Falls Spur and Dam Trail Up Castlewood Canyon

This is one of those hikes within a hike that you could make into an epic journey or just a five minute adventure. We decided to take the semi-adventurous route and started at the Falls Spur Trailhead. This led up to the Dam Trail as well, so we kind of got a two-fer and it wasn't a very long hike. But it was definitely enjoyable and worth it. The whole thing probably took us about an hour to hike, there and back, but we stopped a lot and smelled a lot of flowers. Well, figuratively we did that. Mostly we just checked out the waterfalls and played in the water for all you literal folks out there. But it was the absolute perfect way to spend our Saturday morning and our boys thought this was the most fun hike ever!

Location: Castlewood Canyon West in Franktown, CO
Distance: About 0.5 miles round-trip
Cost: $7 cash to enter the park
Kid-Friendly: Yes
Toddler-Friendly: Yes
Baby-Friendly: Strap 'em on!
Stroller-Friendly: No
Special Notes: This is rattle snake country, so keep an eye out. Maybe read about how to avoid a rattlesnake before you venture out. Or just make lots of noise and stay on the trails.

When you get to the Castlewood Canyon State Park, you will need to pay for a $7 day pass. You need cash for this. It is self-service. Here is a map of the trails. Make sure you are looking at the West Facilities Map.

Then, if you are opting for the Falls Spur Trailhead, like we did, you will drive past a couple of parking lots and pull in to this one on your left.

The hike has so many beautiful views along the way.

The Falls Spur Trail will meet up with the Creek Bottom Trail a little ways in. Go right.

This is when it really gets beautiful. Don't worry. That's just my three-year-old giving me all kinds of attitude about taking a picture.

The trail kind of opens up into this flatter area and all along this way, there are little mini waterfalls if you go off the trail to the left. There are a ton. We picked a few to play in for a minute and then carried on. It's definitely worth the bit of lollygagging you'll do because the hike isn't that long and these little falls are gorgeous!

My oldest, Lincoln, is helping his little brother over the rocks. He actually did way better with brother helping him! I was impressed.

This is where we just spent a really long time hanging out. We found a little spot, not too far before the dam ruins, where we just parked it because there was a shallow, calm bit of water that the boys could play in and throw rocks in (their favorite past time).

Then, we ventured on and found the Dam Trail. This trail is like two feet long, but the dam ruins are so cool, so it's definitely worth finishing out the hike. After we saw the dam, we just headed on back. This was the PERFECT hike for toddlers and it was so much fun for us too!