Dawson Butte Ranch Open Space

Dawson Butte overlooking the 5 mile loop trail

Dawson Butte Ranch Open Space is a 25 square mile plot of Douglas County open space land, just 7 miles south of Castle Rock.  The mostly forest-covered land was purchased to preserve the open space feel and provide recreation.  The loop trail runs 5 miles and is a favorite with area runners and bicyclists.  Horseback riders also enjoy the area and the 60 horse jumps placed along bridal paths.
The day we went was cold and we only saw a few other people on this usually popular trail.

Well marked, easy to follow trail

Bench by the trail

Open Space began in 1994, when it was voted in by the Douglas County residents as a way to preserve some of the quickly disappearing lands in the county.  As a past and present resident, I have enjoyed many of the county's open space lands.
The Dawson Butte Open Space Trail travels from trees to meadow and back to heavy tree cover, providing shade and peace.  A few benches are placed along the trail, with picnic tables at the start and at the halfway point.  The hike starts at the high elevation of around 6800 feet, drops over 2.5 miles to the lower elevation of just over 6500 feet, and climbs back almost 300 feet of elevation near Tomah Road to the trail head.  Front range views are nice, and the ever-present Dawson Butte looks over all here.  There are no trails (or access) to the top.  We all liked the hike, enjoying the sound of the wind in the trees, while listening to birds and watching the views.  At times you could smell the pines all around you.  It is a very different experience from the areas around Castle Rock, with so much timber.  I highly recommend this hike for all.  I would like to come back and snowshoe here this winter.

Meadow walk

Benches are available

The Stairway to Heaven, Manger Meadow, Tomah Meadow and Fenceline trails are bridal paths and include those 60 horse jumps.  A dirt road provides emergency access through the park.  There is no water, so bring your own.  A Port-a-let is available at the trail head.  Trail maps are available HERE.

Peaceful hiking trail

Indian Head view

To get to Dawson Butte Ranch Open Space, take I-25 south of Denver to Castle Rock.  Exit at mile 181, Plum Creek Parkway, turn right under the railroad overpass, then turn left to go south on the frontage road (on the west side of the Interstate).  Follow south to the right turn on Tomah Road.  Watch for trains at the railroad crossing!  Follow Tomah Road up the hill, turning right into the trail head.  Park here and hike.  

Hiking at the MAC

The MAC from the Purple Trail.  The Challenge Trail climbs to the top of the ridge

Today's hike was along the Purple Loop Trail at the MAC in Castle Rock.
This natural surface trail climbs quickly and provides views of Castle Rock and the new MAC site. This is the shortest of the 5 hiking/bicycling trails and it is interconnected to the Gold Loop Trail, the Red Loop Trail and the Green Loop Trail, all of which add up to over 8 miles of hilly hiking or bicycling.  This trail starts to the north of the site and is across the street from the Challenge Hill, a 200-step staircase similar in design to the Manitou Springs Incline. Challenge Hill also has the Blue Loop Trail which climbs to the top, in case you need a break from the steps.
The community park site includes a zip-line course and an adventure playground area.  The MAC is a world-class fitness facility with indoor and outdoor lighted synthetic surface fields, activity classes, a pool, classes of workout routines, a golf simulator and a trampoline.

Awesome new trail construction

Trail construction is recent and is done well with water bars and a downhill slanted trail bed for drainage.  Some sections are steep, so you need to watch your step and not slip-slide away.  A couple in front of us slipped into a trail side cactus on the loose gravel, so do be careful.

Mostly scrub cover, there is a little shade along the north side near the top of the ridge

The weather "is what it is" this week with the temperatures in the lower 60's for our hike.  The sky is perfectly clear and from one vantage point, we could clearly see a sliver of mountains over 70 miles away.  Usually December is colder here, but we will take the clear, warm weather.  Our sea-level lungs are still adapting to the altitude, and we stopped to catch our breath a couple times.

The trail markers are colored per trail, this one showing the Purple Trail loop junction

The trail is shared with mountain bikers, and it has that straight-up/straight-down feeling of most off-road bicycle trails in Colorado.  Other than seeing that other couple, we had the trail and the views to ourselves for our peaceful walk.
Future plans call for connecting these trails to the Ridgeline Open Space and the Stuart Trail network to the west.

View of the ball fields (to the right of the first photo) and the towers for the upcoming zip lines

These trails are located at the new Phillip Miller Recreation center (or MAC for Miller Activity Complex) at 1375 West Plum Creek Parkway.  Parking and hiking are free.  You can access the center off Interstate 25 at Plum Creek Parkway.  Go uphill (west) and the MAC is that massive field house on the left.

Trail Head shows you the way back to the MAC.  I love these signs!

Big South Fork National River & Recreation Area

I grew up on land drained by the Cumberland River in Kentucky and in a family who pioneered the area.  I found camping there to be like going home to land that was an old friend.

Bandy Creek Campground

Big South Fork NRRA is west of I-75, north of Knoxville, and just west of Oneida, TN.  The National Park covers 125,000 acres of mostly wild land and reaches north into southeastern Kentucky.  The area is full of sandstone ridges and bluffs and has a few high arches (surprise!) and deep gorges.  The wild South Fork of the Cumberland River flows through here and the area supports a wide diversity of biology.  The area has seen human occupation over the past 10,000 years by groups as diverse as paleo-indians to coal miners.
Civil War history gets personal here, where some of the bizarre stories and hardships will make your skin crawl.  Julia Marcum, wounded by confederate soldiers is the only woman in the US to receive a pension for active Civil War duty.  The community names of Troublesome, Difficulty and No Business tell how difficult life was here in the 1800's.

A stream along a hiking trail

The park supports RVcamping with 96 sites with water & electric at Bandy Creek. The Park also great for tent camping from your car (181 total sites), backpacking, hiking, mountain bicycling, and extensive white water kayaking.  The Blue Heron Camping area offers 45 tent sites and costs $17 nightly.
The Blue Heron mine, operated by the Stearns Coal & Lumber Company, brought heavy industry to the area.  When it closed in 1962, most of the buildings were removed.  The "Ghost Structures" you now see in this part of the park are a new interpretation tool to get a better understanding of the area and time.  Look in the Ghost Structures for the life-sized photo of the Blue Heron Quartet gospel singing group from nearby Stearns, KY, singing into the WSFC microphone.  That was my father's radio station in Somerset, Ky.  While there, do enjoy the Big South Fork Scenic Railway trip into the Blue Heron portion of Park.
For a Park map, CLICK HERE.
For camping, the park has 3 campgrounds, two with hot water showers (thanks Army Corps of Engineers) and one primitive campsite at Alum Ford.  We stayed at Bandy Creek.  Camping runs $19 a night for tents, $22 a night for RV's.  Do check the website for current pricing.
The Park also offers Charit Creek Lodge, a hike-in-only (or bicycle or horseback) lodge with food service, showers and overnight accommodations.  This would be similar to staying at the Mount LeConte Lodge in the Great Smokey Mountains National Park.

Twin Arches

Hiking at Big South Fork is extensive, and includes more trails than are mentioned in the state websites.  The Park Service link above includes 9 downloadable trail maps to sample the area.  I really liked hiking the trails to the Twin Arches and remember my wife's surprise and amazement when she first saw them.  7 other arches have hiking trails or road access to them.  It is much like a small version of Arches National Park with trees.  The John Muir National Recreation Trail has a section you can backpack that runs through the park along with other trails that could add up to a week-long backpacking trip.  There are also some remains of old farms you can tour along hiking trails.
Mountain Biking is supported by several trails, many built by the Big South Fork Mountain Bike Club in tandem with the Park Service.

Ride your bike to a scenic overlook

There is also horseback riding with some tack available at Bandy Creek.  There are no other stores inside the park, plan on carrying everything in except firewood. Bringing in outside firewood is prevented due to Park efforts in controlling beetle infestation.
There are also many things to do just outside the Park including a visit to historic Rugby, a drive across Yamacraw, Brewster and Peters Bridges, and trips to Devils Jump, Yahoo Falls, Split Bow Arch and the East Rim Overlooks.  Stores, hotels and restaurants are available in and around Oneida.
My suggestion is to plan several days here, bring your mountain bikes, kayaks and hiking gear and have a great time enjoying the sunsets from your camp site.  The Big South Fork offers more varied recreation opportunities than many other National Parks in the country.
To get there, from I-75 north of Knoxville, take exit 141 onto TN 63 and go west to US 27, then north toward Oneida.  At Oneida, turn left at the first traffic light onto highway 297 west.  Drive about 15 miles and cross the South Fork of the Cumberland River at Leatherwood Ford to reach the Bandy Creek Campground.  Caution, the roads near the Park are steep!