Castlewood Canyon park. Still bare and colorless.

This place is magical. It is always beautiful, it doesn't matter if you hike there during hot Summer days or cold Spring mornings. Fall time is definitely the best (just look here if you don't believe me - Castlewood Canyon park again, but from another angle). But Spring is special. Even when the colors are faded and there is no green grass or leaves, this place still looks very attractive.

 

The main trails are relatively easy. No need to climb the rocks or gain elevation. If you start with Canyon View Nature and continue to Lake Gulch you can see the valley down below the trail and mountain ridges far away. Go for Rimrock trail if you want some workout though. This one you couldn't call an easy one ;)

The pines there are real survivors. They find a crack in the rocks and... start growing there. Surprisingly they can find enough soil and nutrition to survive and thrive...

But everything looks different when you look down the valley. The meadows are green and lush in the Summer, but in Spring everything looks so colorless...

When you reach the far end of the trail you can turn right and follow the Inner Canyon trail which brings you back. You will be walking just along the creek on the bottom of the Canyon (and this is the best trail for the Summer hike - cool and shadowy).

When you back on Canyon View Nature trail - continue towards the Visitor Center and don't miss the view points where you can see across the canyon...

Last Sunday I hardly took any pictures while on the Inner Canyon trail, so click here to see some from our last year trip - Castlewood Canyon, Sunday hike in April

That time we had a reversed hike - started from Inner Canyon and finished hiking over the valley.

Pictures were taken on March 12, 2023.