Young Gulch Trail (#999)

Dogs Off-leash

E-Bikes Not Allowed

Please respect the private property at the end of the trail.

Prior to the fire and flood, this was a very popular trail. It still follows the creek most of the way but is now routed higher above the creek. The trail was designed to be bike friendly. Much of the trail passes through areas that were burned during the High Park Fire in 2012, making those sections hot on a sunny summer day. The most heavily burned area runs from about mile 1.7 to mile 3.7. However, areas that escaped the fire include well-shaded forests mixed with meadows and diverse flora.

The babbling creek can be heard for nearly all the trail. The trail crosses the creek approximately 27 times, and crosses a few drainages as well. The first three creek crossings are on bridges that will support both bikes and stock. Some of the other crossings have single log bridges for hikers. Crossing the creeks during spring runoff can be challenging. The trail ends near the Stove Prairie Road but there is no trail access from that road. The first 1.7 miles of trail is of moderate difficulty for horses, but past that it is very challenging and is not recommended for riding.