The Crags Trailhead
By Nate Van Noord (RO Staff)
Since our cold-season hours have changed at Routes, and we are closed on Mondays, I have been taking day trips from The Springs.
Both friends and folks online recommended a 5 mile hike called The Crags. It is also known for being a trailhead leading up to Pikes Peak. So, I made the 45 minute drive from Old Colorado City to the trailhead in Divide, just past Mueller State Park.
The trail meandered past aspen groves in the last stages of yellow, wound along 4 Mile Creek, and was well marked with signage.
The dictionary defines a ‘crag’ as a steep or rugged cliff or rock face - which fits this trail perfectly. The granite found throughout the area erodes horizontally into monumental slabs or vertically into colossal cusps.
At the top of The Crags.
It was 800 feet in elevation gain to the top, where I soaked in a view of the Catamount Reservoirs and the Rampart Range. All the twisted conifers shaped by the wind also caught my eye. On a Monday morning, there were only few other hikers at the summit.
On my way back home, I stopped at Hungry Bear in Woodland Park for a brunch of buckwheat pancakes. A favorite of locals and tourists alike, the diner has hundreds of teddy bears hanging from the walls.
I’ve been told The Crags is a good spot to snowshoe, so I will have to return this Winter.
