Pine Valley Ranch Park Hike Guide
Pine Valley Ranch Park is a family friendly hiking spot located in Pine, Colorado. The park has access to great hiking, fishing, biking and picnic areas. All hikes inside the park are family friendly and relatively easy. Trail conditions in the park consist mostly of packed dirt trails. This is a nice option to hike for families and beginner hikers that is not super far from the Denver area.
Pine Valley Ranch Park Quick Facts
Pine Valley Ranch Park: ★★★ (3/5 Stars)
Distance: 5.9 Miles of Total Trails – View Park Map Here
Elevation Start: 6,700 TH
Highest Point: 7,200 (Access to higher elevations outside of park limits)
Total Elevation Gain: Various – most trails under 500ft
Estimated Time to Complete: Most trails can be completed in under 2 hours
Difficulty: Easy to Moderate Difficulty System Explained
Class: Class 1 What does this mean?
Season: Year Round – Expect snow November to April
Weather: Check the Weather Forecast
Directions to Pine Valley Ranch Park
Trailhead: Pine Valley Park
Getting Here: From 285: Navigate to Pine Junction in Pine, Coloardo. From here, head south on Pine Valley Road for 5.9 miles until you reach a sharp turn on the right. This is Crystal Lake Road – continue on for .6 miles until you reach the park entrance. Continue down to reach the upper and lower parking lots of the park.
You can enter Pine Valley Ranch Park into any GPS:
Fees: There is no fee to hike here.
Parking: There are three large parking lots at Pine Valley Ranch Park. The first is the furthest away from most of the trails and fishing area. All three lots can fit large vehicles with campers able to park at the upper most lots. There two bathrooms located in the park: one at the trailhead and one on the west side of Pine Lake.
Summary
Camping: Overnight camping is prohibited at Pine Valley Ranch Park.
Dogs: The entire park is dog friendly but please keep your dog on a leash and pick up after them as well. There are trash cans and poop bag dispensers located at the TH.
Make it a Loop: There are a number of different loops you can hike but I would recommend the following: Narrow Gauge Trail to North Fork View to Buck Gulch to Strawberry Jack to Park View Trail. This is about a 3.5 mile loop and gives you the best views in the park in my opinion. View the park map here.
Trail X Factors: The park does allow mountain biking on most of its trails so be sure to keep an eye out for them as you hike around the park. Most bikers follow trail etiquette (yielding to hikers) but depending on the terrain, it’s sometimes nice to step off the trail for them.
Hike Tip(s): The park can get busy on weekends since it’s a popular spot to fish, bike and hike. If you want to avoid crowds, head there on a weekday or non rush hours on the weekend (early morning or later in the afternoon).
Best Views: The entire park offers great views, but in my opinion, the best views are up high on Park View Trail looking northwest. On a clear day you can catch glimpses of Mt Evans in the distance.
Pine Valley Ranch Park Trail Route
Shows the Park View Trail Loop Mentioned Above
Gear Needed
- Men’s Trail Runners
- Women’s Trail Runners
- La Sportiva Trango Hiking Boots (Men’s)
- La Sportiva Trango Hiking Booths (Women’s)
- Backpack
- Food & Water
- Park Map
- Optional: Garmin inReach
- Optional: Hiking Poles
- Optional: Headlamp
- Optional: Garmin Fenix Watch
- Optional: Camera and Lens
- Optional: GoPro, Joby Tripod
- *Links included in this description might be affiliate links. If you purchase a product or service with the links that I provide I may receive a small commission. There is no additional charge to you.
Our Trip to Pine Valley Ranch Park: May 2020
Its always nice to discover great hiking options close to home. After living in the area for several years, Jackie, Juno and I finally made our first trip to Pine Valley Ranch Park and really enjoyed our time there.
