Coal Creek Trail

Okay, recreational trails in Colorado are great for year round activity. But the Coal Creek Trail in Louisville, Superior, and Lafayette, Colorado seems especially well suited to four seasons of adventure. In summer, many portions of the multi-use path are shady. In the winter, there are very few days where you can't hike, bike, run, ride horses, walk your dog, snowshoe, or cross-country ski on the Coal Creek path. In fact most of the pictures featured on this trail web page were taken during the end of November and, as you can see, it was a great day for a bike ride, a nature walk, or an equestrian trek.

Although this family trail is only 6.2 miles long, it makes a great 12.4 out and back bike excursion. I recommend starting at the Old Town Superior Trailhead near the Superior City Hall, just off McCaslin Boulevard, south of highway 36. This trailhead usually has ample parking and also has some great little diversions like an old homestead from Superior's mining days replete with an open-air jail cell. There's also a shopping area nearby with plenty of restaurants, a grocery store, and a couple playgrounds for the kids.

If you decide to take your dog with you (okay on a leash) you could stop at the halfway point at the Louisville dog park in the Louisville Community Park. There's also a playground here as well as Bocce Ball courts, a basketball court, and a covered pavilion. Not far from the Louisville Community Park and just a little ways down Main Street is Old Town Louisville. It's a great place to stop for breakfast, lunch, dinner, gelato, or some other snack. On Saturdays, there's an awesome Farmers Market. During the summer, there's often live entertainment in the Louisville Community Park or in Old Town Louisville in the Steinbaugh Pavilion.

Due to its fairly level grade and dirt/gravel trail surface, this path will remind you of a rail-trail, even though it's not officially classified as one. If you plan on bike riding, you would probably do best with a mountain bike, although a hybrid bike or recumbent bike would work well also. A road bike isn't recommended, but plenty of people ride their road bikes on this trail. On one portion of the trail, a mountain bike trail runs parallel to the main path.

The Coal Creek Trail is short, but sweet. In general, it is a year-round trail and is a gem in the Colorado trail system.