Explore the best rated trails in Aurora, CO. Whether you're looking for an easy walking trail or a bike trail like the Sheep Draw Trail and Loveland Recreation Trail. With more than 80 trails covering 603 miles you’re bound to find a perfect trail for you. Click on any trail below to find trail descriptions, trail maps, photos, and reviews.
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The Mineral Trail, also referred to as the Railroad Spur Trail, is a short trail on the southern edge of Littleton that manages to pack in a suprising amount of variety and utility considering its...
The Happy Canyon Trail runs for just over 4 miles through the communities of Centennial, Cottonwood and Parker on the southern outskirts of Denver. To the north, the trail begins at in the Cherry...
The UCAR Multi-Use Path runs just a short distance from the campus of the University Corporation for Atmospheric Research on Center Green Drive, linking buildings CG 1 and CG 3, to the other side of...
The Greenwood Gulch Trail is a short paved trail that runs along the path of its namesake gulch in the Denver suburb of Greenwood Village. The trail offers residents the chance to experience a little...
The Kipling Trail sits beside Kipling Parkway/ State Route 391 extending from Lakewood to Littleton, southwest of Denver. While there’s enough miles to offer a good workout, or to run errands between...
The St. Vrain Greenway begins in Golden Ponds Park and travels east along the creek for more than half its distance. At the park, watch for the bald eagles, wood ducks, great blue herons and Canada...
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The Powerline Trail provides a convenient east-west route across Aurora. This concrete pathway begins in Horseshoe Park, where trailheads for the Cherry Creek Spillway Trail, Toll Gate Greek Trail and...
At the foot of the Rocky Mountains, the Coal Creek Regional Trail offers spectacular views of the front range. You can even identify surrounding peaks with the "peak finder" signage provided at the...
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Gaining only 200+ feet in elevation, the Narrow Gauge Trail is in Pine Valley Ranch Park, a beautiful open space near the mountain community of Pine, Colorado. The trail follows the north bank of the...
The Clement Park Lake Trail is a 1.4 mile loop trail around the Johnson Reservoir in suburban western Littleton. The trail is paved and lit, and takes users around the sixty acre lake and into the...
Aurora’s Piney Creek Trail provides a pleasant route across town with few street crossings. The paved pathway begins at the Ponderosa Preserve and heads northwest, winding through residential...
The Niver Canal Trail parallels the Coronado Parkway for nearly 2 miles across Thornton, a northern suburb of Denver. About mid-way, the trail passes Rotella Park, which offers restrooms, picnic...
Not to be confused with the longer Saint Vrain Greenway of nearby Longmont, the Saint Vrain Avenue Trail is a hard surface, multiuse trail in the Rocky Mountain resort town of Estes Park. While Estes...
The Cherry Creek Regional Trail is a picturesque 40-mile route that begins in downtown Denver and connects suburban and rural Arapahoe and Douglas Counties, including the communities of Parker,...
The Cook Creek Trail is a short, paved trail located in the suburban community of Lone Tree. The trail originates in Cook Creek Park, home to a local pool, tennis courts, and a portion of the Willow...
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The Pioneer Trail links Bergen Park to Evergreen Lake through Elk Meadow Park. The trail can be accessed from the Bergen Park and Ride, and stretches south for about a mile before ducking under SR 74...
The Little Dry Creek Trail provides a paved, relatively flat pathway for bikers, walkers and skaters through areas of Westminster and northern Arvada. The tree-lined route follows its namesake, Little...
Closely following its scenic namesake waterway for most of its journey, the popular Boulder Creek Path runs east from Boulder Canyon to the outskirts of the Valmont Reservoir. Its western end is dirt...
In the 1800s, a series of ditches was constructed to manage water and irrigate farmland in the Saint Vrain Valley. The historic Oligarchy Ditch dates back to this period, although today this channel...
When complete, the US 36 Bikeway will offer a convenient and safe non-motorized route for traveling between Denver and Boulder. Eleven miles of the paved trail—which locals refer to as a “commuter...
The Loveland Recreation Trail encircles the "Gateway to the Rockies," offering views of the mountains and access to many of Loveland's natural treasures. While the trail is mostly complete, there are...
At the foot of the Rocky Mountains, the Coal Creek Regional Trail offers spectacular views of the front range. You can even identify surrounding peaks with the "peak finder" signage provided at the...
The Powerline Trail provides a convenient east-west route across Aurora. This concrete pathway begins in Horseshoe Park, where trailheads for the Cherry Creek Spillway Trail, Toll Gate Greek Trail and...
The Columbine Trail runs across the eastern edge of the suburban community of Columbine, paralleling the busy S Platte Canyon Road. This paved trail serves as an important resource for local...
The Greenwood Gulch Trail is a short paved trail that runs along the path of its namesake gulch in the Denver suburb of Greenwood Village. The trail offers residents the chance to experience a little...
Aurora’s Piney Creek Trail provides a pleasant route across town with few street crossings. The paved pathway begins at the Ponderosa Preserve and heads northwest, winding through residential...
The Sheep Draw Trail is a 10-foot-wide paved regional trail along the scenic Sheep Draw Creek corridor connecting neighborhoods to shopping, recreation centers and schools. The trail travels through...
Located on Aurora’s south end, the Railroad Bed Trail offers a 2-mile diagonal pathway within Cherry Creek State Park, a recreational gem with opportunities for camping, fishing, swimming and...
The Farmers’ High Line Canal Trail provides an easy, pleasant way to traverse the northern suburbs of Denver. The paved pathway stretches more than a dozen miles, connecting Westminster, Northglenn,...
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The Union Pacific Trail runs for just a short distance between E. 100th Avenue and Thornton Parkway in the Denver suburb of Thornton. The trail runs through a shadeless corridor alongside a railroad...
The Happy Canyon Trail runs for just over 4 miles through the communities of Centennial, Cottonwood and Parker on the southern outskirts of Denver. To the north, the trail begins at in the Cherry...
The Willow Creek Greenbelt Trail is a six mile, paved and soft-surface trail that runs along a creekbed in the suburban area around Centennial. The trail begins in the north outside the Holly Park...
The Switzerland Trail in the peaks west of Boulder was named for the spectacular mountain scenery along this remote and former railroad route. Although why it had to be named after another country...
The Bear Creek Path begins just south of the University of Colorado Research Park and winds its way southwest to the Martin Acres community. The trail is paved and generally flat, although there is a...
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The High Line Canal Trail is a popular stretch of path through Denver's southside suburbs, winding for 71 miles between Aurora and Roxborough State Park. The trail is owned and operated by Denver...
The Little Dry Creek Trail provides a paved, relatively flat pathway for bikers, walkers and skaters through areas of Westminster and northern Arvada. The tree-lined route follows its namesake, Little...
The Scott Lancaster Memorial Bike Path is a short, but pleasant 5 miles of mostly off-road route that allows cyclists and walkers to get between Idaho Springs and Floyd Hill, which is otherwise only...
The Cook Creek Trail is a short, paved trail located in the suburban community of Lone Tree. The trail originates in Cook Creek Park, home to a local pool, tennis courts, and a portion of the Willow...
The Niver Creek Trail winds through Thornton, a northern suburb of Denver, connecting parks, riparian areas and open space inhabited by prairie dogs, coyotes, numerous bird species, and other...
With only 4 miles of an eventual 65 miles open, the already award-winning Peaks to Plains Trail is attracting new users every day. While US 6 basically parallels Clear Creek, the Peaks to Plains Trail...
The Spring Gulch #1 Greenway is a multiuse pathway in Longmont, Colorado. The trail stretches the length of the 16-acre Kensington Neighborhood Park, extending from 3rd Avenue north to a point not far...
The Union Pacific Trail runs for just a short distance between E. 100th Avenue and Thornton Parkway in the Denver suburb of Thornton. The trail runs through a shadeless corridor alongside a railroad...
The Little Dry Creek Trail provides a paved, relatively flat pathway for bikers, walkers and skaters through areas of Westminster and northern Arvada. The tree-lined route follows its namesake, Little...
The Van Bibber Creek, Park and Trail all owe their name to Isaac van Bibber, an early settler to the area. The trail begins on Oak Street and heads west in the swathe cut by the creek through the...
In the 1800s, a series of ditches was constructed to manage water and irrigate farmland in the Saint Vrain Valley. The historic Oligarchy Ditch dates back to this period, although today this channel...
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Big Dry Creek Trail provides a pleasant connector between the High Line Canal Trail and the Mary Carter Greenway, two jewels in the trail network of the greater Denver area. Although the trail is...
The Cook Creek Trail is a short, paved trail located in the suburban community of Lone Tree. The trail originates in Cook Creek Park, home to a local pool, tennis courts, and a portion of the Willow...
Elmer's Two Mile Creek Greenway begins just north of Elmer's Two Mile Park on the north end of Boulder. It's paved and generally flat, traveling through open spaces, parks, neighborhoods and...
Aurora’s Piney Creek Trail provides a pleasant route across town with few street crossings. The paved pathway begins at the Ponderosa Preserve and heads northwest, winding through residential...
The Dutch Creek Regional Trail provides an opportunity to experience some natural beauty and tranquility amidst the suburban surroundings southwest of Denver. Currently running for a shade over three...
The 6th Avenue Trail provides expansive views of the Rocky Mountain foothills as it follows its namesake thoroughfare (also known as US 6) from the Colorado School of Mines in downtown Golden to...
The Centennial Link Trail, parts of which were formerly known as the Little Dry Creek Trail, lives up to its name by providing a useful link between the outskirts of Littleton and Centennial, forming...
Not to be confused with the longer Saint Vrain Greenway of nearby Longmont, the Saint Vrain Avenue Trail is a hard surface, multiuse trail in the Rocky Mountain resort town of Estes Park. While Estes...
The Bear Creek Path begins just south of the University of Colorado Research Park and winds its way southwest to the Martin Acres community. The trail is paved and generally flat, although there is a...
The Sand Creek Regional Greenway follows Sand Creek in Denver's northeast metro area. The southern end of the trail, through Denver and Aurora, has a soft surface, which can make for a dusty ride when...
The Left Hand Greenway is a diagonal path along its namesake creek in southern Longmont. It begins at a juncture with the St. Vrain Greenway, a scenic 8-mile route across the city. From there, you'll...
A short, but useful suburban trail, the Lilley Gulch Regional Trail helps to connect numerous neighborhoods in the community of Columbine with local parks and schools, and provides a safe and off-road...
The trail on the east side of Bradburn Boulevard is relatively short, but it makes an important connection between two major Denver metro trails. Following the trail north brings you to within feet of...
Although less than a mile long, the Inca Street Multi-Use Path provides an important connection between the neighborhoods of Sunnyside and Globeville on Denver's north end. The paved pathway and its...
The Clement Park Lake Trail is a 1.4 mile loop trail around the Johnson Reservoir in suburban western Littleton. The trail is paved and lit, and takes users around the sixty acre lake and into the...
Never again. Although very scenic in some areas the signage along this trail is lacking, especially in important areas when there is a fork in the trail. I found myself going the wrong way several times. The City of Arvada needs to step up and provide direction for riders who don't know this trail. When it's getting dark and becoming cold, the challenge of finding your way back on the this kind of trek does not become fun anymore.
We had a fun day exploring the Clear Creek Trail in Golden and some of the city's numerous attractions. We began at Parfet Park, where there was ample parking along Jackson Street. The trail begins paved, but becomes crushed stone as you head west out of town. The path can get a bit bumpy here, but we were fine on our hybrid bikes. The pathway closely parallels the river and we saw lots of families tubing down the river and a couple of people with fly fishing gear. There was a great playground right along the trail, too, which my daughter loved. Nearby, we also visited the American Mountaineering Museum and took a tour of the Coors brewery.
I didn't get a chance to explore all of this trail, but I was very impressed with what I saw of if as well as the Denver cycling infrastructure in general (handlebar videos available at youtube.com/ratbas). The idea of being able to ride for miles through a major city without having to cross an intersection is very enjoyable. The trail is well maintained, has good signage and plenty of public are while taking you past many points of interests. There are also countless access points to make it very practical for commuters and tourists.
We had a wonderful time on the LoBo Trail, beginning our ride from Boulder's Celestial Seasonings parking lot after a great tour of the tea factory. The trail’s scenery was beautiful: a mixture of shady tree corridors and open fields with long grasses and wildflowers. Quiet neighborhoods buffered the trail just beyond the trees, and we saw many people out enjoying a weekend bike ride or walking their dogs. The trail was largely hard-packed crushed stone, which our hybrid bikes handled easily. There was a short break in the trail between Twin Lakes Road and Lookout Road, but that afforded us the opportunity to access a commercial area where we stopped for lunch.
This is a great concrete running trail that is moderately shaded and pretty easy to follow. It connects with a couple other trail systems, most notably the Clear Creek Trail on the eastern end. Sometimes there are concentrations of homeless underneath Wadsworth Blvd. but they seem to keep to themselves. Occasionally, the disc golfers at Memorial Park will take up the whole path and/or smoke, but that's just a minor personal annoyance.
The worst part of the trail is when the trail briefly ends and you have to run along Brooks Dr. and Johnson Way on either the sidewalk or the road to get back onto the trail at the Apex Tennis Center.
Traveling west is an ever slight incline and as you reach the end of the trail on the western end of the trail, there are some serious uphill climbs. In the winter, the city does a pretty good job of keeping the trail cleared of snow but there are still icy patches around.
Overall, this is a pretty good urban trail.
Pros: Pretty well shaded, well marked in most places and lots of places to access or exit the trail. Great views of the mountains around Pecos and Federal when running westbound.
Cons: There are a lot surface-level street crossings starting at and east of Huron St. Trail runs next to busy roads for stretches.
Perfect for an out of towner like myself. Trail was easy to follow especially with this app!
My wife and I rode this trail out and back this week. Parking was good but you do need to find the lots and that can be difficult. The trail itself is wonderful. Lots of shade, open areas, and mixed riding with a nice climb and decent coming and going. The surface is well packed and wide. We saw many other bikers and walkers even though it was a workday. Our biggest complaint, and it caused more miles than planned, is horrible to non-existent signage. There are large blue signs at some intersections with the trail name but no direction on the signs. There are numerous trail junctions to neighborhoods, other trails, and shopping but not one sign to show where the main trail leads. For added confusion these off-shoot trails have the same surface as the main trail and look the same. At one major intersection the trail split 3 ways, we took what looked like the main trail and ended up in a car wash and the trail literally disappearing. Talking with locals who were on the trail was no help as many only used the connector trails and did not know where the main trail was. After finally figuring out the main trail with many detours we turned around before we would have liked and headed back. So, if going on this trail, know the trail before you go.
This trail from Mile High Stadium north to Thornton was awesome. The path is all concrete with a few brief exceptions. The trail is well laid out, good signage. The are frequent rest spots and even quite a few places to relieve yourself if need be with porta potties that were surprisingly clean. Lots of wildlife and open areas. Well worth the trip.
This is one of the loveliest and nicely maintained urban bike trail I have ridden. The trail is paved and wide without many hazards on the pavement. The trail is well marked for the most part. I did miss a turn at one point and found myself on a different trail. Eventually, I turned back and found the correct trail again. I had missed the sign on a fork in the road and turned on to the wrong trail. The scenery is very lovely - it follows along a stream with pretty waterfalls.
Several different trailheads make this a fun spot to try many times. It is deceptively big and can be challenging or moderate depending on the route you choose. It is very popular- and in the fitness crazed Golden CO area, so you will meet others on the way.
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