Mountain Lion Trail is a 6.9 mile heavily trafficked loop trail located near Golden, Colorado that features beautiful wild flowers and is rated as moderate. The trail offers a number of activity options and is best used from April until November. Dogs are also able to use this trail but must be kept on leash.
Golden Gate Canyon State Park charges a fee to enter. Entrance fees are $10/vehicle or $4/person for any non-vehicle entry. An annual pass is also available for $80.
At the trail head parking lot, there is an outhouse and trash bins. You'll need a day pass for the park.
March 2, 2021Absolutely needed spikes today. Some of the bridges were pure ice. It was incredible to cross over and see the views. We went counterclockwise.
March 2, 2021Spikes were a must. All bridges were flooded with water that froze over. Was interesting to go over those flowed areas. If it melts, then it might be hard to follow this trail. I suspect those areas will be underwater. Otherwise, another beautiful trail.
March 2, 2021Deff need ice spikes - river over flowed onto bridges and trails. See pics
February 28, 2021Lovely hike. Not strenuous. Only a few people. Icy in spots, but we did it without putting on our spikes. Not enough show for snowshoes (at the moment). Mostly sheltered from wind. Not crowded. Ample parking.
February 7, 2021Jesse and I set our new distance and elevation highs, over 8 miles and 1,900 feet! it was a beautiful day and trail for a nice, long hike!
February 2, 2021Really pretty! We actually did a combo of the mountain lion and burro trail and windy peak. A few slick spots, but not bad. Not very crowded. Need a state park pass or $10 for day pass/parking.
January 30, 2021Parking lot was very empty, not many souls on the trail. The detour to Windy Peak is worth it! Spikes were perfect for the trail conditions.
January 27, 2021No Jesse today. I went out raptor monitoring with the new Program Coordinator, so we only did a short hike and toured around the park.
January 25, 2021Really nice trail. Nice gradual hike but still felt like a work out. Traction recommended. Decent amount of snow pack and ice. Windy peak is a must. Great day! Saw two people the entire trip. Super peaceful
January 24, 2021Hiked Mountain Lion Trail CCW plus the side trail to Windy Peak for 9 mi total. Definitely recommend spikes especially for the East half of the loop; it is less icy on the west half. Trail never got too busy - even on Sunday only about half a dozen cars were in the lot at 9a and 2p.
January 23, 2021It was a great day for a hike! No wind and the sun was out for the majority of the day. Ended up adding Windy Peak, which I would highly recommend. Some snow in areas so you might want to bring spikes.
January 18, 2021Awesome hike. Beautiful day. Detour to windy peak is a must. Spikes recommended.
January 16, 2021great hike. windy peak is fantastic. There was high wind today.
January 16, 2021January 12, 2021Awesome winter hike on a sunny day. Be sure to take the Windy Peak side trip; it had the best views. Only saw six people today and all of them were in the last three miles.
January 3, 2021One of our favorites near Denver. Great winter hike.
January 2, 2021Great trail - loved it!! Took the extra mile to Windy Peak which is definitely worth the view. Was able to park on a Saturday in January with no problem - got to the trailhead a little before noon. Didn’t need my spikes for half the trail, but was glad I had them for the other half. Pretty windy so be prepared for that.
January 1, 2021Beautiful trail. Yaktrax could be handy on some of the hills, but was totally manageable in approach shoes.
December 31, 2020Really beautiful trail through gorgeous woods along a stream. Most of the elevation gain is gradual going around the loop counterclockwise. We felt good when the trail met with Windy Peak so we decided to add that mile on - it was worth it for the beautiful views but the most challenging part of the day. There was a lot of fresh snow on the ground and I could have managed without my spikes since there was not much ice but wore them most of the hike. Would definitely recommend this trail!
December 30, 2020Beautiful, but chilly
December 29, 2020December 28, 2020Hiked on Christmas Day. Had a great mix of open grassland and thick pine forest. If going counterclockwise, from like miles 2-4 are very shaded so you’ll be walking through some decent snow. It’s a little packed down, but deep enough that it was tiring. We did the spur to Windy Peak which was honestly the highlight, so work the extra 0.5 mile each way! The second half of the trail was mostly dry with some slick spots here and there. Overall we clocked about 8 miles with the Windy Peak detour. There are hunters so I would bring a bright vest, I luckily had my work one in my car that I was able to wear.
