Ouray Perimeter Trail

The Perimeter Trail circles the town of Ouray on the canyon walls above it, a 5.6-mile loop with about 1,800 feet of cumulative climbing that links Cascade Falls, the Baby Bathtubs, the Ice Park, and the Box Canyon, with the town's rooftops and the amphitheater of peaks in view the whole way. It is the hike the locals do before work, and it can be joined at any of a dozen points from the streets.

The signed start is across US 550 from the Ouray Visitor Center at the north end of town. Going clockwise, the trail climbs the east side of the valley to Cascade Falls, a 150-foot ribbon in a side canyon, then continues south along the base of the cliffs past the Baby Bathtubs, a series of potholes in the creek, and the Amphitheater campground road.

The trail crosses Highway 550 south of town near the Ice Park and works along the west side of the valley, through a short tunnel and across the high bridge over Box Canyon, with the falls roaring below; the bridge is on the trail, and the falls viewing platforms below it are inside the fee-charging Box Canyon park. From there the trail descends through oak and pine along Oak Creek and returns to the hot springs park and the visitor center. The loop works in either direction.

Park at the Ouray Visitor Center or the hot springs pool lot at the north end of town on US 550, both free, or anywhere in town and walk to the nearest access point. The trail is free; the Box Canyon Falls park charges admission only if you go down to the falls. Ouray Trails Group maintains the loop and posts closures for rockfall and ice-climbing season on its site.

Dogs are allowed on leash. The exposure on the cliff-side sections and the bridge over Box Canyon are why the loop is not marked kid-friendly here; the Cascade Falls section on its own is fine for any child. Carry water; there is none on the loop away from town. The trail has many junctions with the town's other trails and is signed at most of them; the map at the visitor center helps. Ouray has hot springs, restaurants, and lodging at the trailhead. The Ouray hikes page covers Yankee Boy Basin and the Blue Lakes, and the Ouray hot springs guide covers the soak afterward.