Directions:

From Denver, take I-25 north to I-76 east. Exit on E 152nd and head east. Turn right (south) on Picadilly Road and drive south until you reach the park entrance. Turn into the park and drive to the Nature Center. The trail starts by crossing the footbridge.

Hike Description:

Barr Lake State Park provides a wonderfully peaceful setting with some top notch boardwalks and wildlife viewing areas. The hiking is flat and easy and great for small children. While the Neidrach Nature Trail is the most popular hike in the park, there are a few others that all branch off of the Lake Loop (8.8 miles around).

If you head south and east along the Lake Loop, past the Neidrach Trail for a little less than a mile, you’ll reach the Fox Meadow Trail. Turn right onto the trail which takes you along the lake shore to a small wildlife blind. This part of the trail is peaceful but short lived. Once you return to the Lake Loop, continue for another ¼ mile to the Gazebo Boardwalk.

The Gazebo Boardwalk is a highlight of the park. The boardwalk zigs and zags through cottonwoods and along the lakeshore, wetlands, and rookery leading to the Gazebo. The Gazebo has binoculars and is a great vantage point for bird watching and relaxing.
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This park is beautiful any time of year, but the late fall might just be the most stunning. The yellow cottonwood trees are a bright contrast to the red and green grasses left by the receding lake waters. With the backdrop of the snow covered Front Range Mountains, the fall colors in this park provide a truly unique setting along the Front Range.