Crested Butte Lower Loop Trail

Crested Butte Lower Loop Trail

The Crested Butte Lower Loop Trail is a very popular recreation area. The trail is popular for all age groups, hikers, bikers, trail runners and more. Despite being so close to town, the Lower Loop Trail features some amazing river, mountain and meadow views. Plus, the history of being a reclaimed mining area. A really lovely area to enjoy the outdoors near Crested Butte.

Getting Started

As this is a very popular area, parking is at a premium. There are several parking area’s down Peanut Lake road but I chose to park at the first one. This gave me access to the Woods Walk section but did extend the overall hike by roughly 3 miles. The nice part was that I didn’t have to fight with people who tried to park down by the main parking area. One thing to keep in mind is that the Peanut Lake area is residential so please make sure to respect private property while parking and while hiking.

Woods Walk

The Woods Walk trail is a connecting trail that takes you up a small hill and gives a nice overlook of the Peanut Lake. This trail gets pretty close to some houses so make sure to stay on the trail at all times. Access to the Woods Walk trail is close to the start of Peanut Lake trail before you even get to the first parking area.

One of the big benefits of the Woods walk is avoiding having to walk on the road. It also gives you a bit of elevated look down on the lake that is popular with ducks and other waterfowl. After about 1.6 miles, the Woods Walk trail intersects with the Lower Loop trail. This depends on where you parked and if you have to walk extra to get to the start of the trail. I also found this section of the trail to not have as many people on it which was a great way to start the hike with some solitude.

Lower Loop Start

Once you connect to the Lower Loop Trail you will get to the real meat and potatoes of the hike. After the main parking area the trail splits off in the upper and lower section of the loop. I took it to the right to do the lower section first but you can do either. There is also a wide version and single track version of the trail. I went with the wide which seemed a bit more popular.

The Lower Loop trail starts with some info boards that explain the history of the area which includes the mining industry and how Crested Butte has reclaimed the land and rebuilt it into this wonderful bit of open space. There is also a short story book spread over info boards for the kids, which I thought was really cool.

The whole loop is just under 5 miles with most of the elevation on the far side. If you take the wide trail it is easy to follow and never really gets technical. About a mile from the Lower Loop start is the first really good views and access to the Slate River. From there you will follow the river for a majority of the hike and it was definitely my favorite feature of the trail!

Slate River

When I hiked the Crested Butte Lower Loop Trail over Labor Day weekend, the Slate River was pretty low but pretty amazing. It just gently meandered through the hills and trees of the valley. The banks were bare, exposing the rocky river bed, but the water that remained, sat like glass or lazily drifted downhill. It was like a perfect metaphor for the waning days of summer.

With the water on the lower side, it made it easier to get close. I stood and sat on the edge for a good 20 minutes just enjoying the warm sun and listening to the water trickle by. There were also some dogs who were playing a game of tag and chasing each other in the shallow water. People were taking what could have been engagement or homecoming photos using the old river as a backdrop. It was just really amazingly peaceful. I could have sat there all day but I also wanted to continue my hike. So I headed on down the trail but was happy to see the views of the Slate River stuck with me for most of the hike.

Big Meadow Loop

The Lower Loop trail continues and stays relatively close to the Slate River for the rest of the hike. Around two and half miles away from the Lower Loop start, the path makes a big loop up a service road that has a majority of the elevation for the hike. Heading up the road maxes out at about a 13% grade and you elevate a few hundred feet of elevation over a short quarter mile.

Now I don’t want you to focus on the loop or the elevation gain because the views of this big valley or meadow are simply stunning. The whole trail funnels down and the end are rocky peaks. Tree covered hills line either side. The grasses and trees make this a giant green bowl of visual happiness. Just one sensational places to walk and take in all the wonders that Colorado has to offer.

Elevated Return

After making the loop, there are a series of options that head higher up the service road. However, the Lower Loop connects about halfway up the road and takes you back towards the parking area. From here, the trail is elevated about a 1/3 of the way up a hill and a few hundred feet above the lower track near the river.

The river below and Crested Butte Mountain in the distance make this return walk just as pretty as the walk out. That can be rare but so appreciated when it happens. The return trail also doesn’t have any elevation to deal with. In fact, you will come back down the hill closer to the start of the loop so it is easy to just enjoy the hike. The path does narrow a bit and I found it to be really crowded which caused a slow pace letting people by.

After connecting back to the loop start, I decided to walk the road back to my parking spot. That made the overall hike to be around 8 miles. If you can find parking closer than the loop is only around 5 miles. I found this hike to be extremely relaxing and beautiful and highly recommend it!

Video of the Crested Butte Lower Loop Trail

I have created a time-lapsed video of the Crested Butte Lower Loop Trail to give you a feel for what it is like. I call these time lapsed versions of the hikes my hikers edits. If you enjoy the video, don’t forget to subscribe to my YouTube Channel. It is free to subscribe and you will get the latest updates.

Distance and Elevation

If you don’t have the AllTrails app you might want to check it out, I really love mine. It records your progress and is a great way to search for hikes that are nearby and gives you difficulty measurements. According to AllTrails today’s hike was around 8.0 miles and had a total elevation gain of about 489 feet including undulations. That put the high point at around 9,104 feet. I was also moving for a total of 2 hours and 56 minutes.

I am a Pro member of AllTrails and love it. If you are interested in the platform, please consider using my affiliate link for AllTrails. It gives me a small commission with no extra cost to you.

Effort

While not overly technical, the Crested Butte Lower Loop Trail is a longer trail that I ranked as a moderate hike. There are also a lot of options to make the trail shorter or longer that could adjust. There is some moderate elevation gain, especially near the backside of the loop. Overall, the hike is a nice long walk with some amazing views.

Terrain

The lower loop trail is really well maintained and used which makes the path really easy to follow. At times the trail narrows to a single file, and at other times it is as wide as service road. The terrain is mostly hard packed dirt. One important thing to remember is that the area is pretty exposed. Make sure to have sun and weather protection.

Access to the Crested Butte Lower Loop Trail

The Crested Butte Lower Loop Trail is located just on the northwest side of town on Peanut Lake Road. There are a couple of parking area’s located on the road but this is a very busy area and several cars were parked improperly along the road. Please be courteous of private roads and driveways.

Final Thoughts on the Crested Butte Lower Loop Trail

Wow. Just wow! I was a bit when I decided to hike this trail because it was so close to town. I was worried it was going to be a bland open space but it was anything but. The Crested Butte Lower Loop Trail had something for everyone. River walks, trees, large meadows, mountain views. It was so enjoyable and one of those hikes I keep thinking about for a long time after hiking it!

On a personal note, the hike to Cataract Falls is located in Gunnison County. Because This was my first time hiking in Gunnison County, that makes my 46th of 64 counties in Colorado that I have hiked in on my quest to hike in each county! In Fact, Colorado is a beautiful state and I love exploring all of it!

I have added this hike and all of my hikes to my interactive map page that you can find here. If you have a suggestion or comment you can email me at fatmanlittletrails@gmail.com. Or follow me on any of the below social media platforms. Happy Hiking!

Gallery of the Crested Butte Lower Loop Trail