Waldo CanyonWaldo Canyon is a very popular 7-mile hiking trail just west of Colorado Springs & Manitou Springs, near Cascade, Colorado. To get there, take the Ute Pass/Hwy 24 past the Cave of the Winds sign 2 miles, and the parking lot will appear with Smoky the Bear presiding. In the summer, plan ahead, the lot is often full. The trail head for Waldo Canyon begins right off the parking lot, heads up a steep staircase and gives you an immediate bird's-eye view of the Ute Pass and the cities below. 
You continue along that ridge, through switchbacks and scrub oak, past pine trees and Pikes Peak granite.Eventually you'll get to the 3.5-mile main loop, and you can choose to go right or left. We chose right, and began the hike up and down more switchbacks, with each turn giving us unique views of the area. Because we visited Waldo Canyon in October, we experienced the thrill of Colorado's ever-changing weather, seeing three seasons in one hike. We began the hike in autumn, at about 50F, with a few clouds. By the time we made it to the half-way mark, the clouds and fog rolled in, obscuring our view of Pikes Peak, and winter arrived with some light snow. The trail's descent takes you past bizarre rock outcroppings (fun photo ops!) and then down into a thick forest, along a creek where the vegetation gets much more lush. You might think you've arrived in Oregon or Washington state. The hike itself is moderate, but it is 6.8 miles long and gains 2000 feet in elevation. So you can take your time and stroll it in 4 hours or keep up a steady trail-running pace and make it 90 minutes. The variety of this trail keeps it interesting, and we also saw a variety of people along the way: families with dogs, lone hikers, young couples, campers in the woods, mountain bikers. 
It's a multi-use trail, and its close proximity to the city of Colorado Springs makes it very popular, as well as its great views of Williams Canyon, Pikes Peak, Ute Pass, and of course, Waldo Canyon itself.Directions: From Colorado Springs, drive west up the Ute Pass/Hwy 24, two miles past the Cave of the Winds sign. The parking lot will come up on your right side very quickly. |
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On the way back down, the clouds dispersed, the sun glowed bright, and it was a summery day at 67F!
