Castlewood Canyon State Park

From the Castlewood Canyon rim

Nestled along the front range in central Colorado is Castlewood Canyon State Park.  The ridgetop portion of the park includes picnic sites, mountain views and hiking trails, while the lower canyon section of the park features historic sites, hiking trails and more picnic areas.  While no overnight camping is allowed in the park, the day use area includes 100 miles of trails.

View of the Highway 83 bridge from the gazebo

Cherry Creek

Near the old lake that formed above the dam

In the historic sites area are the ruins of a stone walled pioneer home, and the Castlewood Canyon dam. This dam burst during abnormally heavy rains in 1933, sending a 15 foot high wall of water flooding through Denver.  Today there are trails to both sites.  Please stay off the dam and watch for snakes.
We used to live in Castle Rock and visited the park often.  It is Cherry Creek that runs through the park.  For a bit of history, Denver was originally built at the confluence of Cherry Creek and the Platte River. The REI store is located there now and you can hike to Denver (with some road walks) along various trails all the way from the Castlewood Canyon park.  I bicycled that route some time ago.
Reaching the park is easy from the Denver area.  Go south on I-25 and take exit 182 onto State Highway 86.  Go east on 86 to Franktown.  Turn south on State Highway 83.  The park entrance is on the right in about 5 miles.