Hell’s Hole Trail

This is a great hike not too far outside Denver. I found out about this trail thanks to my «60 hikes within 60 miles» book. An aside– I found that book in Barnes and Noble and impulsively decided to buy it. It’s been a fabulous purchase! Some of you CO natives are probably rolling your eyes at me, but I’ve found a ton of lesser known hikes (as well as some very common ones) thanks to this book– the most recent of which being Hell’s Hole.
Hell’s Hole trail leads into Mt. Evans Wilderness about 30 min into the hike. About 20 minutes prior to this, there’s a little stand where you must self register for a wilderness permit. There is no fee for this, it’s basically just a way for the park service to keep track of info. The trailhead is off CO-​103 on a pretty obscure road, West Chicago Creek. It gets pretty sketchy towards the end (very narrow road winding up a steep mountain with no guardrails… as long as I live here I’ll never understand CO’s aversion to guardrails in places like this) but it’s well worth it. There’s a campground near the trail head as well.
The hike itself is a great workout with shade in the beginning and gorgeous views towards the end. Horses and dogs are welcome on the trail; mountain bikes are not permitted. The book I have estimated the total hike time to be 4.5 hours but I was pleasantly surprised to discover it only took me 3 hours, including a 30 min break at the turn around point and a couple photo/​water opps. Obviously the hike time will vary for everyone; I guess the important thing to know is that it’s 9 miles round trip. Though the hike is relatively long, it’s not incredibly difficult. There are definitely some fairly steep portions, but a lot of it is at a relatively gentle incline. It seems like a fairly lightly used trail– in the whole 3 hours I ran into about 3 other couples. It was really nice to enjoy the solitude, but also somewhat reassuring to know there were people somewhat nearby– if you’re hiking alone, like I was, it’s always good to be aware!
The trail ends in an open field with a creek nearby. It’s around the treeline and you can see a couple fourteeners towering over you in this beautiful post-​glacier valley. Definitely an ideal picnic spot! This trail is out-​and-​back, so once you’ve had enough of the scenery, it’s time to pack it in and do it all over again!