1) Mud Lake, Boulder County Parks & Open Space, Nederland, CO, January 8, 2026 - For our first hike of the new year we met up with our friend Holly and her pup Mikyo. We met up at the back entrance to the Mud Lake Open Space, on County Road 128W, and did both the Kinnickinnick Loop and Tungsteen Loop. We were in the midst of a snow storm with about 4 inches of fresh powder on the ground and more falling while we were hiking which gave us a cold but beautiful snow covered forest to enjoy. The weather also kept other hikers off the trail so we only saw a couple of other people. A nice way to start off our 2026 hikes! A 2.3 mile loop with 250 feet of elevation gain.
2) Eagle Wind Trail, Ron Stewart Preserve at Rabbit Mountain, Boulder County Parks & Open Space, Lyons, CO, January 9, 2026 - We traded the fresh snow in the mountains for the dry hills down below for our second hike of the year. For this one we met up with Todd and Janeth at Rabbit Mountain Open Space to hike the Eagle Wind Loop trail. There were a few patches of snow but the ground was mostly dry. The temperature was hovering just below of freezing but thankfully there wasn't much wind and there was a little sun so the weather wasn't too bad for hiking. The views onto the Front Range was fantastic with the snow-covered mountains peeking in and out of some low lying clouds. We watched a hawk hunting in the grasslands and saw a few other hikers but mainly enjoyed a quiet trail. A 4 mile loop with 350 feet of elevation gain.
3) Canyon Loop, Betasso Preserve, Boulder County Open Space, Boulder, CO, January 15, 2026 - After running errands down in Boulder, Jonna and Alan stopped by Betasso Preserve on the way back up the canyon to hike the main Canyon Loop. It was a beautiful day - warm and sunny - which is usually a good thing but given how little snow we've had this winter and how dry the ground is turned out to be a sad thing. Nonetheless, we had nice views from the high points on the trail looking down onto Boulder and got to see a family of deer nibbling the dry grasses. A nice place for a quick leg stretcher and on Wednesday there it is pedestrian and equestrian only so we didn't have to dodge mountain bikes. A 3.4 mile loop with 400 feet of elevation gain.
4) Homestead, Mesa, Upper Big Bluestem and Big Bluestem West Trails, South Mesa Trailhead, Boulder Open Space & Mountain Parks, Boulder, CO, January 18, 2026 - Our first hike of the year with our friend Desiree was on a beautiful Sunday afternoon with wind-swept clouds floating through a deep blue sky. The trails were, unfortunately, completely dry and hillsides were covered with tinder dry grass. We started at our traditional spot, the South Mesa Trailhead, and did a big loops going out on Homestead and Mesa trails before circling back on Upper Big Bluestem and Big Bluestem trails. The highlight of the hike was seeing an Abert's Squirrel with its big tasseled ears and long fluffy tail. We timed it perfectly so that we ended the hike exactly as the sun set behind the foothills. A 4.8 mile loop with 800 feet of elevation gain.
5) Lookout, Hobbit 4, Hobbit 3 and Observatory Trails, West Magnolia trail system, Nederland, CO, January 30, 2026 - Jonna and Alan took a break from tasks around the house for a quick Friday afternoon. We headed to the nearby West Magnolia trail system where we started from the Lookout Trail trailhead. After hiking up to the lookout we discovered a new trail, named Hobbit 4, had been built that circled around the YMCA camp and then connected to the old Hobbit 3 trail just south of the West Mag campground. Made a loop by connecting the Lookout, Hobbit 4, Hobbit 3 and Observatory trails. Despite a few small snow falls the warm, sunny weather has melted out most of the snow so at most we only had to deal with ankle deep snow in the forests but hiked on dry trail in the more open areas. We did pick up some trash along the way so the lack of snow at least allowed us to do a little clean-up in the campground area. A 3 mile loop with 400 feet of elevation gain.
If you enjoyed these you may also enjoy checking out some photos from our 2025 hikes.
