Betasso Preserve
Betasso Preserve

Betasso Preserve

Mountain vistas, views of golden plains, scenic trails, diverse habitats, and a rich heritage make Betasso Preserve a favorite destination in the foothills.

Trails

  • Betasso Link
    1.3 miles – Difficult
    Hiking Allowed Dogs Allowed Bikes Allowed E-bikes Prohibited Horses Allowed
  • Canyon Loop
    3.3 miles – Moderate/Difficult
    Bike Direction: Counterclockwise
    Bikes prohibited Wednesdays & Saturdays
    Hiking Allowed Dogs Allowed Bikes Allowed E-bikes Prohibited Horses Allowed
  • Loop Link
    0.8 miles – Moderate
    Bikes prohibited Wednesdays & Saturdays
    Hiking Allowed Dogs Allowed Bikes Allowed E-bikes Prohibited Horses Allowed
  • Benjamin Loop
    2.4 miles – Moderate
    Bike Direction: Counterclockwise
    Bikes prohibited Wednesdays & Saturdays
    Hiking Allowed Dogs Allowed Bikes Allowed E-bikes Prohibited Horses Allowed
  • Fourmile Link
    0.8 miles – Moderate
    Horses can only access from the Benjamin Loop due to steep terrain and stairways
    Bikes prohibited Wednesdays & Saturdays
    Hiking Allowed Dogs Allowed Bikes Allowed E-bikes Prohibited Horses Allowed
  • Blanchard Trail
    0.3 miles – Moderate
    This is a short trail made up of 177 steps that lead to the Blanchard Cabin
    Hiking Allowed Dogs Allowed Bikes Prohibited E-bikes Prohibited Horses Prohibited
  • Bummer’s Rock Trail
    0.3 miles – Moderate
    Hiking Allowed Dogs Allowed Bikes Prohibited E-bikes Prohibited Horses Allowed

Profile graphs showing elevation change of the trails at Bestasso Preserve

Regulations

Day Use Only
Pets On Leash
Bikes On Designated Trails Only
No Electric Rideables
No Open Fires
No Hunting/Firearms
No Camping

All Parks & Open Space Regulations

Trailhead Amenities

44 car parking spots across 3 parking lots
2 ADA parking spots (1 van accessible)
Restroom near main trailhead
Several picnic tables located near parking lots
Large 50-person group shelter located near main trailhead Reservation Info
Horse trailer parking available at Bummer’s Rock Trailhead

See Photos

Keep in Mind

  • Hikers and equestrians are encouraged to visit on Wednesdays and Saturdays when bikes are not on the trail.
  • Hiking, horseback riding, and dog-walking (on leash) are allowed on all trails.
  • Due to the popularity of Betasso Preserve, trail sharing and etiquette is particularly important.
  • The Benjamin Loop trail is very steep, narrower than 3-feet wide, and is particularly challenging for novice equestrians and mountain bikers.
  • Equestrians and mountain bikers are strongly encouraged to walk the trail system before riding.
  • Equestrians can access the Fourmile Link trail from the Benjamin Loop only. There is steep terrain and stairways between Fourmile Creek and Fourmile Canyon Drive.
  • E-bikes, electric unicycles, hoverboards, Onewheels, Segways, and similar micro-mobility devices and electric rideables are prohibited.

Photos

Visitation by Day of the Week

Bar chart showing Saturday and Sunday and the busiest days

Visitation by Hour

Bar chart showing 11am is the busiest hour of the day on weekends and 5pm on weekdays

Visitation by Month

Line graph showing May through August are the busiest months of the year

Visitation by Location

Pie chart showing the Main Trailhead is the most visited location at 74%

Along Colorado’s Front Range the sweeping grasslands of the Great Plains rise to meet the rugged peaks of the Southern Rocky Mountains. Where they meet we find the foothills – a zone of geological and biological transition. Foothills ecosystems are made up of diverse landforms such as cliffs, canyons, hills, and meadows. Betasso Preserve has 1,151 acres of plant communities ranging from grasslands, to shrublands to forests that provide habitats for a rich diversity of wildlife.

Mammals

  • Abert’s squirrel
  • Black bear
  • Bobcat
  • Coyote
  • Least chipmunk
  • Little brown bat
  • Mountain lion
  • Mountain vole
  • Mule deer
  • Nuttall’s (mountain) cottontail
  • Northern pocket gopher
  • Red fox
  • Rock squirrel
  • Striped skunk

Birds

  • American crow
  • American kestrel
  • American robin
  • Black-billed magpie
  • Broad-tailed hummingbird
  • Chipping sparrow
  • Common nighthawk
  • Common raven
  • Cooper’s hawk
  • Dark-eyed junco
  • Downy woodpecker
  • Mountain bluebird
  • Mountain chickadee
  • Mourning dove
  • Northern flicker
  • Plumbeous vireo
  • Pygmy nuthatch
  • Red-tailed hawk
  • Steller’s jay
  • Turkey vulture
  • Violet-green swallow
  • White-breasted nuthatch
  • Wild turkey
  • Western tanager

Reptiles

  • Bullsnake
  • Eastern fence lizard

White Wildflowers

  • Mouse ear chickweed (Cerastium spp)
  • Nodding onion (Allium cernum)
  • Porter aster (Aster porteri)
  • Pussytoes (Antennaria sp)
  • Western white clematis (Clematis ligusticifolia)
  • Yarrow (Achillea lanulosa)

Yellow Wildflowers

  • Blanket flower (Gaillardia aristata)
  • Golden banner (Thermopsis divaricarpa)
  • Goldenrod (Solidago sp)
  • Gumweed (Grindelia squarrosa)
  • Heart-leaf arnica (Arnica cordifolia)
  • Hairy false golden aster (Heterotheca villosa)
  • Little sunflower (Helianthus pumilus)
  • Sulphur flower (Eriogonum umbellatum)
  • Western wallflower (Erysimum asperum)
  • Whiskbroom parsley (Harbouria trachypleura)
  • Yellow evening primrose (Oenothera sp)
  • Yellow stonecrop (Amerosedum lanceolatum)

Pink, Orange & Red Wildflowers

  • Fairy trumpet – Scarlet gilia (Ipomopsis aggregata)
  • Spotted coralroot (Corallorizha maculata)
  • Wild geranium (Geranium caespitosum)

Purple & Blue Wildflowers

  • Common harebell (Campanula rotundifolia)
  • Fireweed (Chamerion angustifolium)
  • Greenleaf (low) penstemon (Penstemon virens)
  • Larkspur (Delphinum nelsoni)
  • Lanceleaf chiming bells (Mertensia lanceolata)
  • Mountain larkspur (Delphinium ramosum)
  • One-sided penstemon (Penstemon secundiflorus)
  • Pasqueflower (Pulsatilla patens)
  • Smooth aster (Aster laevis)
  • Tall chiming bells (Mertensia ciliata)
  • Western spiderwort (Tradescantia occidentalis)

Green Wildflowers

  • Fringed silver sage (Artemisia frigida)
  • White sage (Artemisia ludoviciana)

Shrubs

  • Kinnikinnick
  • Oregon grape
  • Prickly rose
  • Yucca

Trees

  • Aspen
  • Common juniper
  • Douglas fir
  • Ponderosa pine

Betasso Preserve is underlain by one of the oldest rock types in Boulder County, Boulder Creek granodiorite. This rock formed from molten material that cooled and hardened very slowly and was then forced upward. Mountain uplift occurred several times in the area. Each time the mountains were eroded down by water and wind to low, rolling hills or flat plains. Around 65 million years ago, the Laramide uplift began, forming great peaks and creating rich minerals, including gold and silver. Today, erosion is the dominant force sculpting Betasso Preserve. The high mountain snow melts each spring allowing you to see how the stream flow continues to shape the landscape.

Homesteading, Mining, and Ranching

In the 1870s, sawmills and mining operations sprang up along Boulder and Fourmile canyons. The town of Orodell was established at the junction of these two canyons, immediately adjacent to the present Betasso Preserve. A general store, post office and school served the visitors and residents of Orodell. Five stage coaches passed through Orodell daily, en route from Boulder to Nederland. In 1883 most of Orodell was destroyed by a fi re and in 1894 the sawmill and gold mill were destroyed in a flood, never to be rebuilt.

Eighteen years passed before the land above Orodell (now Betasso Preserve) was homesteaded. In 1912 the Blanchard family homesteaded 160 acres. In 1915 Steve Betasso, a hard rock miner from Fourmile Canyon, purchased this small ranch. Steve, together with his sons Dick and Ernie, expanded the ranch with their profits from gold and tungsten mining. Using the Betasso Ranch for their cattle operations, Dick and Ernie wintered the cattle on the ranch, driving the herds to Mammoth Basin in the summer to feed on the lush, high-country rangelands.

Boulder County’s First Open Space Purchase

In 1976, Boulder County purchased 712 acres of the ranch from Ernie Betasso. Ernie wanted others to enjoy his land as he had. Until his death in 1983, Ernie helped the Boulder County Parks and Open Space department oversee Betasso Preserve.

Subsequent purchases include the acquisition of the 391 acre Benjamin Property in 2007. The open space now totals 1,181 acres enjoyed by people and wildlife.

Contact Us

Parks & Open Space

8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Monday-Friday

Office Location

5201 St. Vrain Road
Longmont, CO 80503
Map and Directions

Office Hours
8 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Monday-Thursday
Friday by phone, email, or appointment only.
The office is closed to the public Dec. 23-Jan. 1.

Parks are open sunrise to sunset