Hike 34: Shanahan South Fork & Bluestem Trails, Boulder, CO

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Date: Sunday, May 19, 2019

Miles: 3.3 miles

Elevation Gain: 377 feet

Difficulty: Easy

Time: 1 hr 15 min total

Type: Day hike from Denver (30 min drive)

Trail Head:

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/colorado/shanahan-north-fork-south-fork-and-connector-loop (Link to TH, not my route)

Notes:

I had family in town this weekend, but luckily we were still able to squeeze in a quick rainy hike Sunday afternoon. Check out all the green in my photos below! Despite our unusually cold weather, there were so many native plants and flowers throughout this hike. We had a fun time taking breaks to identify the most common variations we saw. This trail had a few muddy patches, but luckily the temperature was cold enough that most patches were frozen. We hiked about a mile and a half in before the rain really started coming down. Hopefully the weather will pick up soon for summer adventures! As of right now, it does not seem like we will be putting away our micro spikes anytime soon.

Hike 33: Mesa to Woods Quarry Trail, Boulder, CO

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Date: Sunday, May 12, 2019

Miles: 3.6 miles

Elevation Gain: 732 feet

Difficulty: Easy to Moderate

Time: 1 hr 30 min total

Type: Day hike from Denver (30 min drive)

Trail Head:

National Center for Atmospheric Research, Boulder, CO

Notes:

Despite our busy Sunday, we found time to get a quick hike in this afternoon off of the NCAR trailhead. We originally intended to complete the Woods Quarry Trail from the Chautauqua TH, but we could not find parking (arrived at 1:30 PM) so we drove to NCAR instead. The Woods Quarry Trail is one of the only boulder trails we had not completed.

We took the NCAR-Mesa trail to the counter-clockwise to the junction of Kohler-Mesa, then veered left climbing a few hundred feet in elevation to the Woods-Quarry trail. We took that left and relaxed on the rock chairs (see pictures below) before descending the same path. The trail had large sections of mud and water throughout, but is manageable. The trail was intermittently shaded and exposed.

Rock chairs at overlook

Hike 32: Oxen Draw & Eagle View Trails, Conifer, CO

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Date: Saturday, May 11, 2019

Miles: 3.6 miles

Elevation Gain: 938 feet

Difficulty: Moderate

Time: 1 hr 30 min total

Type: Day hike from Denver (45 min drive)

Trail Head:

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/colorado/eagles-view-trail-loop

Notes:

I absolutely love Jeff CO Open Space parks. No fees, plenty of parking and well maintained trails. This was my first time hiking out of Reynolds Park. We took Oxen Draw Trail about 1.3 miles to the junction of Eagles View, through shaded forest floor and melted snow run off. The first mile packs about 500 elevation gain. From the junction, we made a left and climbed several switch backs to a beautiful view of Pikes Peak and the southern foothills. Trail was clear and quiet. Highly recommend this short trek from Denver.

Wooded streams the first mile
Trail junction
View of Pikes Peak and inversion
On the way back down- right for Oxen

Hike 31: Walker Ranch Loop, Boulder, CO

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Date: Sunday, May 5, 2019

Miles: 7.9 miles

Elevation Gain: 1634 feet

Difficulty: Moderate

Time: 3hr total

Type: Day hike from Denver (45 min drive)

Trail Head:

https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/colorado/walker-ranch-loop

Notes:

Walker Ranch is a great interval hike (check out elevation profile below) close to Boulder, off Flagstaff Road. We did this loop counter-clockwise from the Walker Ranch trailhead– which had limited parking availability. The first mile descends the canyon to South Boulder Creek. The creek was so peaceful, lined with picnic tables and benches to relax. From there, the next mile climbs significant elevation, finally reaching an open meadow, near the Crescent trailhead. This section of the hike is very exposed, descending through the canyon gradually back to South Boulder Creek. Before you reach the creek bed, there is a section of stairs to make the steep descent easier. I could see this section being really sketchy in the wintertime. The last 2.5 miles climbs about 1000 feet in elevation back to the trailhead, through the forest to complete the loop. Please note this is a multi-use path with many mountain bikers.

Side bar #4: May Goal Check In

On By Annie1 Comment

I’ve been making amazing progress on my goals, and quickly realizing I should have aimed a bit higher. Going into the month of May, here are my totals for 2019:

Hikes: 30 / 70
Mileage: 144.8 / 300
Elevation Gain: 29,833 / 60,000
Average MPH: 2.3 / 2.5

With my totals, looking toward the next eight months, here are my calculated averages for minimums:

Average Mileage: 3.88 miles
Average Elevation Gain: 754 feet

Since summer is coming and I will no doubt be dragged up several mountains by Trav, I know I will probably hit my goals early. So new challenge: hit all goals by September! Let’s see how we do ❤️