| Distance | 6.53 mi |
| Elevation Gain | 1,112 ft |
| My Time | 2 hr 21 min |
| Difficulty | Moderate |
| Closest Town | Littleton |
| Food Nearby | Waterton Tavern |
Roxborough State Park
Roxborough State Park was nice a hike close to home. One thing I enjoyed was that there aren’t any pets or bikes allowed. While I do love the pups on the trails, this was a little narrow to have to avoid bikes. You can get some great views from Carpenter Peak and it isn’t too challenging to get there. If you are feeling good, you can connect to the Waterton Canyon trail near the peak.
Update July 2020
As this was actually my first hike that I posted I decided to come back and try it again. The good news was I improved over that first hike which took me about 4 hours. When I redid the hike it only took me about 2 and a half hours. So improvement is good!
I did the Carpenter Peak trail both times for consistency and the signs in the park refer to the hike as strenuous. One thing that I did notice doing the hike in the summer that I didn’t really recognize in the spring was how much of this hike is uncovered. The summer sun was cooking me for a good majority of the hike. You will begin in some shade but then the majority of the hike up the hill is completely exposed and since it is at a lower elevation the combination of the heat and the sun can really be challenging.
The views at the top of Carpenter’s peak are nice of the foot hills and although I have been to Roxborough twice now, it has never seemed overly crowded. The carpenter hill trail is also very narrow and in the summer there is a lot of overgrowth that you will need to navigate around. A good starter hike for those who are looking to stay close to Denver and enjoy the outdoors.
Distance and Elevation
If you don’t have the AllTrails app you might want to check it out, I really love mine. It records your progress and is a great way to search for hikes that are nearby and gives you difficulty measurements. According to AllTrails today’s hike was around 6.53 miles and had a total elevation gain of about 1112 feet including undulations. That put the high point at around 7,175 feet. I was also moving for a total of 2 hours and 21 minutes.
Effort
There is a pretty consistent incline trying to climb to Carpenter peak which will give you a nice workout. Here are the stats fro the hike I took in July from my Fitbit.
Terrain
The trail to Carpenter peak is very well defined. Near the parking lot it is a wide trail of hard dirt and some softer sandy area’s. Crossing to the Carpenter trail starts with some man made steps and the trail narrows to about a foot wide. The trail stays the narrow hard packed dirt for the rest of the hike to the peak with increasing rocks and roots as you get closer to the peak. The peak itself has a few rocks that you have to walk over.
Access
Roxborough State park is part of the State Park system and requires either a $9 day pass or a yearly pass from the park system. It is located on Roxborough drive in Littleton, Colorado. There are restrooms and a parking lot near the visitor center.
If you have a hike you would like me to try feel free to email me at fatmanlittletrails@gmail.com or you can follow me on the below social media platforms. I have added this hike and all hikes to the interactive map that can be found here.
