North Cheyenne Canon Park Hiking Guide

Written By: Brandon Renbaum

6/7/22

Park Overview

North Cheyenne Canon Park is the gem of hiking within the city of Colorado Springs. It’s rare to be this close to rugged mountainous terrain and be so close to a medium sized city. The park is off the Tejon Street exit on 1-25 and continues on N Cheyenne Canyon Road. You will see the road eventually forking right through some gates and into the park. You are greeted with a beautiful drive through a canyon and will immediately notice pullofs for all kinds of trails. I’m here to tell you what trails are worth hiking.

Trails Worth Hiking

I. Mt. Cutler & Muscoco

Mt. Cutler is a short (1.7 miles), yet iconic hike within this park. It’s great for all skill levels, but is a nice break in hike for beginners and those who are visiting from out of town. The parking lot is located on the left within about eight minutes of driving. You will see a sign at the trail head that reads “Mt. Cutler & Muscoco.” You can find a parking spot rather easily during the week, but on weekends you need to get there no later than 8-9am.

The first half of the trail is mostly uphill, but not too arduous. There are several look out points that have great views of downtown Colorado Springs and the eastern plains. Keep hiking upwards until you see a fork towards the summit. At this point you have two options, go left and hike to the summit of Mt. Cutler or go right and hike up Mt. Muscoco. I recommend going left to see the summit of Mt. Cutler as it’s only about 10-15 minutes to the top. Along the way you will be rewarded with an eagle like perspective of Seven Falls below and gorgeous mountains all around it. Stop and take pictures here among the flat rock along the trail. The picture below is what it will look like if you take the Mt. Cutler route.

As you continue around this steep section of the trail it will continue upward and towards the summit. There are multiple lookout points up here, but continue snaking around to the left until you see a bench that commemorates a war veteran. This indicates you are now at the summit and you can walk around up here to see different perspectives of the park and the city of Colorado Springs. When you are finished taking pictures and enjoying the views, walk back down until you reach that fork towards the base of the summit.

Mt. Muscoco (4 mile out and back)

When you reach that fork, continue left up and around the ridge. You are now heading towards Mt. Muscoco, which is a more challenging hike, but do able if you have enough water and snacks to keep you hydrated. This section takes you through some amazing forested areas and even into patches of Aspen. You will be gaining some decent elevation and eventually have to scramble up and around a corner of the mountain, over a rock, and onto the trail to reach the summit. This is a nice workout and you will be rewarded with some of the best views in the park at the summit.

II. Mt. Kineo

Mt. Kineo is a 6.5 mile hike that only the locals know about. It’s pretty challenging as you gain a lot of elevation in a short period of time. You access it via The Seven Bridges trail, so you park at the top of North Cheyenne Canon Road. There is a big parking lot up there that has recently been paved. Head left from the parking lot and continue on the gravel trail until you reach the wooded section of the trail, where you should see a sign indicating trail 622A – Seven Bridges, Follow the signs into the woods and hike over small mountain streams and count seven bridges.

When you reach the seventh bridge stop and take a water break on the side. There is a nice creek here to load up on water if you have the right purification systems. Continue up and right, following the trail markers which seem to be little orange flags. You will encounter a step rock formation and won’t be sure whether to go left or right. Follow the trail markers up a steep rock slab or look for people coming down to guide you in the right direction. You are basically going to scramble up this rock face and around the mountain ridge. Once you complete this scramble you will now be on the side of a steep mountain face. A thin trail line will present itself along this ridge, follow it upwards and enjoy the scream to your left that flows to your side.

The video above is a nice look of where you should be at this point. You will now continue over some more steep mountain ridges and eventually enter an Aspen Grove. This is one of the highlights of the trail so take time to enjoy it. The aspen grove will eventually lead you to a steep push towards the base of a mountain. This is a hard up hill hike and you will eventually see a sign enclosed in glass indicating where certain trails are. From here take a sharp right towards a trail that is not marked. There should be a down tree you climb over and just continue upwards. This part gets many people confused, such as myself the first time I was looking for the trail. You can always ask a dirt biker or fellow hiker where Mt. Kineo is, but don’t bet on them knowing. Trust remember it is a sharp right at the base of the mountain and it is not marked anywhere.

Once you find the right trail just keep following it up through the tree line. It will get pretty vertical and test your cardiovascular health. You will enter a clearing towards the summit that has amazing views to the left, where you can see the top of Pikes Peak peaking through the other mountains. This is a great photo opportunity, head up and right afterwards. You will now be scaling the top of Mt. Kineo and see some obvious clearings to the top. Trust your instincts and keep scrambling upwards until you reach a bunch of rocks you need to climb over. Congrats, now you should be at the summit and realize that you are close to 10,000 feet above sea level and have an amazing view of the park and the city of Colorado Springs. Soak it all in because this trail is special and not many people traverse it.

III. Loud’s Cabin

Loud’s Cabin is a great follow up hike after Mt. Kineo if you have the energy. It’s another hidden gem that is mostly traversed by locals such as myself. You can find this trail by looking at the encased sign that has the exact number for the trail. At this enclosed sign head left and look for the cutt throat trout sign, the trail is right beside this sign. Continue right into the aspen grove and just follow the trail through this great section of North Cheyenne Canon Park. I used my all trails app to make sure I was headed in the right direction. The trail winds through some easy switchbacks in this lovely aspen grove until you eventually hit Loud’s Cabin, which is an old pioneer’s cabin with a large stone stove sticking out the top of it.

IV. Daniels Pass to Sweet Water Canyon

Danie’s Pass is a new trail added just this year for all to enjoy. The trailhead is about 3/4 up North Cheyenne Canon Road and you will see a new green bridge and trail markers when you reach the start of this trail. Follow the bridge over the creek and upwards through the timber.

The first half of the trail is an upward hike through a new section of the park that I have never seen before. There is quite a lot of loose gravel so be careful on the turns as you will most likely do some sliding on those switchbacks. This trail eventually intersects with other trails in the park, most notably Mt. Muscoco so you can follow the trail signs that way if you wish to summit Mt. Muscoco.

I recommend you follow the signs towards Sweet Water Canyon because this part of the park is new to the public. It traverses down a wooded canyon with great views here and there of North Cheyenne Mountain. You will probably encounter some bikers sharing this trail so be on alert for the sound of their tires. I have not followed this trail to the end yet so I can’t tell you exactly where it leads. However, I think it’s worth exploring as any new trail brings a sense of excitement and curiosity to the human spirit.

Concusion

North Cheyenne Canon is the best place to hike in Colorado Springs, minus Pikes Peak. There are dozens of trails in this park that are worth mentioning, but I tried to narrow the list down to local gems and hikes for all skill levels. I would avoid hiking Helen Hunt Falls as this is a tourist trap and really isn’t much of a hike. The real beauty of the park is past Helen Hunt Falls and away from the crowds. I also recommend walking along Gold Camp Road, exploring the many tunnels and great views that the park has to offer.

I hope you enjoyed this hiking guide and feel free to email me if you have any questions (brenbaum@gmail.com)

Check out my latest adventure: The Pikes Peak Cog Railway