Colorado Hiked: Big South Trail

Confession time: I struggle with motivation sometimes and it is a struggle to get out of bed and drive to hike. Sometimes it’s the drive I don’t want to do (I swear everything is two hours from Cheyenne…), sometimes I just don’t want to. The bed is cozy, and the appeal of a lazy morning on the couch with a cup of coffee can be strong.

This day was one of those days. The alarm went off at 6am, and I laid there for another twenty minutes before finally getting myself out of bed and dressed, with coffee brewing. I was out of the door about 6:45am, not too shabby! Getting out the door is sometimes the hardest part… I just knew I would be disappointed in myself if I skipped out on the day’s adventure.

On the agenda was the Big South Trail in the Comanche Peak Wilderness (Roosevelt National Forest) in the Poudre Canyon. I’ve driven past the trailhead plenty, and knew it connected into Corral Creek Trail some ten miles up the trail (I discovered this on my backpacking trip to Mirror Lake last year, and my friend mentioned it when we passed the trail sign)… but I never thought of hiking it. It wasn’t until a coworker mentioned she had checked it out that it sparked some curiosity – half because I was excited to be given a hiking idea from a coworker that I didn’t know hiked and half because it was something brand new to me. With a windy and iffy forecast for higher elevations, I figured why not, and set my sights on seeing what Big South Trail had to offer.

The Big South Trail is 10.4 miles one-way and enters the Comanche Peak Wilderness a half mile from the trailhead. The Flowers Trail (#939) intersects from the east shortly before the trail fords the Poudre River. The river crossing is difficult or dangerous depending on the time of year, the amount of runoff and the water flow controlled by Long Draw Reservoir. The Big South Trail continues south to join the Corral Creek Trail (# 989) and provides access to Rocky Mountain National Park via the Poudre River Trail.
https://www.fs.usda.gov/r02/arp/recreation/trails/big-south-trail

Obligatory trailhead photos. The trailhead has parking for roughly twenty vehicles, and has always been full when I’ve passed by. There were maybe 5-6 cars when I arrived, and was almost full when I left.

A smooth drive under cloudy skies, I arrived to the trailhead on the side of Hwy 14 around 8:30am… not bad for my late-ish start thanks to low motivation! Shoes on, backpack on, car locked… let’s do this! Almost immediately into the wooded trail I took a deep breath and said out loud, “This was so worth it!” I am not sure I have ever regretted an early morning to go hiking, and today was no different.

Big South Trail follows the Cache la Poudre River, and gains elevation the entire way… except it won’t always seem that way, as the trail rolls and has steep ups and downs in both directions on this out-and-back-hike. I love nothing more than uphill on the way back to the car, ha! Though the trail crosses into the Cameron Peak Fire burn scar (Colorado’s largest wildfire ever, which burned in the fall of 2020), there was still plenty of living forest sections, at least in the first four miles of the trail that I hiked. Several times the trail will descend to the banks of the Poudre River, allowing access for water filtering, fishing, or simply hanging out and enjoying the sound of the rushing water.

The trail starts up with rocks right away

What caught me off guard was how rocky the trail was. Normally, I wouldn’t have been so concerned, but with strict orders to not stumble and fall (only 6 weeks postop from a shoulder labrum repair, and spending most of the summer nursing two dislocations of the same shoulder), I spent an extraordinary amount of mental energy paying attention to my footsteps. Spoiler alert, I did end up tripping and falling on the return trip, but luckily was going uphill and caught myself mostly with my shins and the right arm faired okay. It did give me one hell of a scare, and even more energy was devoted to staying upright the next remaining miles. But anyways, this is my warning… it is NOT a smooth, cruisey trail whatsoever! My average pace was far slower than recent hikes because I had to slow to a careful crawl on any rocky portions.

The trail at times is quite a bit above the river

A half mile from the trailhead, the trail enters the Comanche Peak Wilderness

I was surprised to come across wildflowers, since it is mid-September!

One of the burn areas. Still beautiful in its own way, but on this day I was preferring the living forest.

It was still a bit early for peak fall colors, but I was still treated to some!

Crossing a talus field, which had some very nice trail work done to it.

My initial plan was to hike the first five miles of the trail, giving me a ten mile day. In theory, a great idea. Not so great in reality… I found myself feeling really depleted, and with the realization I would have some steep uphills to contend with on the way back to the car, I decided I shouldn’t push myself too hard. After all, I needed energy to pick up my feet over all the damn rocks! At 4.05 miles, I called it good, finding a lovely boulder to take a break on while I ate my Uncrustable and polished off a liter of water. I also noticed the building storm clouds, and decided I made the right call. Sometimes I forget I am rebuilding from surgery and don’t exactly have “end of summer” hiking fitness this year, and that it is okay to hike “just” eight miles!

Crossing May Creek on a bridge (in the words of Liz Kidder, I f-ing love when they put bridges!).

Trying to show the very steep switchbacks. This is where I would trip and fall on the return leg.

It was a pleasant day, partly cloudy and staying in the high 60s

I really need to trash these shoes, but I am being stubborn because they don’t quite have 300 miles yet…

I definitely noticed all the uphills on the way back to the car, and as I had mentioned, I spent a lot of time paying attention to where my feet were. The storm clouds continued to gather, and I started hearing the grumble of thunder overhead. While I did passed a handful of people on the hike out, this was really a trail of solitude, which is so hard to find on the Front Range. Finally I hit the wilderness boundary, and knew I had just a half mile left to the car… and wouldn’t you know, this is when the rain drops starting falling! Luckily it stayed light enough that my rain jacket was never worth the effort, and the solid rain held off until I was pulling out of the parking lot!

The last of the sun before the clouds moved in

I followed this butterfly for awhile down the trail.

Great little waterfall. I debated scrambling down to sit next to it, but carried on since I was hearing thunder.

Half mile to go, and the rain just started!

The Big South Trail definitely took me by surprise, and I definitely would come back, especially for a relaxed overnight backpacking trip! All the trees got me dreaming of hammock underquilts (who am I aside from a gear whore and someone seeking new adventures?!) and wondering why I’ve always fought the Rocky Mountain National Park crowds when there’s trees without people, and backpacking without insanely competitive permits.

Sometimes people do not like out and back trails, and I can definitely see that sometimes. However, I love that Big South is a big trail, and people can choose their own distance… want a twenty mile day? Possible (if the Poudre River is safe to cross)! Want a two mile day? Possible! Walk a little bit in, enjoy a picnic by the river. Lug overnight gear in, enjoy several days.

Oh, and people snowshoe it in the winter!

Details:
All Trails Link
Poudre Wilderness Volunteers Trail Guide
Date Hiked: September 12, 2026
Trailhead: Big South
Total Mileage: 8.11 miles (Garmin Enduro 3)
Total Elevation Gain: 1,683 feet
Total Time Spent: 3 hours 43 minutes
Weather: Partly cloudy with thunderstorm at the end
Trail Conditions: Dry
Cell Service: No idea… airplane mode, but I’m going to guess no.
Special Considerations: This hike takes place almost entirely (aside from the first 0.5 mile from the trailhead) in the Comanche Peak Wilderness, and wilderness regulations are in effect (dogs must always be leashed, no bicycles, no overnight stock use, and no campfires in the wilderness travel zone).