$4.5M Hanging Lake trail renovation could impact your plan to visit this summer
GLENWOOD SPRINGS, Colo. (KDVR) — One of the most popular hiking destinations in Colorado needs a facelift, and it could impact your summer adventures.
Hanging Lake trail will undergo a $4.5 million renovation this summer, meaning trail closures are coming.
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From the base of the trail, along each of the 1,000 feet in elevation, Hanging Lake means a lot to White River National Forest District Ranger Leanne Veldhuis.
“Not to sound cliche, it is a special place,” she said.
It’s a place Veldhuis is excited to keep special for visitors for decades to come, thanks to a multimillion-dollar restoration plan.
“One of the most iconic landscapes in Colorado,” said Marcus Selig, chief conservation officer for the National Forest Foundation.
This $4.5 million project is thanks to money from the National Forest Foundation, city of Glenwood Springs, Great Outdoors Colorado, Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the U.S. Forest Service.
“I cannot think of a better team who all came together in a moment of need and then another moment of need,” said Ingrid Wussow, the mayor of Glenwood Springs.
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Moments of need are not uncommon at Hanging Lake, which has dealt with multiple closures in recent years.
“The Grizzly Creek fire in August 2020 closed the trail until May 2021,” Veldhuis said.
Evidence of that fire is still present along the trail, where burnt trees are still visible.
“We’re building a really complex trail through a burned landscape, and we’re trying to make it last for 100 years,” Selig said. “That is not an easy task.”
The updates include a new boardwalk around Spouting Rock at the top of the hike, rock work and planting to prevent erosion and a new plaza at the base of the trail. But the biggest effort will be to replace all seven bridges along the 1.2-mile trail.
Trail closures are to be expected throughout the summer, depending on the week.
“Especially on days we’re doing some of the bridge replacements,” Veldhuis said. “We’re actually going to be flying those in with helicopter work.”
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Veldhuis said those closures will be worth it for visitors.
“Hopefully after this, it’s good to go,” she said, hoping they’ll keep people coming back to this special place for years to come.
“There’s something really intimate and beautiful about it,” Veldhuis said.
Reservations are required to hike Hanging Lake trail. You can expect the renovation work to last through this fall.
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