28 May 2008
Daniels Pass
Posted by kris under: Trails .
Name of Trial: Daniels Pass
Total Distance: 3-4 miles
Difficulty: Moderate
Hike Type: Out and back
Starting Location: About 2 miles up N. Cheyenne Canon Road on the left side (south).
We took W. Cheyenne Blvd and turned right on N. Cheyenne Canon Rd and took it for about 2 miles where we found some parking on the right side. The trail was across the road and about 20 feet down from the small parking area (the lat and long values are N38 47 21 W104 53 43). There is not an obvious starting place for the trail and since there is not a bridge over the creek we had to cross it on foot so it was a good thing that the water was not very high. Once we cross the creek, we found the trail and it started going up the side of the mountain. It was a dirt trail that started out steep and had some gravely sections. There are some nice views along the way and it was a nice hike through the forest. After about a mile we reach the top of first hill and came to a four way intersection.
The left trail leads to a rocking overlook about .3 mile away. The trail is about the same condition as the first part with some steep section and gravelly areas. The overlook gave us a great view of Golden Camp Rd and the mountains around that as well as the view of the city of Colorado Springs. The right trail leads to Mt. Muscoco summit, which we did not go to and the trail straight ahead lead to the Greenwood’s Settlement which is an early town that was abandoned a while back. This trail is not very well defined but we followed the dried-up creek bed for about .2 mile and then head to the right at about a 45 degree angle until we saw some abandoned buildings that were fun to walk around (around N38 47.372 W104 53.731). I also found out that a banker named Fred Smith was the one that started Greenwood Village. It is interesting to see a little bit of the history of Colorado Springs and Greenwood Village is a big part of that history.
Instead of walking all the way back to the four way intersection we went about half way back and then went to the right to anther great rocky overlook. I was able to get some more great pictures. Once we were done with this we head back to the intersection and eventually back to N. Cheyenne Canon Rd.
The tail was not very well defined in places, but the great things that we saw and the history that we get to experience first hand, made finding the tail worth while. It is another example of a great hike in Colorado.
To see the pictures that I took while on this hike, visit my Photo Gallery.
