Rio Grande National Forest
The Rio Grande National Forest in south central Colorado includes the spectacularly beautiful San Juan and Sangre de Cristo Mountains and contains the San Luis Valley and parts of four wilderness areas. There is not much online about easy trails here, so please write me about your favorites.
Big Meadows Reservoir Thank you to Ronnie Day of the Forest Service, who wrote: “Our terrain doesn’t allow for much but we have a place called big meadows reservoir that has a short hardened trail from the campground down to the lake shore and along the shore a short ways. The rest of the trail circles the lake and is fairly easy along the dam and up the north shore. ” There is a wheelchair accessible fishing pier. Here is a link to a description of the Big Meadows Reservoir area.
The Alder Bench trail (Forest Service trail 799) is easy for the first half mile or so going up into the forest. We stopped where it turned back and steepened. Directions and map. Coming back down to the trail marker post (it has lost its arms) I then followed a social trail north paralleling Alder Creek. After about 1/2 mile barbed wire marks the start of private property. This was a lovely, quiet little walk. Very easy and pretty.
