Photo courtesy of AllTrails
Joy on the Trails is a blog series detailing all the incredible hiking trails within an hour of Denver. All the trails featured are accessible to anyone new to hiking, or just wanting to get out without driving for hours into the mountains. I hope you uncover your own joy of hiking and I hope you’re inspired to try a few of my favorite trails. And if you’re so inclined, join me sometime… I’m out there a lot!
Because I am such a huge fan of the west entrance at White Ranch, I haven’t done the trail at the east entrance very often. It starts out low and easy along a creek bed, and I enjoyed it with my kiddo when she was little for bird watching and water dipping.
But I decided to do a longer loop this time and wow is it gorgeous! There is a four mile “lollipop” loop (that’s where you have a short out-and-back trail connected to a loop - picture a lollipop or a balloon) that gets pretty steep and is a great workout! The terrain changes a lot from a low front range grassy trail to some Lower Montane forests including lodgepole pine.
At the start you’ll pass a half dozen or so multi-million dollar homes… so the Realtor in me is extra snoopy as I evaluate the views, landscaping, patio furniture, and garage size, LOL! And Colorado is a “fence out” grazing state - meaning if you don’t want cattle on your property it’s your responsibility to keep them off rather than the cattle owner’s responsibility to contain their herds. So there are cows wandering on the property of these spectacular homes! And this makes me giggle.
This hike isn’t a quickie, and in the summer, start early to avoid the heat. But now that I have done the Lower Belcher Hill - Whippletree - Lower Longhorn Trail loop, I’m hooked and I’ll head back often!
GPS Locator: 21827 West 56th Avenue, Golden CO, 80403
Managed by: Jefferson County Open Space
Come hiking with me!
If you want more information on this or other trails in the area, please don’t hesitate to reach out! Just like the homes I sell, I can even show it to you in person! And learn more about my Realtor life here.
Related Links
