Colorado trails · Ute Creek Trail
Ute Creek Trail
A 13.8-mile out-and-back in Colorado, with 2,866 ft of climbing, topping out at 12,334 ft. Reaches Black Lake and other lake destinations. Managed by USFS Divide Ranger District.
Elevation profile
The climbing is spread fairly evenly along the route.
3-D terrain
USGS 3DEP ELEVATION × ESRI WORLD IMAGERY · VERTICAL ×1.5
Reaches
- Black Lake (lake)
- Twin Lakes (lake)
Heads up
Getting there
Ute Creek Trailhead #819 — parking nearby, restroom. 37.75969, -107.34278 · directions
Daylight at the trailhead
On August 31, 2026 — the day this page was generated — first light reaches this trailhead at 6:11 a.m., the sun rises at 6:38 a.m. and sets at 7:40 p.m., and the last usable light fades about 8:07 p.m. (MDT) — 13 h 02 min of daylight. At about 2.7 mph plus 30 minutes per 1,000 feet of climbing, the 27.5-mile round trip works out to roughly 13 h 04 min of walking — more than a single day of daylight here, so plan it as an overnight or hike it in sections.
Loop options
- Green Canyon Trail + Ute Creek Trail + Reservoir Canyon Trail — 10.2 mi loop, 1,156 ft gain
- Uranium Road + Ute Creek Trail + Ute Creek Cutoff Trail — 5.2 mi loop, 1,058 ft gain
Nearby trails
- Fern Creek Trail — 13.3 mi
- Needle Creek Trail — 18.0 mi
- Ivy Creek Trail — 19.5 mi
- Middle Fork Trail — 20.1 mi