Three Sisters Trail at Alderfer

Alderfer/Three Sisters Park is Evergreen's neighborhood open space, about 1,130 acres of ponderosa, meadow, and granite outcrops 35 minutes from Denver, and the Three Sisters loop is the walk that shows most of it in an easy two hours. The Sisters are three rounded rock knobs on a ridge; the Brother is a fourth, taller one across the meadow with the best view in the park.

It is a Jefferson County Open Space park, so it is free, open from an hour before sunrise to an hour after sunset, and shared with mountain bikers and horses.

Start at the east trailhead on Buffalo Park Road. The Sisters/Sons trail leaves the lot and climbs gently through ponderosa to the base of the Three Sisters, then works along the ridge below the rocks with short scrambles up to the top of each one for anyone who wants them. Past the Sisters, the trail drops into the meadow and meets the Ponderosa and Hidden Fawn trails.

To make the 3-mile loop, take the Brother spur from the Ponderosa trail junction: a quarter mile up to the top of the Brother, a granite dome with a 360-degree view of Evergreen, Mount Blue Sky, and the Continental Divide. Come back down and follow Hidden Fawn or Bluebird Meadow back to the east lot. The trail signs at every junction show the loop names and mileages, and the park map at the trailhead is worth photographing; the network is dense enough to lose track.

From Evergreen, take Colorado 73 south a mile to Buffalo Park Road and turn west; the east trailhead lot is 1.5 miles along on the right, and the west lot with the historic Alderfer ranch buildings is another mile. Both are paved, free, and have toilets. The east lot fills by mid-morning on weekends from spring through fall; the west lot usually has room, and the loop works from either.

Dogs are allowed on leash, and the leash rule is enforced. The loop is a good first hike for kids: short climbs, rocks to sit on, and a summit that feels earned. Mountain bikers use the same trails and are generally polite about it; the Sisters section is the one place where you will want to step aside. The scrambles onto the Sisters are Class 2 on grippy granite and optional. Water is not available in the park. Evergreen Mountain, across Buffalo Park Road from the west lot, adds a 4.5-mile loop with 900 feet of gain for a longer day, and the Denver hikes page lists the other foothills parks within an hour.