We headed east of Castle Rock to Castlewood Canyon State Park, near Franktown, a very small town with a population of about 500 people and several hundred horses on horse farms scattered over the hillsides.
We started our adventure by walking out to the overlook looking eastward to the other side of the canyon. Notice how lush and green everything is.
Paul is admiring the view. Paul is wearing long pants and a long sleeved shirt since the weather has turned cooler.
We located the Inner Canyon Trail which took us down into the canyon. The canyon floor was full of growth and lots of large rocks.
Once we got to the bottom of the canyon, we were able to walk along the canyon floor. We admired these stunning views of the overhanging rocky sides of the canyon.
The canyon floor was littered with large rocks and a small flowing stream. We looked closely but were unable to find any fish swimming in the crystal clear water.
Paul stands alongside one of the large boulders along the trail.
Paul climbed up to the top of some boulders to admire the view.
The north end of the canyon was full of Ponderosa Pine trees.
As we hiked out of the canyon floor on what was now the Lake Gulch Trail, we saw several new flowers. First, Showy Milkweed,
Designated Noxious Weed,
Cooper Mallow, sometimes called Cowboy's Delight,
Mariposa Lily,
and Common Mouse Ear.
The ground around the top of the canyon was extremely rocky. We saw this gnarled tree which if found on a beach may have been called driftwood.
One of the more intriguing observations on this hike was some boulders which looked like they were comprised of molten lava with many smaller rocks trapped as the lava hardened. Notice the rocks in the boulder on the left. The other boulders in this photo were all smooth.
The drive to Castlewood Canyon State Park was well worth it. We had a nice cool day to hike down into the canyon and observe Mother Nature's artwork at its best.
We decided to look for a hike with some shade, since it was supposed to be a hot day with temperatures in the low 90's. A colleague recommended two short hikes in Colorado Springs, but he did not warn us of the up and down nature of these trails.
We drove to Colorado Springs and then up a very narrow North Cheyenne Canyon Road. We stopped along our way to take the next photo. Notice how steep the canyon walls are.
Our first short hike was at Helen Hunt Falls. The Falls is named for Helen Hunt Jackson, author and social activist. In around 1870, she moved to Colorado Springs from Massachusetts, seeking a cure for her
respiratory condition. She began writing about her new
home's mountainous landscapes that fascinated readers living back east.
Jackson often hiked in Cheyenne Canyon for inspiration. The Falls was named for her as a tribute to her efforts to encourage citizens of Colorado Springs to buy North Cheyenne Canyon in 1885 shortly before her death.
Unlike many hikes where you hike to a waterfalls, this hike begins at the Falls. Paul was getting the cool water mist on his back while this photo was taken.
This is the view we saw looking down from the bridge above the Falls. We noticed the loud roar of the water as it flowed down the Falls.
Once we climbed to the top of the trail we were rewarded with these views. Cheyenne Canyon opens up with a view to the east and the city of Colorado Springs in the distance.
This is a view of Cheyenne Creek going down the mountain to the Falls. The water comes from snow melt and rain water from above.
This view gives you an idea of what the trail was like - up and down. This is actually a wider portion of the trail. The steps at the bottom are cut into the rock and the top steps are made from railroad type timbers. Notice the steepness of these steps.
Here is one of the more narrow and steeper portions of the trail. The majority of our hike was up and down steps like those pictured. There was minimal hiking along a level or near level path. Consequently, we hiked up 400 ft. in about a 1/3 of a mile.
We next headed to the Mount Cutler Trail in the same canyon. This trail goes about a mile up almost to the top of Mount Cutler with an elevation gain of another 400 ft. This trail was a more gradual climb with no staircase type steps.
This tree was still alive even though its root system is mostly exposed from many years of snows melting and rain washing the soil away. Do these tree roots give you the impression of an octopus?
We did see one new flower on this hike. These are Many Flowered Puccoon flowers.
Nearing the top of the mountain, we were rewarded with views like this one. It is easy to see why these mountains were named the Rockies.
Looking back towards Colorado Springs you can see the South Suburban Reservoir, one of two main reservoirs for the city.
This is the view looking almost straight down to the North Cheyenne Canyon Road from the trail above.
Often times along this hike there were overhanging rocks like these above the trail.
Near the end of the trail, you can see just how narrow the trail is, maybe 2 ft. wide at most. The trail drops off steeply with no guard rail of any kind.
We couldn't resist a few more photos taken from North Cheyenne Canyon Road. The steepness of the rock canyon walls gives you the impression you are nearly surrounded. You can almost imagine Indians up above watching the settlers as they moved through these canyons.
The beginnings of the rain storms peaking over the tree tops.
The rain storms came later that afternoon and into the evening. We were rewarded with this beautiful rainbow, over top the trailer in the next campsite, while we were eating dinner. The colors of the rainbow were very vivid.
Although we hiked less than 3 miles, we experienced an elevation gain (and loss) of over 800 feet. Hiking up is a great cardio workout but while hiking down, you have to watch your step so as not to slip on the loose dirt and rocks on the trail.
