Trail Information
Trail Name: Elk Meadow
Location: Near Evergreen, Colorado
Date: August 7, 2019
Time at the Trail Head: 7:30am
Trail Length: 4.0 miles
Elevation Gain: 593 feet
Elev. at Trail Head: 7,593 feet
# of Hikers Passed: 52
# of Mnt. Bikers Passed: 33
# of Horses Passed: 0
Mosquitoes: 0
Drive from Denver to Elk Meadow Trail
Driving from Denver, up through Aspen Park, Conifer and over to Evergreen is a wonderful, relaxing and absolutely beautiful drive. Make sure to take some time to enjoy the drive and be kind to everyone else who loves to visit the area.
My Day on the Trail
I always use AllTrails to plan my hiking adventures and here is a map view of the trail with some great information that will help you on your trip.
Elk Mountain is a popular destination for hikers, runners and bikers so make sure to get to the trailhead as early as possible. We arrived at 7:30 am and there were only two parking spots open. There are bathroom facilities available.
It was evident, even after hiking away from the parking lot, that this is a popular destination. To say we passed a lot of people, is an under statement. Besides the hike up to Flattop Mountain in the Rocky Mountain National Park, I have not been on a more traveled trail. However, everyone is extremely friendly and polite.
We hiked the loop counter clockwise. Even though it is beautiful from the moment you arrive, the traffic noise from the road is especially annoying as you have to listen to it for at least 1/2 mile, but eventually you start heading up towards the mountain and lose the noise.
The views are absolutely amazing and it’s especially nice that there are places along the trail to relax and enjoy the view.
We kept meeting extremely friendly people on the hike and there are a lot of mountain bikers on this trail also but it was still a really nice hike. The views were always spectacular as you can see below.
The trail is well traveled but well maintained. The west and south parts of the trail are mostly in the woods after you leave the meadow on the east and north side. There are also several other trails and one that heads up to Bergen Peak. There are so many options to choose from and you’ll want to come back and explorer some more.
My daughter and I initially hiked this trail in August but I cam back in early October to take a few more pictures and some video. The aspens have started to change colors at this altitude. October is when they change the most, from my experience. My daughter goes to college in Gunnison and the aspens are already bright yellow there.
After finishing the 4-mile loop I came across this pretty setting, looking at the Elk Meadow.
Trail Recommendations
Even though this is a heavily traveled trail, I highly recommend you visit the trail and the area. This is actually a great trail to start to get use to the altitude in Colorado if you are not use to it.
There are no seriously steep inclines on this section of the trail and there are plenty of places to pull up a rock or log and enjoy the beauty of Evergreen while you catch your breath.
You can enjoy a video of my hike on the Elk Meadow Trail by Clicking Here.
Evergreen, Colorado
The town of Evergreen is a beautiful and charming town with an old town feel on the west side of Evergeen Lake. Take some time to walk around the lake and visit some of the shops and restaurants in town.
One of my favorite places to hang out in Evergreen is The Little Bear. It makes me feel like I am in a wonderful old town in Colorado…and of course I am.
Please leave a Comment Below or Email me if you have any questions or would like to share your experience with this area.
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Elk Meadow Trail
Free
Pros
- Easy Access
- Meadow Views
- Well Maintained Trails
- Trail Choices to Choose From
- Near Evergreen, Colorado
Cons
- No Creeks or Lakes
- Traffic Noise Near the Highway
- Parking on the Weekend
Wow, your video shots could be paintings!! I am so impressed with your review. It’s so helpful to see and hear all of the details. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve attempted to walk a new trail, and even with the help of AllTrails I’ve been disappointed. Thank you for creating this beautiful description. Wish I lived in Colorado…
Thank you Judy. You can live in Colorado, just set a goal and make it happen.
I lived in Oklahoma for 30 years and made many trips to New Mexico and Colorado to hike and vacation but I will tell you, it is so different being here…and that’s in a great way.
The convenience of the mountains, lakes, streams and trails being so close and so abundant, makes it easy to make plans to enjoy the wonderful outdoors much more often.
I’m glad you liked the review and the video.
Rick
WOW!!! Excellent article,the beautiful environment which is very attractive,reading through this post really opened my eyes to so many things, the trail is well traveled but well maintained.,wonderful pictures and exciting.I believe this place will be perfectly fit for picnic and adventure activities,I salute your writing prowess.Thank you for sharing this helpful post.
Thank you for the kind words. It’s easy to write like that when you’re inspired by the beauty you’re around.
Evergreen is a beautiful area and I would love to live there some day, but for now, I will just visit often and take my family and friends for a hike and a picnic, like you said.
Rick
Thanks! Great article. It sounds like a busier trail than your other 2 articles I read. Do you prefer the trails with more other people or less?
The views here look really nice. I know what you mean about the traffic noise following you into the trail. My local nature trails are like that, really nice, but within range of the road, so you hear traffic in some places. It’s still good to be in nature but I wish there wouldn’t be traffic noises!
Thanks again for your expertise on hiking and I look forward to reading more. Thanks!
I prefer no traffic noise but it’s nice to know a lot of trails you can go to depending on the situation. Sometimes you may want to get away for some exercise, or to show some family a great trail, and other times you might want to go deep into the mountains to really get away from it all.
It sounds like you’re getting out a lot also. It’s so nice to get away from work and traffic at times.
Rick
That view of your drive to Evergreen looks absolutely beautiful! The hills and the clear skies from the trails view are amazing. I could stand and stare all day. I absolutely enjoyed your video of the hike on the Elk Meadow. Evergreen looks like it has some great history. A nice place to hang away from the super busy big towns.Thank you for sharing your hiking journey. It feels like I was part of that hike and I did not miss a thing. Great article!
Evergreen draws a lot of people to the area to visit and to live. It has stunning views and it is so easy to get to many other incredible places close by, and you’re only about 45 minutes to 1 hour from Downtown Denver.
I love visiting the area and I would love to hike every trail there but I want to see other places in Colorado also, so I will have to pace myself and spread my visits out to other areas.
Thank you for stopping by and commenting.
Rick