refuge: Lindsay Ranch LoopSouth Boulder Creek Trail from Bobolink TrailheadSouth Mesa Trailhead to Bear PeakWalden Ponds Wildlife Habitat and Sawhill Ponds Wildlife PreserveWalker Ranch: Meyers Homestead TrailNorth of Boulder (Including Fort Collins and Rocky Mountain National Park)Button Rock Preserve: Sleepy Lion and Hummingbird Switchback TrailsCeran Saint Vrain TrailCrosier Mountain Rainbow, Glen Haven, and Summit TrailsDevil’s Backbone Open Space: Wild LoopGreyrock Meadows and Summit TrailsHermit Park Open Space: Kruger Rock TrailHorsetooth Mountain Open Space: Horsetooth Falls and Horsetooth Rock TrailsLory State Park: Arthur’s Rock TrailRocky Mountain National Park: Gem Lake TrailRocky Mountain National Park: Glacier Gorge and Loch Vale Trails to Timberline FallsRocky Mountain National Park: Lily Ridge and Lily Lake TrailsRocky Mountain National Park: Twin Sisters TrailRocky Mountain National Park: Wild Basin and Bluebird Lake TrailsRon Stewart Preserve at Rabbit Mountain: Eagle Wind TrailAppendix A: Outdoor StoresAppendix B: Map SourcesAppendix C: Area Hiking Clubs and OrganizationsIndexAbout the Authors