Archives-Trails History

By Suzanne Webel Thank you, Larimer County, for Hermit Park!!! Goodbye, Lion Gulch, and good riddance. I have spent many hours over the past thirty years trying to find a better access to one of my favorite haunts: Homestead Meadows. And for 30 years I have been frustrated by the steep, rocky Lion Gulch Trail, by private property owners blocking access to the National Forest, by no-public-access conservation easements, and by impassable four-wheel-drive only roads. Then, in 2007, Larimer County stepped up to the plate in a magnificent way and purchased Hermit Park from Hewlett Packard, thereby opening up a very civilized, scenic, and historic access to Homestead Meadows. Even more miraculously, they took less than a year to open the entire property to the public, complete with trailheads, cabins, picnic areas, campgrounds, and – gasp – some nice trails! Land managers in the People’s Republic might note that Larimer County Parks and Open Lands feels that it is doing a good job protecting its natural resources and welcoming the public to enjoy those resources, and came to that conclusion without much drama in a reasonable amount of time! Access the property from Highway 36 just east of the crest in the road before it descends to Estes Park. At the time of this writing there is a nominal fee of $6 per vehicle. Stop in for a map, if you wish, and proceed up the dirt road to the Kruger Rock Parking Lot, the Kruger Equestrian campsites (!), or to the Homestead Meadows Parking Lot.   […]

By Suzanne Webel It’s taken more than 25 years for Boulder County and the City of Boulder to cobble together a complex assemblage of nine properties comprising more than 2100 acres, now known as the Lagerman Agricultural Preserve – but it’s done. And the new trail system, comprising the existing 1.6 miles at Lagerman Reservoir and 4.9 miles at AHI (the former “Double Dove”) is now open. Park at the P shown on the attached map at Lagerman Reservoir, on the south side of Pike Road. This trailhead parking facility has a shelter, picnic tables and a boat ramp, as well as 27 vehicle spaces and 5 designated pull-through Horse Trailer/Boat spaces (!). For a short ride with amazing panorama views of the Continental Divide, proceed clockwise around the lake. Be aware that the western half of this trail is closed seasonally from April 1- August 31 for various bird species; the 2012 management plan included many comments from the public requesting that the seasonal closure be lifted, but the county decided to continue it “at this time” (meaning that if enough additional comments are received the decision might be reversed). As you ride across the dam, we hope you will appreciate the new spillway trail bypass that makes this trail a safer experience for everyone, especially equestrians. The Management Plan calls for another trail, approximately 1.25 miles long, that will connect Lagerman Reservoir south to Oxford Road. Stay tuned for that development, or help make it a reality sooner by lobbying for it with county