South Platte Ranger District

The Buffalo Creek Recreation Area is more than 50 miles of multi-use, nonmotorized trails that tie into the Colorado Trail in several places. There are a lot of options available for riding or hiking. Some of the old logging roads provide two-track while connecting trails offer single track. It takes about an 1.5 hours to drive to this area from Denver.

Please know and respect local area restrictions including; parking and camping in designated sites only. Developed camping is available at nearby Forest Service campgrounds including Buffalo, Green Mountain, Kelsey and Meadows Group Campground.

Cedar Mountain Road is a scenic 4x4 road that can take you all the way from West Creek (Douglas County Route 68/El Paso County Route 51) south to Florrisant. The route travels through parts of the Hayman Fire, one of the largest wildfires in Colorado History.

Cedar Mountain Road provides access to Hackett, Longwater and Metberry Gulch 4x4 routes.

Motorized trail users must obey MVUM regulations.

Located north of Bailey and US Highway 285 along Park County Route 43. Provides access to the south side of the Mount Evans Wilderness including the Deer Creek and Meridian Trailheads.

The Guanella Pass Scenic Byway can be accessed from either Grant or Georgetown.

The south side of the Byway is located on the Pike National Forest/South Platte Ranger District and provides access to several hiking trails: Geneva Creek Trail (#697), Whiteside Trail (#697.A), Threemile Trail (#635), Burning Bear Trail (#601), Abyss Lake Trail (#602), South Park Trail (#600), Rosalie Trail (#603) and Bierstadt Trail (#711).

There is also a short interpretive trail with a good viewpoint at the Guanella Pass summit. This is accessed from the west end of the upper/west parking area.

Developed campgrounds include Burning Bear and Geneva Park.

The north side of the byway is located on the Arapaho National Forest/Clear Creek Ranger District and provides access to hiking trails including Silver Dale Townsite Historic District, and Silver Dollar Lake Trail (#79).

Developed campgrounds include Clear Lake and Guanella Pass.

The Hall Valley/Handcart Gulch staging area provides limited day use parking for vehicles and trailers for those continuing to Webster Pass and Red Cone by OHV. No overnight camping allowed at the staging area. This staging area is located approximately 4.5 miles northwest of Webster/Highway 285 off Park County Route 60.

Just to the north the road splits to Hall Valley Road (NFSR 120.C), Handcart Gulch Road (NFSR 121) and Red Cone Road (NFSR 565). Handcart and Red Cone climb to the top of the Continental Divide and meet at Webster Pass and a junction with the non-motorized Continental Divide National Scenic Trail.

Please contact the South Platte Ranger District (303-275-5610) for accessibility to Red Cone and Webster Pass. Due to snow conditions, these trails are typically not open until late June to early July. These routes are very steep, narrow, technical, high clearance 4x4 only.

Kenosha Pass provides access to the Colorado Trail as it heads southeast towards the Lost Creek Wilderness and west towards the Continental Divide and Jefferson Lake. The Colorado Trail starts outside of Denver and ends in Durango. It runs adjacent to the Kenosha Pass and Kenosha East Campgrounds.

There is also a wetland interpretative area and the remnants of the Denver, South Park & Pacific Railroad wye (Y). "Helper" engines from either Webster on the east side or Como on the west side of Kenosha Pass, assisted the regular engine in getting the train to the top, and then used the wye to turn around and head back down hill.

The Kenosha Pass area is well-known for its colorful stands of aspen in the fall. During peak leaf season (late September-early October), the trailhead at Kenosha pass can be very busy with leaf-peepers. Please use extra caution along the Highway 285 road corridor during this time. Kenosha Pass also provides scenic views of South Park from a small pullout area on the south side of the pass.

The Matukat Road (NFSR 211) provides access to the southeast portion of the Lost Creek Wilderness and to Cheesman Reservoir. It provides a scenic drive with expansive views through part of the area that was burned in the Hayman Fire of 2002 and continues south to connect with the Taryall Road (Park County Route 77).

The Rampart Range Recreation Area provides a unique setting for off-highway vehicle (OHV) enthusiasts to enjoy a variety of riding experiences. From intermediate to expert riders, ATV or motorcycle, the Rampart has something for everyone.

Please make sure you are prepared and ride within your abilities. Changing conditions, natural hazards as well as oncoming traffic may be encountered. Please become familiar with and obey all local rules and regulations.

Motor Vehicle Use Maps (MVUM) are available for free at your local USFS office or can be found at www.fs.usda.gov/goto/psicc/mvum.

The Rampart area appears on the following maps:

• Pike National Forest Visitor Map
• USGS Quad Devil's Head
• National Geographic Trails Illustrated #135 (Deckers/Rampart Range)

Dispersed camping available in designated sites only for a fee. Camp hosts are located in the Flat Rocks Campground and at Rim Road.

The South Platte River Corridor near Deckers, Colorado, has been a popular fishing location for decades. In the 1890s, Stephen Decker built a general store and later a saloon in this area. The South Platte Hotel, located at the confluence of the North Fork of the South Platte, was a popular resort in the early 1900s and was accessible only by train. The confluence provides access for fishing, kayaking and trail use.

The South Platte River is part of a 1.6 million-acre watershed that reaches from the Continental Divide to Strontia Springs Reservoir, southwest of Denver. The watershed is a recreational mecca with over 1 million acres of public lands; it provides municipal water for about three quarters of Colorado’s residents; it is renowned for its “gold-medal” fishing streams; and it is home to numerous threatened and endangered species.

The Upper South Platte Watershed varies in elevation from about 6,000' to over 14,000' above sea level and contains five major municipal and several smaller reservoirs.

Lost Creek Wilderness was officially designated by the Colorado Wilderness Act of 1980 with additions in 1993. Today, it totals 119,790 acres. Elevations range from 8,000 feet to 12,400 feet above sea level. Lost Creek was named after a creek of the same name that repeatedly disappears underground only to reappear again further downstream, where it ultimately becomes Goose Creek.

Lost Creek is accessed by a 136-mile trail network, 105 miles of which are within the wilderness boundary. The trail system traverses tree-lined mountain parks, fascinating rounded granite domes and rare granite arches. Black bears, bighorn sheep, deer, elk and bobcats share the region. Vegetation includes ponderosa, bristlecone and lodgepole pine; aspen; spruce; fir and alpine tundra.

Please help keep wilderness wild by following Leave No Trace practices.

The United States Congress designated the Mount Evans Wilderness in 1980, and it now has a total of 74,401 acres. Mount Evans Wilderness is located approximately 40 miles west of Denver, Colorado. The Mt. Evans Scenic Byway ascends a non-wilderness corridor into the center of the wilderness. The road, two 14,000 foot peaks (14,264' Mt. Evans and 14,060' Mt. Bierstadt) and the close proximity to Denver have contributed to very heavy use. Despite the likelihood of encountering other users, the area offers several unique features worthy of a visit. Evidence of past glaciers can be seen in the steep granite cirques and glacial moraines surrounding the high peaks.

The wilderness contains small regions of arctic tundra, rare south of the Arctic Circle. Unlike typical Colorado alpine tundra, which is dry and brittle once the snow recedes, arctic tundra holds numerous small pools of water. Vegetation ranges from lower spruce-fir and lodgepole forests, through 2,000-year-old Bristlecone pines and Krummholz near treeline, to delicate alpine vegetation reaching all the way to the highest peaks. Deer and elk inhabit the sub-alpine areas, and bighorn sheep and mountain goats are common above treeline.

Special protection for the Mount Evans area began 1956 with the designation of the approximately 5,880-acre Abyss Lake Scenic Area under the precursor of the Wilderness Act, the "U-Regulations" of 1939. This was followed in 1980 by the creation of the Mount Evans Wilderness under the Colorado Wilderness Act.

Mount Evans is accessed by a 110-mile trail network, 84 miles of which are within the wilderness boundary.

Please help keep wilderness wild by following Leave No Trace practices.