THE WOODS QUARRY AND THE CHAIRS | PHOTO BY GRANT NYQUIST
THE BEST VIEWS IN BOULDER AND HOW TO GET TO THEM Here’s Where to Get the Best Views of Boulder
BOULDER IS Flagstaff Mountain The top of Flagstaff Mountain just NATURALLY west of Boulder easily provides the best STUNNING. views in town. This mountaintop perch SOMETIMES, features sweeping, panoramic views of IT REALLY Boulder and the Front Range. There are SHOWS OFF. plenty of great hiking trails and places to go bouldering or have a picnic, too. Drive slowly and keep your eyes peeled for the many pulloffs and look-outs along the way. Don’t forget to buy a parking pass at the bottom of the mountain. Boulder is notoriously promiscuous in issuing parking tickets. Definitely pack a picnic and a camera and prepare yourself to see birds and deer.
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A favorite trail is the Range View/Ute Trail Loop, ideal for travelers not used to Boulder’s high altitude. “You can get an awesome view of the Continental Divide and Indian Peaks with relatively little effort,” says Lisa Melli Gillespie of Boulder, a volunteer with the city’s Open Space and Mountain Parks Department. The best time to visit is sunrise or sunset (year-round, although the trails may be snow-covered in winter), when the golden glow of the sun makes the city look enchanted. How to get there: From downtown, head west on Baseline Road. Drive past Chautauqua Park (at the top of the hill) and keep going along the winding road until you reach the top (just under three-and-a-half miles up Flagstaff Road). Head to Realization Point, then go about a half mile on Flagstaff