Bobcat Ridge Natural Area

Description

Discover Bobcat Ridge Natural Area! You’ll find a grassy valley, foothills, ponderosa pines, stunning red rock cliffs and more. Bobcat Ridge is home to elk, wild turkey, mountain lions and other wildlife. Several historic homestead sites dot the landscape.

Note: This is one of the few Fort Collins natural areas on which dogs are not allowed.

Trails

Trails include the Valley Loop (4 mile loop), Ginny Trail (5.4 miles, climbs 1,500 feet, open for hiking and mountain biking, closed to horses), D.R. Trail (3.4 miles long, climbs 1,100 feet, open to equestrians and hikers, closed to cyclists), Powerline Road (1.5 miles long, climbs steeply with loose rocks so not recommended for horses, uphill only for cyclists), Eden Valley Spur (an out and back route, 1.3 miles along the valley bottom).

Hours

Bobcat Ridge is open daily from dawn to dusk.

Directions

From Fort Collins, take Harmony Road west, it turns into CR 38 E. Follow CR 38 E to Masonville. Go left (south) at the Masonville Mercantile onto CR 27. Follow CR 27 about 1 mile to CR 32 C, head west about 1 mile to the Bobcat Ridge parking lot.
From Loveland, go west on Highway 34 about 4.5 miles west of Wilson Avenue. Turn north on CR 27 by Big Thompson Elementary and drive 4.5 miles. Turn left on CR 32C and go 1 mile west to the Bobcat Ridge parking lot.

Note:Horse trailer parking is limited to 8 spots, if the parking lot is full, please come back another time.

Events & Activities

The Bobcat Ridge Prowl newsletter (pdf) has free monthly event and activity information.
Want to plan ahead? The May-October schedule and activities at other natural areas are listed in the 2009 Program and Activity Guide (pdf).

Related Information

• Bobcat Ridge Natural Area Ranger Office 970-461-2700
• Bobcat Ridge site brochure
• Working the Land: Creating a Life a booklet about Bobcat Ridge's history.
• Bobcat Ridge Management Plan
• Pieces of the Past: The Story of Bobcat Ridge Natural Area is a historical record by Carol Tunner.
• Rocky Mountain Cat Conservancy which is partnering with the Natural Areas Program on Communities, Cameras and Conservation, a project that uses motion-activated cameras to document wildlife. See some of the photos in the gallery at the top of the page.