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Dawson Butte Ranch Trail

Easy Easy
 3.7 (62)
  1. Areas
  2. CO
  3. …Front Range
  4. …Castle Rock
  5. Dawson Butte Ranch Open Space
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“A five-mile loop through forested areas with open meadows and views of the Front Range Mountains. ”

Richard Cota
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Map Key

5.0

Miles

8.0

KM
Singletrack

6,840' 2,085 m

High

6,532' 1,991 m

Low

380' 116 m

Up

388' 118 m

Down

3%

Avg Grade (2°)

9%

Max Grade (5°)

Dogs Leashed

E-Bikes Allowed

Family Friendly Easy ride, lot's of people and horses on the trail.

The trail is also used by hikers and horseback riders, and pets on a leash are allowed.

Need to Know

Be aware, this is a multi-purpose trail, hikers, bikers and horses are permitted on the trail.

Description

The five-mile loop trail on Dawson Butte Open Space travels through mostly forested areas with open meadows and views of the Front Range Mountains. The trail follows gently rolling terrain but near the bottom or southwest part of the trail, there's a section with a lot of sand.

Going clockwise from the parking lot, the first two miles of the trail are through meadows populated with stands of scrub oak. This portion of the trail descends about 400 feet. At the two-mile mark, the trail begins to climb and for the next two miles passes through a Ponderosa pine forest. A picnic area is located at mile three.

The trail climbs steadily for the last three miles, and after mile four passes through the top of a meadow before ending at the parking lot. Multiple side trails allow for a customized ride of varying distances. The trail provides numerous excellent views of the Front Range and the Palmer Divide.

Contacts

Land Manager: Douglas County, CO - Parks, Trails & Building Grounds

Shared By:

Richard Cota with improvements by Chaz H
Full Details

Trail Ratings

  3.7 from 62 votes

#1

in Dawson Butte Ranch Open Space

#191

Overall
  3.7 from 62 votes
5 Star
24%
4 Star
37%
3 Star
27%
2 Star
10%
1 Star
2%
Trail Rankings

#1

in Dawson Butte Ranch Ope…

#77

in Colorado

#191

Overall
18 Views Last Month
9,311 Since Sep 5, 2013
Easy Easy
70%
17%
9%
2%
2%
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Photos

Looking towards Perry Park and Rampart Range
Jul 24, 2019 near Perry Park, CO
Flowing singletrack ideal for young riders.
Jul 9, 2016 near Perry Park, CO
View of the butte from the trail. This is as close as you get.
Dec 6, 2021 near Perry Park, CO
Plenty of curious wildlife nearby Dawson's Butte.
Jul 24, 2019 near Perry Park, CO
A group of deer just next to the trail.
Jul 24, 2019 near Perry Park, CO
Dawson Butte.
Jul 9, 2016 near Perry Park, CO

5 Comments

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Check-Ins

Nov 22, 2022
Peter Tiley
Sep 2, 2022
Andrew Griffin
Super sandy second half, fun first half — 0h 30m
Aug 1, 2022
Unnati Hall
First ride - 2 loops 10.2mi
Jun 12, 2022
Michael Barclay
Nice easy ride. Trails are a bit sandy and deep in spots. 5mi
May 27, 2022
Rick Trichka
May 8, 2022
Christopher Harris
5mi — 1h 25m
Oct 8, 2021
Anthony Whiskey
Best for early morning ride. C or CC works. Use a bear bell… 15mi — 3h 00m
Oct 6, 2021
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