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Filed Under: Running
This area is wide-open and boasts great views of the Flatirons and the Indian Peaks. From the trailhead, you can go either left/South onto the very established trail, or right onto rockier singletrack/doubletrack (West to slightly northwest).
If you go left/South first, follow the well established trail that is lined with benches. You'll curve South then West until you reach a powerline and you'll come very close to Hwy 36. The well established trail will come to a junction - you can either turn North onto rocky doubletrack trail, or west to go through a fence then downhill and directly South again. Go North here.
Follow the fencline North. The trail will be more rocky and wild. Follow until you dead end into a neighborhood, then take the fenceline due East where it turns into singletrack trail.
At the end of that fence line, you'll see several faint trails. Go North again, still on singletrack trail, until you come to a ridge where you can either go downhill/North or right/Northeast and stay along the ridge. Go right/Northeast and stay on ridge. This will take you towards a wider trail and within view of the trailhead.
If you go right (due West) first, follow the singletrack/doubletrack trail that follows the ridge, then the fenceline South, then fenceline West, then South again to the trail junction with the well established trail. Take the well established trail East then North again back to the trailhead.
If this run wasn't enough, cross the street and run the .9 mile loop around Harper Lake for a full 4 mile run! Note that while dogs are allowed at Davidson Mesa, they are not allowed at Harper Lake.From Boulder: Take S. Boulder Rd. East to Louisville. At the top of the hill, you'll reach the S. Boulder Rd/McCaslin stoplight. Take a right (South). At Washington Ave., turn right (East) into Trailhead parking lot.
From Denver or South Louisville: Take McCaslin Blvd. North up the hill. At the top of the hill, watch for the trailhead on your left (West). Trailhead is accross from Washington Ave./Harper Lake trailhead.
Comments
merschel said ...
Yeah, this is the flagship trail of my weekly runs. They've improved it, so a lot of the singletrack/doubletrack has been made into a wide, crushed gravel trail.
For example, when you "go North again" in the description above, it's back on the singletrack. Or you can just continue Northeast on the improved trail and it brings you back to the main trail, about half a mile from the trailhead.
Anyway, I think the outer loop is about 2 miles and I think the out & back to/from that loop is about 1 mile. So if you do the lollipop, you get in a nice 3 miler. If you want 5 or 7 miles, you just do laps on the outer loop.
They've also created this kind of narrow loop by the trailhead that I think is about 1 mile. It goes along the houses to the South, then links back up to the main trail and you can take that back to the trailhead.
Tons of options here. Good surface, good views. Links up to other trails. Plus, I live closeby. So this ends up being the perfect option for most of my runs. Anything longer than 7 miles and you probably want to head elsewhere or at least link up to another trail, because I get bored on the outer loop.
Even though I've lived in Louisville for 2 years now, I'm just starting to discover their intricate trail system and how to link it all up together. Again, tons of options. But this is a great place to start.
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