Golden Gate Canyon — Black Bear Trail, Horseshoe Trail and Mule Deer Trail Loop

By signing up for this hike you acknowledge that hiking includes inherent risks. You also agree that you participate at your own risk and are solely responsible for your safety and that it is solely your own decision as to whether you can hike safely, considering the trail conditions, the weather and all other factors.

NOTE: The meeting spot is not at the address 92 Crawford Gulch Rd. The meeting spot is 1/5 mile northeast of this address, where the pin is on the location map below.

Meeting Place: Black Bear Trailhead. The trailhead is about 1/5 mile northeast of the Golden Gate Canyon Park Visitor Center on Crawford Gulch Road. The Visitor Center is located at the intersection of Golden Gate Canyon Road (Highway 46) and Crawford Gulch Road. The address of the Visitor Center is 92 Crawford Gulch Rd, Golden, CO 80403. Again, the meeting spot is not at this address, but is about 1/5 mile northeast in the parking lot by the road. Alltrails indicates restrooms are available in the Visitor Center.

This hike is about 5 miles with 1,250 feet of elevation gain. It is a loop. For navigation during the hike, if you have the Alltrails app, you can download the route from the Alltrails link below and use it offline, in case cell coverage is not available during the hike. From the parking area, it follows Black Bear Trail until it intersects Mule Deer Trail, about 2.5 miles. The route takes a right on Mule Deer, going west, and follows Mule Deer for about 1/2 mile. It then takes a right on Horseshoe Trail and takes Horseshoe until it connects with Black Bear. It goes left on Black Bear and back to the parking area.

Web site for Golden Gate Canyon State Park: https://cpw.state.co.us/state-parks/golden-gate-canyon-state-park

Here is a link to the route in Alltrails: https://www.alltrails.com/trail/us/colorado/black-bear-trail-horseshoe-trail-and-mule-deer-trail-loop