Matthews/Winters Park, Golden

Good place to hike near Denver. A variety of trail options as to length and challenge level. Views of Red Rocks from trails on the south side are beautiful and good ones of Denver from trails at the top. Higher trails are a bit rockier and can be a challenge after snow…watch out for ice. Watch out for rattlers on hot days. It gets crowded during summer season and on the weekends so hike there during the week and off season for the least amount of hassle when parking. Overall a good place to run, walk or hike.

Out of town runner - other than the altitude adjustment - this was fantastic! There are restrooms and maps at the start. A few different trails and loops to take different routes. I started at 6:30 on a weekday. It wasn’t crowded but it wasn’t empty either - a fair amount of small groups of walkers or runners. I recommend taking a picture of the map because while trails are labeled, some intersect multiple times. I missed the turn I wanted to take. :)