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Hayden Green Mountain Park
Lakewood, Colorado
June 21, 2008

Location:

Exit Morrison off of C-470.  Head west, take your first right onto Rooney Road.  Head north, turn left
onto Alameda Avenue, go over C-470 (bridge) to take a right turn (no sign).  Continue North for 1/2
mile, turn right into the parking lot.  The parking lot is called William Fredrick Hayden Green Mountain
Park.

Currently there is construction on the Alameda bridge which crosses C-470.  Once the construction
is complete, you will be able to exit directly onto Alameda, which will make getting to the parking lot
much easier.

Green Mountain Trail:

The loop is 6.9 miles.

Since you are running a loop you have two options at the start.  If you take a right on the first trail
split, the first four miles will be relatively easy, you will then face a tough climb from miles 4-5 and the
rest of the run will be mostly downhill.

If you stay to your left you will run up the hill immediately, this hill is longer (1.5 miles) but not as
steep as if you were to go the other direction.  I've done both routes, no real preference.  It's nice to
be able to get the toughest part of the run done right away, however it's also nice to get in a few
miles warm up and hit the steeper/shorter hill as well.  Just depends on your mood.  If you look at the
map, you will notice that I stayed to the left on today's run.

The trail peaks at 6,850 feet and the stating point at the parking lot has an elevation of 6,073.  I
would classify this trail as moderate in difficulty.  I completed the loop in 1:07:12 (9:41 pace) and was
running at a relaxed pace.

A few things to note.  There is no shade on Green Mountain, thus in the summer it gets hot while
running.  Make sure you wear some sunscreen and carry some water.  The trail is wide in most parts,
but there are a lot of rocks.  If you do a lot of trail running, I wouldn't wear a lightweight performance
shoe due to all the rocks, which are large in size.  I wore my trail running shoes (not lightweight) and
had no issues.  Also, there are a lot of mountain bikers on this trail, more bikers than runners.  Thus,
be observant, if you are going to wear headphones, keep the volume down so that you can hear the
bikers, especially on the descents.  Also, it's easier for the runner to move over, so give the
mountain bikers the benefit and move to the side when you see them.
Parking Lot: