The train ride and views at the top were unmatched but the food/drinks sold at the top were…read moreseverely overpriced and very low quality. We went first thing in the morning and the food was hard and cold.

Pikes Peak, known as "America's Mountain," is a must-visit destination with breathtaking views from…read moreover 14,000 feet above sea level. The summit overlooks the Rocky Mountains, Colorado Springs, and the surrounding plains, making it one of Colorado's most memorable attractions. Getting to the top is easy by scenic highway, Cog Railway, guided tour, or hiking trail, making it accessible for both adventurers and casual visitors. The summit offers stunning vistas, a visitor center, and educational exhibits about the mountain's history and environment. Be prepared for rapidly changing weather and temperatures that can be much colder than in Colorado Springs. Crowds and altitude can be drawbacks, and timed-entry reservations required during peak season but do not guarantee a parking spot at the summit. Tips: Visit in the morning for the best views and fewest crowds. Bring your own food, as the summit café is expensive and the famous donuts are overrated. Plan to spend about an hour at the top enjoying the scenery and exhibits.

I wanted some vibes like Garden of the gods but did not want the crowds so I checked out Red Rock…read moreCanyon Open Space! I was really impressed with this open space. Parking was easy, they had plenty of spots while I was visiting. They've got something for everyone! Hiking trails, bike park/paths, rock climbing (permit needed), an off leash dog park. I specifically went for the hiking trails. They were great for my 4 year old. When I go with him I try to look for trails under 3 miles. My only complaint is I wish they had real bathrooms by the parking lot. The porta potty was pretty gross. P.s. you can see garden of the gods from this park! They are pretty close to each other!

Colorado is the healthiest state in the US (this is fact, you can look this up on the CDC website)…read moreand I can see why. With such amazing hiking available, that is free to residents and visitors, all over the state, it encourages you to get outside and enjoy what mother nature has to offer. Red Rock Canyon Open Space has a series of canyons and ridges sculpted by erosion of the area's uplifted rock strata. The ridges and canyons offer beautiful views that are photo worthy for those wanting to post to their social media (or hey, just keeping these photo keepsakes in your own camera roll is also fine too). Red Rock Canyon Open Space is dog friendly, with some off leash areas (where noted), and 11 trails that you can hike. The trails are anywhere from 1.7 miles to 5.4 miles, with a lot of pretty easy trails for those that are not as active but still want to partake in the journey. You can also see views of Garden of the Gods, which is nearby. Red Rock Canyon Open Space is not nearly as busy as Garden of the Gods (but highly recommend a visit there too, which is also dog friendly). From May 1 and Oct. 31, you can enter Red Rock Canyon Open Space between 5 a.m. and 10 p.m.; during the rest of the year, the park closes at 9 p.m. There is free parking available and also one porta potty at the beginning of the trail (but I did not use it) and also trash cans (I did not see trash cans anywhere else in this open space). My husband and I visited Red Rock Canyon Open Space with our little girl dog. We came on a Sunday afternoon, a little after 1 pm. It was an overcast day, which was nice. But it was rather busy but not crowded. We were able to find a parking spot without any trouble. We only did 2 light trails but enjoyed the views. The trails we had were pretty easy for the most part. We also did see a handful of dogs during our visit. Please note that there is hardly any shade so make sure you plan accordingly (hat to shade your face, plenty of water, etc).

Helen Hunt Falls is not something you simply stumble upon. City slickers have to earn it a bit…read more Nearly three miles into North Cheyenne Cañon, the road leaves the city behind. Houses disappear well before the entrance to its mouth or rocky gates west of Starsmore Nature Center. Red granite walls rise closer, pine and cedar lean over the pavement, temperatures drop as the canyon wraps you in cool embrace. Helen Hunt Falls sits within a city park, but it never really feels like one. North Cheyenne Cañon is its own character. Intimate. Shaded. Winding. While the city feels far away, beware the tight hairpin curves and oncoming vehicles. In its own way, it is unique like South Cheyenne Cañon, home to the dramatic Seven Falls. Where Seven Falls dazzles with height and dramatics, this canyon offers its own closeness to stone, forest, and water. It is a place where the road slows, voices soften, and the canyon quietly reminds you how close wilderness can be to a city.

Super amazing quick little hike that you can drive up to near manitou springs with a good amount of…read morefree parking. The views from on top and bellow are spectacular and this is definitely meant for all ages. The twisty roads might be a little challenging for some drivers but it is definitely worth the drive if you can make it here!

This is a moderately trafficked trail in Manitou Springs that will bring you to some beautiful…read moreviews of the city and the Incline! The trail is somewhat short (unless I was missing something...), but it does hook up with other trails and apparently is part of the trails that circle Pikes Peak (cool! Adding that to my to-do list!) It's pretty steep in areas, so make sure that you bring plenty of water! I really enjoyed the hike on this trail, and it's a good alternative if you're not feeling up to Barr Trail or the Incline.

This trail starts in the Manitou Springs Cemetery, you will see a parking area and the trail head…read more This can be a tough hike only because it is up and down a lot of hills. The only reason this did not get 5 stars is because you end up walking through the neighborhood in order to get to the other part of the trail. The second part of the trail is amazing. You can see Garden of the Gods in a light you have never seen it before! You can also see the people walking up the incline on the other side! Also remember, you have to walk back to your car from the end of the trail! And as always, wear the proper shoes and bring water or Gatorade!

We loved our hike to st marys falls. St Marys is a moderate hike around 6.5 miles and 1394 feet of…read moreelevation gain. The main road to the falls parking lot is closed and you have to take gold camp road over. This is around 3 miles of dirt. Its narrow with some pot holes and also 2 tunnels you will need to go through. A lot of the road is very narrow and really only wide enough for just one car. So be prepared for a little bit of a hairy ride. it will be the 2nd parking lot on your right. There is a fairly large parking lot, however it fills up quickly especially on a weekend. If you want to do this you will want to arrive sooner rather than later. Dogs are allowed but are supposed to be on a leash. The parking lot for saint marys is the same as for some other trails over there, seven bridges and silver cascades being 2 of them. You will have to walk around 1 1/4 miles up a dirt road until you get to the trailhead. The trail follows a creek most of the trail. It is rocky and at times a little slick with the loose rock. It is beautiful, surrounded by forest. It was very magical and lovely. it felt so nice to be out in the woods. Mountain bikes and motorcycles are also allowed to use this trail. We did not see any motorcycles but there were a few mountain bikers. And they dont necessarily signal so well beware. There is a trash can at the trail head. Be sure to PACK out what you pack in! My friend and i were picking up garbage that people had left along the trail :( There is no reason to leave your garbage. Please take it with you.

Inadvertently found this trail while looking for a different place to hike with the pup, who is…read moreyoung and just learning how to be a good off leash hiking dog. I'm not 100% certain, but I think that you are allowed to take your dogs off leash on this trail. I certainly never saw any signs stating otherwise and out of maybe 10 dogs we saw, half were on leash and a half off. It was a beautiful hike however we were not prepared and did not have water or maybe a hiking stick for me, at least. The beginning part of the trail is a wide open fire lane, but once you get back there it's a trail with a gradual uphill climb the entire way that turns even steeper towards the end. I was definitely asking "how much longer" for the last half-hour and really regretting that I didn't have water with me as my sensitive back started to ache. On our way down as we passed other hikers, they were asking the same question about "how much longer". The gradual uphill climb the entire way can be a little much if you're not prepared for it and the journey back down to the car is much quicker since it's basically downhill the whole way. Took half the time to get down than it did to get up. The waterfall and stream were beautiful and soothing. Walking with shady tree cover much of the way and a stream next to us was a plus for the pup to get his first experience of playing in a stream. The pup definitely enjoyed himself most of all. We took this hike in early June and on our way back we got hit with a rainstorm that dropped the temperature about 20° and we were freezing and poured on by the time we got back to the car, so be prepared when coming here in the summertime!

This is a fairly woodsy and natural national monument that preserves fossil beds and ancient tree…read moretrunks. Much of the area is open terrain, ponderosa forest and open vistas. Not exactly much quarry to look at, and no collecting of course. There is a place you can search for fossils up the road. There is a visitor center with some nice displays of the bug and plant fossils that have been found. I'm not sure if they were found in a different part of the park, or that's covered up? But you can't really find where the leaf fossils were taken from. The gift shop was nice and the staff very friendly and informative! We did the relatively short Big Stump Loop, about .5 miles and you see a half dozen big old Redwood stumps. I would recommend this trail over the longer one. We had fun and saw everything in about a hour, but you can stay longer and find out more to see. Glad this exists and it didn't become a golf course like they wanted to in the 60s.

Nice open space park. And it was super cool to see the petrified trees. The museum was also…read moreinformative and cool. Would definitely recommend.

I have only ever been here for the pickleball courts but let me say... these are, in my opinion,…read morethe best pickleball courts in Colorado Springs. They are always so well maintained! They are always packed with people, but there are a ton of courts so I'd say you can usually always find one open! Or a pair of people playing that you can join (make some friends). In the warmer months, there are more courts open and when it gets to winter months, they seem to close off the back courts. Which has been a bummer because this winter has felt like the summer. But it's not that big of a deal! The lighting at night is great and there is a good amount of parking leading into the park. I have no complaints and every time I come, I'm happy.

Excellent place to go exercise, relax, go on a picnic, take your kids to the playground, enjoy…read morenature. It's by far my favorite place to go in a run.

Hiking Blodgett Peak is an ideal early-season outing. Perfect to shake off winter, a steady ascent…read morehelps you find rhythm quickly, making it a great warm-up. It is not gentle. The grade is no joke. Sections hit a 20 to 30% incline, with sustained pitches requiring sharp focus. As you climb, the trail steepens further, offering a solid test of fitness right out of the gate. The summit over Colorado Springs is well-earned.

Trail Series, Part 15 Ex*hil*a*ra*tion: uncontrolled…read morefeelings of euphoria or elation. I'm sure there's many ways to arrive at this destination. One of them is running, and running in the snow just takes things to a whole new level for me. With that in mind, imagine my exhilaration when a Review Team Member suggested we seize the opportunity to run in a snow storm today! Blodgett Open Space can be found on West Woodmen Road (just North of Orchard Valley Road) in Colorado Springs, Colorado. When we arrived it was snowing, 11 degrees, and it would have taken an legion to wipe the smile off my face! Rejoining our Review Team for this adventure was Jasper "The Mountain Dog", so our confidence for survival was high. On several portions of our adventure we enjoyed making "first tracks" in the snow and we basically felt like we had the mountain to ourselves. We reached a peak elevation of 7,500 feet and discovered that your phone will actually turn itself off as a defense mechanism when it gets too cold. While our experience was euphoric, we are sadden to report that not all of our Review Team Members returned safely to Base Camp with us (not true, and yes Jasper is fine. Check the pics and you'll understand. ). There are multiple trails to explore, so you can tailor your adventure to just how much glee you are prepared for. While not required for this journey, I found the use of snow micro spikes quite useful (they can be a fitted over your running shoes). And that's...Henry's Take. #snowrunning #blogettopenspace #coloradosprings Trail Series, Part 15 Ex*hil*a*ra*tion: uncontrolled feelings of euphoria or elation. I'm sure there's many ways to arrive at this destination. One of them is running, and running in the snow just takes things to a whole new level for me. With that in mind, imagine my exhilaration when a Review Team Member suggested we seize the opportunity to run in a snow storm today! Blodgett Open Space can be found on West Woodmen Road (just North of Orchard Valley Road) in Colorado Springs, Colorado. When we arrived it was snowing, 11 degrees, and it would have taken an legion to wipe the smile off my face! Rejoining our Review Team for this adventure was Jasper "The Mountain Dog", so our confidence for survival was high. On several portions of our adventure we enjoyed making "first tracks" in the snow and we basically felt like we had the mountain to ourselves. We reached a peak elevation of 7,500 feet and discovered that your phone will actually turn itself off as a defense mechanism when it gets too cold. While our experience was euphoric, we are sadden to report that not all of our Review Team Members returned safely to Base Camp with us (not true, and yes Jasper is fine. Check the pics and you'll understand. ). There are multiple trails to explore, so you can tailor your adventure to just how much glee you are prepared for. While not required for this journey, I found the use of snow micro spikes quite useful (they can be a fitted over your running shoes). And that's...Henry's Take. #snowrunning #blogettopenspace #coloradosprings