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A nice 1,000 foot climb close to town with some good views.


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Map Key

2.6

Miles

4.2

KM

Doubletrack

6,746' 2,056 m

High

5,805' 1,769 m

Low

954' 291 m

Up

13' 4 m

Down

7%

Avg Grade (4°)

20%

Max Grade (11°)

Dogs Leashed

E-Bikes Allowed

E-bikes allowed per regulation: bouldercolorado.gov/guide/g…

Description

Starting from the Red Lion in Boulder Canyon, cross the fancy new bridge installed in 2012. Follow the sign to the trail, going straight past the misleading sign that says "Private Road". You are perfectly welcome on this part of the road. Chapman Drive continues up through a gate and then gently ascends Flagstaff Mountain. Enjoy the views and some very nice stone work on the turns. Soon you'll arrive at Realization Point on Flagstaff. Cruise around the amphitheater road or head down via Flagstaff Road.

Factoid: the Bridge to the Red Lion was heavily fought over after a flood washed the old one away in June 2010 after a record snow year. The Red Lion is the host of many weddings and the major beneficiary of the bridge (Chapman Drive was used as a fire road in principle) but wanted the city to bear the entire cost. After much wrangling, they compromised, and taxpayers got better access, trailhead parking, and a greatly improved Chapman Drive trail that opened in December 2012.

Chapman Drive was closed for repairs from the 2013 flood for much of 2016. After extensive work, it was reopened in October 2016. For more information, click here.

Contacts

Shared By:

Nick Wilder with improvements by Wendy Sweet and 3 others

Trail Ratings

  3.2 from 11 votes

#2

in Boulder

#21161

Overall
  3.2 from 11 votes
5 Star
9%
4 Star
36%
3 Star
18%
2 Star
36%
1 Star
0%
Trail Rankings

#2

in Boulder

#1,932

in Colorado

#21,161

Overall
26 Views Last Month
5,968 Since Apr 6, 2013
Easy/Intermediate Easy/Intermediate

33%
33%
33%
0%
0%
0%

Photos

Boulder from above.
Dec 8, 2014 near Boulder, CO
Just three miles from downtown Boulder, pretty awesome views!
Apr 15, 2013 near Boulder, CO
This terribly misleading sign means you're in the right place.  This road is absolutely open to public hiking and biking.  Rural Boulder County roads are full of these misleading signs that should be taken down.  The land around the road is public, you have every right to be on the road!
Apr 15, 2013 near Boulder, CO
Mark is nice about opening gates, for the ladies at least.
Apr 6, 2013 near Boulder, CO
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Current Trail Conditions

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Check-Ins

Oct 20, 2022
Austin Martin
Sep 25, 2020
Ben Fowler
0h 40m
Aug 1, 2019
Lucy Fagan
BHS time trial 9th
Jul 28, 2018
Rolf Rover
May 3, 2017
Ross Perry
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