Beaver Brook / Chavez Trail

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If you’re looking for a shady hike on a hot & sunny day – here you go! Unlike most of the hikes along the Front Range, this doesn’t have those sweeping mountain & foothill views. In fact, it feels more like the northeast than it does Colorado. You’re hiking through shaded forest, along a river for most of the way. And while five miles sometimes feels intimidating, this one went by fast!

This trail is also an easy one to follow, but you do have to make one decision about a half mile in. Will you go left at the fork, or to the right? Both will loop you around so you won’t get lost, but it’s more of a question – do you want to go up the steep route or down it? To the left will be a more gradual path down to the river, to the right you’ll encounter some rocky, steep parts. It might sound crazy, but I personally would rather go up the steep route, than down. Hear me out – I’m already super clumsy and most of the time I slip, it’s on loose rocks or gravel going down, not up. And while the narrow, steep parts don’t last too long, there are a couple of spots that might make you a little nervous.

Once you’re down by the river you’re at my favorite part of the hike! I absolutely love river crossings and I can’t even remember how many this one had. Sometimes it was a couple of logs, other times it was a well-built bridge. The water is clear and beautiful the whole way and I just loved it.