The Fort Collins Trolley

One of the things we had to do on our trip back to Fort Collins was take a ride on the trolley.  We rode on it once or twice when we lived in Fort Collins, and since it's so unique and fun we had to ride it again. 

The Trolley is open on Saturdays and Sundays, as well as holidays during the summer months.  It runs from City Park along Mountain Avenue to Howes Street, just west of Old Town Fort Collins.

The trolley is a huge hit with most kids.  Ours was a little nervous, but ended up enjoying the ride right at the end.

After everyone got off, I lingered a little longer to take pictures of the inside.  They've done a wonderful job restoring the trolley.  One cool thing is the seat backs slide so they change direction, depending on what direction the trolley is going. 

The trolley is at the top of the list of things to see and do in Fort Collins.  If you visit in the summer months over a weekend take a trolley ride! 

Nearest City: Fort Collins, CO
Location: City Park, Fort Collins and along Mountain Avenue
Time Needed: 30 minutes- 1 hour
Difficulty: Easy
Kid Friendly: Yes
Additional Info:  www.fortnet.org/trolley  Cost $2/Adult  $1/Kids & Seniors  The tickets are round-trip.
The trolley runs from noon -5 PM, so if you're riding from the downtown end, it's best to catch your ride before 4-4:30.  One even better thing we heard was that the Trolley can be chartered for special groups or occasions.  It costs $45/hour and can hold 28 people at one time.  This would be awesome for a family reunion or other large group activity!

The Hanging Lake Hike

After visiting Colorado National Monument, we continued east on I-70.  We almost stopped in Glenwood Springs to see Doc Holladay's grave, but since the little one was sleeping, we continued on.  While we were still in Glenwood Springs, we started experiencing some pretty serious road construction.  The eastbound lanes closed and were diverted into the westbound lanes going through Glenwood Canyon.  Since Hanging Lake is only accessible from eastbound I-70, we didn't know if Hanging Lake would be an option or not. 

As it ended up, the Hanging Lake exit was available in spite of the construction, so we took it to see what we would find.  As it ended up, we found the parking lot to be a zoo.  All of the parking spaces were taken, and everytime a car left a space, it was a fight to be the one to get it.  We circled the lot, much like a shark circling in the water.  Are they leaving?  Nope.  Lets do another lap.  Finally we saw a lady heading to her car.  We smelled blood in the water.  My wife rolled down her window, and the answer was affirmative.  We could have the spot if we waited 2 minutes.  So we  pulled over, threw on the blinker, and in short order were the happy new "owners" of a parking spot.  *As we were leaving after the hike, several cars were parked on the offramp from the freeway.  It was crazy!

Now that we had figured out the parking area, it was time for some real fun.  We loaded the pack and set off.  One 20-something pound toddler, two full nalgene bottles, one camera, a half-dozen granola bars, and a few miscellaneous other items.  The different trip reports I'd seen on Hanging Lake varied in the distance the hike was.  After factoring in the distance from the parking area to the real trailhead (and throwing in a small detour to Spouting Rock), I figured that 3 miles round trip was pretty accurate.  Throw in about 1000 feet of elevation gain, and this would amount to be a decent little break from our drive. 

The trail starts out, and almost immediately begins climbing.   It climbs pretty much all the way to the lake, with not very many level sections along the way.  You follow the creek for the majority of the time, and cross it 6 or 7 times on bridges.  Right below the first bridge was a small arch in the waterfall that was pretty sweet. 

Since it was spring, part of the trail was muddy and had water from the creek on it.  At each flooded part, we'd pick our way across on rocks, or just stomp through the mud.  I was amazed at how many people were on the trail (reflecting back on the parking lot, I shouldn't have been surprised).  "Pardon me."  "Can I sneak by you?" It was quite apparent that the best way to navigate through all of the people was to put my head down, and assertively blow on by them- even though my legs and lungs were burning. 

We leapfrogged several small groups before ultimately leaving them behind.   At about 1/4 mile from the lake, we passed a small shelter that was just off the trail.  The trail leveled out for a short distance before beginning the final climb to the lake. 

Just before the lake, the trail cuts steeply up and across a small cliff-face.  There were guardrails in place, but it was still humorous to hear people's remarks.  One lady said "This is why I'm not a rockclimber."  I thought to myself "This is almost why rockclimbing is fun, but not quite."  We stopped to let our lungs breathe, rest our legs, take a few pictures, and let a large group on their way down navigate through the bottleneck. 

Then with a final push, we were over the edge and at Hanging Lake.  WOW.  Beautiful. It's hard to adequately describe how amazing it is.  Numerous waterfalls falling directly into an emerald blue lake.  I took lots of pictures.  Then lots more.  You could send some serious time here taking pictures.  It wouldn't surprise me if people have been married here or if an ambitious bride or two hauled their wedding dress up for some bridal shots. 

I noticed at the trailhead a sign that said "no fishing", so of course I had to look for fish.  I saw a few small trout in the lake, but couldn't get a picture of them. More looking at the lake & falls.  This hike is so worth it. 

A few people told us to go above the lake to Spouting Rock, so we did.  Again an amazingly cool waterfall!  The main falls go over the edge of the cliff, but below it are two holes in the cliff that water also comes out of.  I guess you could call it a triple-decker waterfall. 

I ran behind the falls and through the spray.  I could have gone all the way to the other side, but I didn't want to get that wet (from the spray), so I hurried back out.  On a hot summer day I'm sure Spouting Rock would feel amazing.

After seeing Spouting Rock, it was time to head back down the canyon and on our way.  It's best to not do this hike when you have a deadline you need to be back for.  Even though we felt like we made pretty good time on the hike, we still were late for our dinner appointment. 

We made it back to the parking lot, then got onto the freeway.  Oops!  The only way back onto I-70 from Hanging Lake is westbound.  We backtracked 10 miles or so before we could find an exit where we could get back onto I-70 going east.  Even though it was somewhat of a logistical nightmare, Hanging Lake was definitely a spot we wouldn't have missed.

Nearest City: Glenwood Springs, CO
Location: N° W°
Time Needed: 3+ hours
Difficulty: Strenuous
Kid Friendly:
Additional Info: Leave your dog at home.  Dogs aren't allowed on this hike. 

Colorado National Monument

After camping somewhere between Moab and Colorado, we woke up and drove to Colorado National Monument.  I had split thoughts about the monument.  On the one hand it is pretty, but on the other hand it's not as impressive as the national parks we'd been to earlier on our trip.  I guess that's why it's a monument and set aside for protection instead of a national park and set aside for enjoyment. 

Colorado National Monument seemed to be a locals playground.  We saw more bikers than cars on the road.   Also, as we looked at the map, the hikes were all 5+ miles long or really short, as in half a mile round trip short.  The sharp division said to me that the hikes were for the locals, while the scenic drive and little stops was for the tourists.  We didn't plan much time for Colorado NM and did the drive with a few stops, so by default we slid into the tourist category.

One of the stops we made was at Cold Shivers Point.  While we were there, I talked with a guy in his 50's who had gone to school in Grand Junction.  He told me that he & his friends would go and sit on the mushroom shaped rock in the above picture back in the day.  Crazy!  It's a huge dropoff down below. 

 We drove and stopped, then drove on.  The coke ovens was one of the stops.

 As well as several different overlooks. 

On the short "Otto's Trail" we wandered to an overlook, and noticed this small evergreen growing out of a crack.  It's determination to grow where there was no soil was astounding. 

Nearest City: Fruita, CO and Grand Junction, CO
Location: N° W°
Time Needed: at least 2-3 hours
Difficulty:
Kid Friendly:
Additional Info: $10/vehicle access fee

The Gardens on Spring Creek

Yesterday we went for a visit to the Gardens on Spring Creek. It's a city owned garden, about half a mile south of the CSU Campus.


They have a flower garden, kids garden, fruit trees, and gardens with a sampling of crops grown in different areas of the world.


The fruit trees are all small right now, but in a few years will be quite impressive.
There is also a nature walk area with a small pond, native vegetation, etc. The lillys in the pond were really pretty.

Nearest City:Fort Collins, CO

Address: 2145 Centre Avenue, Fort Collins

GPS Coordinates:

Time Needed: 1 hour

Difficulty: Easy

Kid Friendly: Yes

Additional Info: Free* (Suggested donation $2 each, or $5/family) Gardens on Spring Creek

They have a pickup spot for free mulch/woodchips at the back of the parking lot. 1 Free load per day for homeowners.

The Cozy Cow Dairy

We had a little trip out to the Cozy Cow Dairy to watch the cows get milked. Unfortunately, we were too late. We'll have to go earlier next time.


There is also a little store where you can buy dairy treats such as ice cream, cheese, milk, eggs, etc.

There's a farm animal petting zoo on site as well.
Nearest City: Windsor, CO

Address: 28607 CR 17, Windsor, CO 80550
GPS Coordinates:

Time Needed: 30 minutes - 1 hour

Difficulty: Easy

Kid Friendly: Yes

Additional Info: The Cosy Cow Dairy Website

Red Mountain Open Space

Red Mountain has been on my "to do" list for a while. Last night we had started out to get up there, but a storm rolled in just after we left Fort Collins, so we decided to try again later. This morning the skies were clear, so we drove up to see if Red Mountain was worth visiting. The drive to the trailhead goes through a pretty little valley/canyon. Off to one side was the old homestead of a settler long since gone.

We had the parking lot to ourselves, and started out for a hike. The north side of the Bent Rock Trail looked the most intriguing. A small stream ran down the bottom of a small canyon that began to cliff up.


The cliffs rose higher as we got further into the canyon, revealing the layers in the rock. It was really pretty. (sorry about the bad pictures, the sun was not in the most friendly location for pictures)

We weren't the only ones that liked the area. A few swallows had built their homes in nooks of the cliffs.
After the small canyon, the hiking turned into high desert hiking. The rabbitbrush was in bloom, but I found most of the remaining hike uninteresting. We turned north and looped back down the Sunset Trail back to the parking lot.

Nearest City: Waverly, CO

GPS Coordinates (trailhead): N 40° 57.483 W 105° 09.830

Time Needed: A few hours

Difficulty: easy

Kid Friendly: Yes

Additional Info: Red Mountain Open Space No Dogs Allowed. Restrooms are at the trailhead. Bring your own water.

The Fort Collins Water Works

Saturday was a tour day at the original Fort Collins Waterworks building. The building is owned by the Poudre Landmarks Foundation. They give free public tours the first Saturday of every month during the summer months.

The building and grounds are pretty cool. Currently the building is still being restored after being in disrepair for several years.

Out back are the remains of a stone wall that was used to hold back the water.

The inside is pretty cool too.

You just don't see the level of detail and craftsmanship anymore. Old buildings were built to be functional and beautiful at the same time.

There's a section of old wooden pipe outside too. Cool stuff!

Nearest City: Laporte, CO

GPS Coordinates: N 40° 36.930 W 105° 08.410

Time Needed: 1 hour

Difficulty: Easy

Kid Friendly: Yes

Additional Info: http://poudrelandmarks.com

Climbing and Rappelling at Duncans Ridge

Duncan's Ridge is a popular climbing area near Fort Collins, overloooking Horsetooth Reservoir. Although there are numerous bouldering areas nearby, Duncan's Ridge is the closest and easiest access for those who want to toprope.


There are several routes that have been bolted up top. I counted 3 while doing a quick check.

Park at: N 40* 32.085 W 105* 08.560

Cross the street then follow the trail up the hill.

Climb at: approximately N 40* 32.000 W 105* 08.685

Nearest City:
GPS Coordinates:
Time Needed:
Difficulty:
Kid Friendly:
Additional Info: