The Cottonwood Creek Trail stretches over 6 miles across northern Colorado Springs with a mix of residential views and open vistas. At Rangewood Drive, the trail forks; the northern branch runs along Woodland Hills Park and Pioneer Elementary School, while the southern branch runs through Cottonwood Creek Park. The former park offers ballfields, picnic areas and a playground, while the latter offers those amenities plus an in-line hockey court, tennis courts, disc golf course and restrooms.
The two branches join back together at Union Boulevard. Note that portions of this section of the trail—between Rangewood Drive and Union Boulevard—have a gravel surface; the rest of the trail is concrete.
Farther west, the trail touches the tip of Dublin Park; a spur will take you south down into the park, where you'll find amenities for baseball, softball, basketball, football, soccer and volleyball. Eventually, the trail will be extended even farther west along the creek to meet the Pikes Peak Greenway Trail, just west of Interstate 25 (US 87).
Parking is available in Cottonwood Creek Park (7040 Rangewood Drive).
As a runner new to the Springs area, I was happy to find this gem amongst many great trails. Close to my starting neighborhood, I have used this trail (in part or whole) for training runs from 8 to 16 miles. (Longer runs in conjunction with other adjoining trails in the NE Springs area.)
Though a large portion of the trail is concrete, a majority of the concrete can be avoided by using small "trail" cuts on the sides of the concrete.
By taking a side trip around the park, and having two options in the middle of the trail for doing out and backs helps break up the run.
Restrooms and water are turned off during the cooler months, so plan accordingly if you are out with your canine companion.
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