A Few Training Walks

Since beginning our training walks late last summer (2012), we’ve been pretty consistent in getting in three to four hikes per week, excluding those times previously mentioned.  While we haven’t kept accurate records of each hike, it’s safe to say that we averaged 15 miles for the first couple of months and have steadily increased our weekly average to the 35 miles or so that we’re doing now.  So in the last ten months, after subtracting travel and health-related exclusions, it’s probably a reasonable estimate to say we’ve walked somewhere between 500 and 600 miles as we’ve trained for the Camino de Santiago.  While a great many of these miles have been through our neighborhood and the surrounding area, a large percentage of them have been on dedicated hiking and bike trails in area open space parks and, in some cases, state parks.  A few of these are listed below.

Highline Canal: This is one of the best, if not the best, places to hike while training.  Stretching over 66+ miles across the metro Denver area from Waterton Canyon in the southwest to Green Valley Ranch near DIA, it offers numerous access points with parking.  Routes can be hiked in either direction from the parking areas for distances as long as desired.  It is mostly an all-weather trail, except after heavy snowfall in the winter.  The surface is generally hard-packed gravel, which is easy on the feet.  The only disadvantage of the Highline Canal is that the trail is virtually flat, with no variety of elevation changes. 

Waterton Canyon:  Another great, generally all-weather hike on a hard-packed gravel road.  The distance from the parking lot to the Strontia Springs dam is 6.7 miles, or 13.4 miles round-trip.  Like the Highline Canal, though, it is virtually level all the way.

Platte River Trail:  Several different hikes of varying lengths can be layed out, with access and parking at most major east-west street crossings.  Another very flat, essentially level trail which is hard-surfaced concrete (hard on the feet after several miles).  So far we have hiked the entire distance from inside Chatfield State Park northward to the River Point shopping center at Hampden Ave in segments of varying length; however the trail continues northward to downtown Denver and beyond.

Bear Creek Trail: Another good trail that runs alongside Bear Creek in the southwest Denver metro area.  Access points with nearby parking include the Stone House Park on South Estes St in Lakewood, Bear Valley Park on West Dartmouth St west of Sheridan Blvd, Bear Creek Park south of Hampden (accessed via South Raliegh St, and the River Point shopping center southwest of the intersection of Hampden Ave (US 285) and South Santa Fe (US 85).  The total length of the trail is approximately 7.25 miles between Morrison Rd and the River Point shopping center.  The Bear Creek Trail intersects the Platte River trail at the River Point shopping center, and hikes can be extended northward or southward along the Platte River Trail from that point.

Green Mountain (Hayden Green Mountain Park): This park contains a network of trails of varying lengths and elevation gains.  The Green Mountain trail, which circumnavigates the southern two-thirds of the park, can be accessed from either the Rooney Rd parking lot on the west side or from any of the three parking lots on West Alameda Pkwy on the east and south sides of the park.  This trail is a bit over six miles in length, skirting the southern half of Green Mountain and crossing the mountain itself, a climb of roughly 600 feet up and another 600 feet back down.  Several other trails intersect this trail and can be added for additional overall length and elevation gain/loss.  A portion of the trail on the west side is on a maintained gravel service road leading to the transmitter tower near the summit; otherwise all other trails are single track dirt.

North Table Mountain (Golden): Similar to Green Mountain, this park has a trail which essentially circumnavigates North Table Mountain for a total distance of approximately 7-1/2 to 8 miles.  Access is from a parking lot on Hwy 93, just north of Golden.  The trail begins with a long, steep climb of 450 feet or so over a distance of approximately one-half mile.  It then crosses the flat top of the mountain before descending down the southern and eastern flanks of the mesa.  From there, it’s a fairly level trail around the east, north and west base of the mountain back to the parking lot.  There are additional intersecting trails which can be added to increase the overall length of the hike – these all involve climbing back over the top of the mesa.  Trails are all dirt and gravel.

Roxborough State Park: This close-by state park offers numerous trails which are good training hikes.  Most of the trails are rather short, but since they all start at or near the visitor center and radiate outward, two or mor can be combined to total eight to ten miles.  Several of the trails, such as the Carpenter Peak Trail, include elevation gains of a few hundred to more than a thousand feet.

Sharptail Ridge - Roxborough Loop:  An 8-1/2 mile loop starting and ending at the Douglas County Open Space trailhead on Roxborough Park Rd.  The trail follows the Sharptail Ridge southward for approximately 3-1/2 miles, where it enters Roxborough State Park.  Follow a series of trails within the state park back to the entrance road and walk along the entrance road to Roxborough Park Rd and back to the trailhead.

Chatfield Reservoir Loop: An 11-mile loop around the reservoir at Chatfield State Park.  The trail is mostly hard-surface concrete, with very little shade so it can be hot in the summertime.

Staunton State Park: This is a new state park near Shaffer’s Crossing on US 285, a few miles past Conifer.  There is a nice in-and-back hike of 11+ miles from the entrance area up to the Elk Falls overlook.