Day Hiking

Day Hiking Areas

• Columbine RD

  Columbine Ranger District

• Animas River (675)
• Burnt Timber (677)
• Cascade Creek (510)
• Cave Basin (530)
• Chris Park / Haviland Lake System
• City Reservoir (542)
• Clear Creek (550)
• Coal Creek (677)
• Columbine Lake (509)
• Continental Divide NST (813)
• Corral Draw (521)
• Crater Lake (623)
• Deer Creek (678)
• Divide Lakes (539)
• Dry Fork (616)
• Dutch Creek (516)
• East Creek (535)
• Elbert Creek (512)
• Elk Creek / Colorado (503)
• Endlich Mesa (534)
• Engine Creek (657)
• Engineer Mountain (508)
• First Fork (727)
• Flint Creek (527)
• Goulding Creek (517)
• Granite Lake (540)
• Graysill (506)
• Haflin Creek (557)
• Hermosa Creek (514)
• Hermosa Creek Special Management Area
• Highland Mary Lakes (606)
• Highline Loop / Colorado (520)
• Hoffheins Connection (611)
• Ice Lake (505)
• Johnson Creek (821)
• Jones Creek (518)
• Junction Creek/ Colorado (553)
• Lake Eileen (899)
• Lake Fork (528)
• Lime Mesa (676)
• Little Elk Creek (515)
• Logchutes System
• Lower Endlich Mesa (534)
• Missionary Ridge (543)
• Molas / Colorado (665)
• Needle Creek (504)
• North Canyon (656)
• Pass Creek (500)
• Pine River (523)
• Pine River Trailhead
• Pine-Piedra (524)
• Pinkerton-Flagstaff (522)
• Purgatory / Purg Flats (511)
• Red Creek (726)
• Rico-Silverton/ Colorado (507)
• Rincon La Osa (525)
• Rincon La Vaca (714)
• Rock Creek (655)
• Salt Creek (559)
• Shearer Creek (558)
• Sierra Vandera (524)
• Sliderock/ Colorado (622)
• Snowslide (653)
• Spud Lake (661)
• Stevens Creek (728)
• Stump Lake (662)
• Twin Sisters/ Colorado (555)
• Vallecito (529)
• Wagon (532)
• West Lime Creek (679)
• Whitehead (674)
• Youngs Canyon (546)
• Dolores RD

  Dolores Ranger District

• Bear Creek (607)
• Blackhawk (501)
• Boggy Draw (199)
• Boggy Draw Trail System (188)
• Box Canyon (617)
• Burnett Creek (641)
• Burro Bridge (649)
• Calico, Upper (208)
• Can Do (210)
• Chicken Creek (615)
• Cross Mountain (637)
• Cross Mountain Trailhead
• Dolph Kuss (186)
• Eagle Peak (629)
• East Fall Creek (646)
• East Fork (638)
• East Twin Springs (741)
• Fish Creek (647)
• Geyser Spring (648)
• Goble (740)
• Gold Run (618)
• Grindstone (608)
• Grindstone Loop (658)
• Groundhog Creek (650)
• Groundhog Stock Dr. (634)
• Hamlin (188)
• Horse Creek (626)
• Italian Canyon (196)
• Johnny Bull (639)
• Kilpacker (203)
• Little Bean Canyon (198)
• Little Bear (609)
• Little Taylor (205)
• Loading Pen (738)
• Lower Ryman (734)
• Maverick (197)
• Mavreeso (204)
• McPhee Overlook (155)
• Mcjunkin (190)
• Morrison (610)
• Muleshoe Loop (176)
• Navajo Lake (635)
• Owens Basin (746)
• Priest Gulch and Lower Calico (645 & 208)
• Rim (613)
• Rio Lado (736)
• Rough Canyon (435)
• Sage Hen Loop (153)
• Salt Creek - Lower (733)
• School House (660)
• Section House (200)
• Sharkstooth (620)
• Spring Creek (627)
• Stoner Creek
• Stoner Mesa and Stoner Creek
• Tender Foot
• West Fall Creek
• West Mancos (621)
• West Twin Springs
• Wildcat
• Winter
• Pagosa RD

  Pagosa Ranger District

• Anderson (579)
• Baldy Mountain (536)
• Beaver Creek (560)
• Beaver Lakes (604)
• Blanco River (573)
• Buckles Lake (688)
• Buckles Lake Trailhead
• Cimarrona (586)
• Coal Creek (581)
• Coal Creek Trailhead
• Cold Water (597)
• Coldwater Stock Drive (598)
• Coyote Hill (314)
• Crater Lake (562)
• Devil Creek (603)
• Devil Mountain (600)
• Devils Hole (707)
• Dudley (601)
• East Fork Weminuche (659)
• Falls Creek (673)
• First Fork (538)
• First Fork Trailhead
• Fish Creek (575)
• Fish Creek Trailhead
• Fish Lake (574)
• Fourmile (569)
• Fourmile Trailhead
• Hossick (585)
• Hossick Lake (602)
• Indian Creek (588)
• Jackson Mountain Trailhead
• Leche Creek (576)
• Leche Creek Trailhead
• Little Blanco (572)
• Little Sand (591)
• Lower Weminuche (595)
• Middle Fork (589)
• Middle Fork Traihead
• Middle Mountain (654)
• Navajo Peak (577)
• North Ridge (594)
• Opal Lake (564)
• Opal Lake Trailhead
• Palisade Meadows (651)
• Piedra Area
• Piedra Falls (671)
• Piedra Falls Trailhead
• Piedra River (596)
• Piedra Stock (583)
• Poison Park Trailhead
• Quartz Creek (571)
• Quartz Lake (568)
• Quartz Ridge (570)
• Sand Creek (593)
• Sand Creek Trailhead
• Shaw Creek (584)
• Sheep Creek (599)
• Sheep Creek Trailhead
• Silver Creek (567)
• Snow Springs (605)
• Treasure Mountain (565)
• Turkey Creek (580)
• Turkey Springs Trailhead
• Upper Fourmile (687)
• V Rock (578)
• Weminuche (592)
• West Fork (561)
• West Fork Trailhead
• Williams Creek (587)
• Williams Creek Trailhead
• Williams Fork Lake (664)
• Windy Pass (566)
• Wilderness areas

  One of our nation's greatest treasures is the National Wilderness Preservation System established by the Wilderness Act of 1964 which gives Congress the ability to designate a portion of our public lands as Wilderness areas.

  These special areas are lands to be protected and preserved in their natural condition, without permanent improvements or habitation. 

  "A wilderness, in contrast with those areas where man and his works dominate the landscape, is hereby recognized as an area where the earth and its community of life are untrammeled by man, where man himself is a visitor who does not remain."  - The Wilderness Act of 1964

   

  Why are Wilderness Areas Important?

  Wilderness provides so much more than a place for humans to camp, hike, hunt or fish. The benefits of wilderness are numerous, including, but not limited to: 

  • Clearn air: Protects some of the cleanest airsheds in the nation
  • Clean water:  Protects watersheds that provide drinking water to millions of people
  • Healthy wildlife: Protects wildlife's natural habitat allowing them to thrive

  To learn more, visit the Forest Service Wilderness homepage.

   

  Wilderness Regulations

  Please review all Wilderness-Specific Regulations before you visit. Always use Leave No Trace techniques to help keep these areas wild, clean, and pristine.

  Keep in mind that all motorized and mechanized (i.e. bikes) vehicles and equipment are not allowed in Wilderness areas. Additional regulations include, but are not limited to:

  • Group size is limited to 15 people.
  • Combination of people and stock = 25.
  • Dogs under control.
  • No unattended campfires.
  • Camping is not allowed within 100 feet of any water source.
  • Outfitter-guides who receive any form of compensation must obtain a special-use permit to operate on public land.
  • Possession of motorized equipment and mechanized means of transport are not permitted.
  • Please check trailhead signs or Forest Service Offices for site-specific camping, campfire, and livestock regulations.
  • Do not fly drones over congressionally designated wilderness areas or primitive areas as many people seek these places for the opportunities for solitude and quiet that they provide.
  • Practice leave no trace ethics.

   

  San Juan National Forest Wilderness Areas

  • Weminuche Wilderness
  • South San Juan Wilderness
  • Lizard head Wilderness
  • Hermosa Wilderness
• Hermosa Wilderness
• Lizard Head Wilderness: San Juan
• South San Juan Wilderness: San Juan
• Weminuche Wilderness