We stopped for a quick hike on our way back from the garden store to enjoy the weather! This trail was on our route home, so we stopped to enjoy the sunshine and the views. This is an off leash dog trail, an easy flat loop with a wide trail. There is no shade, but also no real elevation gain. Great local hike to stretch your limbs!
This trail was impacted by the 2013 floods and just reopened this spring to the public! Since we have hiked almost all the trails in Boulder already at least once, we were so pumped to have a new trail to explore. This trail is off Lee Hill Drive, away from the more crowded areas on Boulder. Perfect to maintain social distance and explore!
This out and back trail follows a creek through a shady forest. It’s a great trail to escape the summer heat. The path is almost flat, with almost no elevation gain— pretty unusual for Boulder! There is a very small waterfall near the end of the trail— pretty anticlimactic. The actual end of the trail just dead ends into private property. I would recommend this hike for families.
Awesome hiking area near my parents house! We did this hike as a family on Mother’s Day. This hiking trail features petroglyphs carved into the rock face and elevated views of Palisade, Orchard Mesa and Mount Garfield. Warning: this hike has no shade! It was a hot day when we went, and the uphill sections in the heat definitely has me over worked. I would recommend starting early!
We completed the hike counter clockwise for a more moderate elevation gain. The trail is narrow and rocky, with a few steep drop offs. I somehow paused my recording during our hike, so I estimate the full trail to be around 3.5 miles. There is one trail junction, near the petroglyphs, for an upper loop. So many cactus flowers!
Petroglyphs Looking towards Upper Palisade Rim Trail
It’s already hot as hell in the desert! We hiked this trail last year and I made it up to the Liberty Cap then— but this time around, I got way overheated near the top and decided to not push myself. Trav and I had got to the trailhead middle of the afternoon, the worst time to hike something in the desert with no shade. Despite the heat, this is still one of our favorite trails of all time!
From the trailhead, we took the main trail slightly uphill towards the rock formation, about a half mile. We hiked past some beautiful desert wildflowers and even saw a yellow collared lizard in this section! At the trail junction with Corkscrew, we continued right (the steeper approach) towards Liberty Cap. The next half mile of the trail gains the mostly altitude and is the most difficult part of the trail. This section is eroded and washed out, definitely requiring careful footwork. At a mile, we turned right to follow switchbacks to the cap. As you will see by my recording, I stopped near the stop and then meandered back down. Trav scampered to the top and had it to himself! We only saw a handful of people.
I am WAY behind on my posts! Now that certain restrictions have been lifted, we have been trying to get outside as much as possible while still staying safe. A few weekends ago we visited my parents in Palisade for Mother’s Day and were able to get out for a few local hikes. The western slope is so quiet, it’s the perfect area for social distance.
I only recorded this trail one way— too busy talking with my mom to take a lot of pictures as well. This trail starts from a residential neighborhood and follows the river close to the main part of town. It’s a multi use path with lots of bikers. Actually, my dad said you can take the path all the way to Moab via bike. Definitely a trip Trav and I will have to plan. This is a great easy family hike!
Annie Hikes 500 Miles 