Prairie view from Towhee Loop, Soapstone Prairie
Staying on Towhee, it’s a mile descent through another pleasant valley, one with pinkish cliffs of the soapstone that gives this open space its name. As you near the parking lot the trail becomes pavement and branches right to Lindenmeier Overlook. Take it and brace yourself—not for a stunning view but for a stimulated imagination.
In 1924, A. Lynn Coffin and his dad were searching for arrowheads on this portion of what was then the Lindenmeier Ranch. They found some fluted points in the side of a dry streambed that didn’t match the others in their collection. It wasn’t until two years later, when similar points were found near Folsom, New Mexico, that their significance began to emerge. The area below the overlook was excavated by the Smithsonian in the 1930s; it is the largest and most complex Folsom Culture site yet found. At the time it shook up prevailing archaeological thinking, which held that humans crossed into North America in about 2000 BC. This site revealed bones of giant bison that were long extinct by then, along with a manmade spearpoint imbedded in one of those bison’s vertebrae—proof that humans coexisted with these creatures. Radiocarbon dating has since pegged Lindenmeier artifacts to about 9000 BC.
On the drive back to the entrance, look for modern bison grazing on the right. They were brought from Yellowstone in 2015. Six calves were born here in 2016 through a breeding program that used purged semen and in vitro methods, which ensured the offspring would be free of brucellosis and other diseases afflicting the Yellowstone herd.
From Denver. Take I-25 north about 78 miles to Exit 288, and turn left onto CR 82 (Buckeye Road). Proceed 5.8 miles and turn right onto North CR 15 (Terry Lake Road), a dirt road. Continue 1.1 miles and turn right to stay on North CR 15, now called Rawhide Flats Road. Continue 8 miles to the Soapstone Prairie entrance station and proceed to the large parking lot at North Trailhead. 1 hour, 50 mins.
3 Coyote Ridge
This all-ages, all-season walk outside Fort Collins takes you from prairie to ridgetop for excellent views of waves of earth rising from the plains. From the top, a forgotten valley to the west stirs the imagination.
At a Glance
| Difficulty | Distance/Time | 4 miles/2 hours | |
| Trail Conditions | Trailhead ElevationTotal Hiking Gain | 5,100 feet600 feet | |
| Children | Features | Prairie, hogback ridges, rock escarpment, plains and valley views | |
| Scenery | Best Season | Fall, winter, spring | |
| Photo | Other Users | Bikes, horses | |
| Solitude | Notes | No dogs, toilets at cabin along trail | |
| Property | Coyote Ridge Natural Area | Jurisdiction | City of Fort Collins Natural Areas |
On this hike, you get to “ride” three waves of earth as they build in height to arrive at a ridgetop with striking views of the transition zone from Great Plains to Rockies. About four miles round-trip, this walk delivers a lot for the footsteps and is a great excursion for kids who like to play king of the mountain. Just bring sunscreen and keep an eye out for snakes if you do some rock scrambling at the top.
From your vehicle, walk straight over the prairie toward the hills on Coyote Ridge Trail. After 0.5 miles, you’ll curve up into the hills to gain the low first ridge. Drop into the next fold of earth and continue to a cabin used for classes and events. All are welcome to enjoy its shady deck and enjoy the quarter-mile Hidden Clues activity trail in back.
Start of Coyote Ridge Trail
Ahead is a slot in the hogback ridge, a natural gateway guarded by two slanted rocky hills. The terrain is flowing and evocative here, like waves frozen in motion; these could be gigantic, rolling breakers good for surfing. To get an idea of how it looked millions of years ago, picture the eastern faces of these ridges rising way up into the sky to form a gigantic earthen dome, created when subterranean forces pushed ancient rock upward. Later, erosion washed away the softer stone to expose the hard-rock spines of these hogbacks.
Pass through the opening in the hills and veer left to hike beneath a line of crags. There are brambles here, but the dominant shrub is mountain mahogany, popular winter chewing for the local mule deer. In spring, look for the little yellow flowers of Bell’s twinpod, a plant native only to Boulder and Larimer counties.
The wide rocky trail makes two sweeping switchbacks to gain the top of the third wave: Coyote Ridge. Miles of ridgetop cliffs stretch in two directions to create a gorgeous effect; they also provide secluded nesting sites for raptors and bats. To the east, the trailhead and the highway appear farther away than they really are. To the south, you’ll see the city of Loveland with its monumental white silo, formerly used to store molasses. More than half a million gallons of the sticky stuff spilled there in 1990, covering two city blocks.
Scrambling to the high point of Coyote Ridge
West lies a storybook valley beneath higher hills. A creek cuts through the basin amid a scattering of lonely farmhouses, a scene that looks like an American West landscape painting. Native Americans hunted deer in this valley and collected wild plums and chokecherries before settlers arrived in the late 1800s and put it under heavy cultivation. Ranchers farmed dryland grain, pastured horses, planted cherry and apple orchards, and ran turkeys here. Though the valley looks nearly abandoned now, a rail spur once ran from Fort Collins to busy sandstone quarries on the opposite ridge. The railbed is still visible if you go down into the valley.
Coyote Ridge
At the ridge crest, you might sense a promontory a little higher and to the north. And you’d be right. A side path leads to a small escarpment and some unsanctioned, but popular, scrambling routes.
The ridgetop is a fine turnaround point but hardly the trail’s end. You can continue south for a quarter mile and then descend into the valley, where the trail enters Rimrock Open Space. From there, paths branch both north and south to connect with Horsetooth Mountain and Devil’s Backbone Open Spaces, respectively. No shortage of miles here! But for younger ones, and others, conquering Coyote Ridge is a fine and satisfying milestone for the day.
From Denver. Take I-25 north to Exit 257, then turn left onto US 34 west (Eisenhower Boulevard). After 7 miles turn right onto Wilson Avenue/Taft Hill Road (CR 19) and drive north 5.3 miles. Coyote Ridge Trailhead and its parking lot are on the left. 1 hour, 10 mins.
4 Horsetooth Rock
This popular hike outside Fort Collins scales a local landmark that has an interesting creation myth and delivers 360-degree views of plains and peaks.
At a Glance
| Difficulty | Distance/Time | 5 miles/2 hours | |
| Trail Conditions | Trailhead ElevationTotal Hiking Gain | 5,800 feet1,500 feet | |
| Children |