Cherry Creek: Campground Trail short return
Colorado · Other separated ride
Take the paved Campground Trail toward the campground. At the trail end or its junction with the northern Cherry Creek main trail, turn and retrace before entering a camping road. Turn earlier at a barrier or an uncomfortable grade. Exclude campground-road loops, the dam, shoreline sand and hiking-only wetlands paths. Walk the parking and any internal-road interfaces.
Plan your ride
- Location
- Aurora · Colorado
- Ride length
- Up to about 1.8 miles return
- Ride format
- Out-and-back
- Surface
- Paved Campground Trail
- Road crossings
- Take the paved Campground Trail toward the campground. At the trail end or its junction with the northern Cherry Creek main trail, turn and retrace before entering a camping road. Turn earlier at a barrier or an uncomfortable grade. Exclude campground-road loops, the dam, shoreline sand and hiking-only wetlands paths. Walk the parking and any internal-road interfaces.
- Elevation
- The named path is listed accessible; the broader park has gentle rolling terrain. Neither description supplies the steepest grade of this approach. Walk short slopes you find uncomfortable.
- Starting location
- 4201 South Parker Road, Aurora, CO 80014
Manager lists 0.89 mile for the named path; doubling gives about 1.8 miles at most, with a shorter ride if joining partway from the public lot. This is not a reservoir loop or the park’s 35-mile network.
Approximate public entry/access-area reference. Follow the guide and signed public visitor parking; this is not a surveyed parking space.
Cherry Creek: Campground Trail short return — detailed guide
Source review: 2026-10-21. A dated source review does not guarantee current-day conditions.
Aurora, Colorado · Up to about 1.8 miles return · Paved Campground Trail
Start: Swim Beach public day-use parking, 4201 South Parker Road, Aurora, CO 80014. Use signed public Swim Beach parking inside the park and walk to the named Campground Trail. The manager explicitly lists this lot as an access point. Campsite spaces and reserved group parking are excluded.
Ride: Take the paved Campground Trail toward the campground. At the trail end or its junction with the northern Cherry Creek main trail, turn and retrace before entering a camping road. Turn earlier at a barrier or an uncomfortable grade. Exclude campground-road loops, the dam, shoreline sand and hiking-only wetlands paths. Walk the parking and any internal-road interfaces.
Distance: Manager lists 0.89 mile for the named path; doubling gives about 1.8 miles at most, with a shorter ride if joining partway from the public lot. This is not a reservoir loop or the park’s 35-mile network.
Permission and effort: Current state trail card expressly permits bicycles on Campground Trail. The named path is listed accessible; the broader park has gentle rolling terrain. Neither description supplies the steepest grade of this approach. Walk short slopes you find uncomfortable.
Planning: Use daylight and posted day-use gates; office opening hours are different. Vehicle park pass and Cherry Creek basin surcharge apply. Current basin rates are $1 daily or $3 annually; pay current posted vehicle terms. Yield to walkers and horses, keep dogs leashed and stay out of hiking-only wetland paths. The dog off-leash area is outside this outing.
Access reviewed October 20, 2026 Central (October 21 UTC): Park page advertises the dog off-leash area closed October 26–30, with October 31 only a planned reopening. That does not identify a Campground Trail closure. No selected-path closure was found on the reviewed profile and trail listing; this is not an on-site all-clear. Seasonal ice and posted work restrictions govern.
Bring water and choose suitable weather. Parking walking is extra. No surveyed parking-space pin or navigable GPX is supplied.
Sources: Named trail and public lot · Park access and notices · Park map and permitted uses