There’s a New Trail in Town

By now, nearly every follower of PLAN Jeffco knows about the Peaks to Plains Trail and how it winds through the Clear Creek Canyon Open Space Park. The most-recent under-development section has been dubbed “the Gateway Segment”, since it gives visitors a way to walk (or bike) from the middle of Golden, up through the Grant Terry Trail, into Clear Creek Canyon.

But there’s an even better new trail in town – the Welch Ditch Trail, which runs above the Gateway Segment, along the south wall of Clear Creek Canyon.

The Welch Ditch was one of many that delivered mountain snow and rain to population centers near the Front Range. Build in the 1870s by Charles Welch, a local businessman, the Welch Ditch provided water to Golden City and western Jefferson County, enabling businesses, farmers and even the Colorado School of Mines to prosper.

What was (and still is) so special about the Welch Ditch is the wooden flume. If you’ve ever paid attention as you travel along 6^th Avenue as it first enters the Canyon, you’ve wondered how anyone could construct anything along the nearly-sheer rock walls on the south side. The engineers who originally built the Welch Ditch constructed a flume, a human-made channel built out of wood, powered by gravity, open to the skies, that was used to transport water into Golden. The stream from this Ditch powered the brewery and multiple industrial mills as it flowed on to water the farmlands of what is now western Jeffco and Lakewood.

There are two access points to the Welch Ditch. The eastern-most is a down-and-up-again scramble from the Gateway Trailhead, over a small riparian area that’s protected by an elevated trail, then up the south wall to the trail.

At this time of year (mid-August) the chokecherry harvest is in full swing.

The western access point to the Ditch is from the creek-side trail. The Tunnel 1 Trailhead is the closest parking lot. Head west to the Welch Ditch Bridge, then up a flight of steps, and carry on eastward.

The views are spectacular; you’re directly below Mount Galbraith Open Space Park to the north, while Centennial Cone is to the west.

The Welch Ditch Trail is hiker-only. The half-mile long flume has been totally rebuilt of wood protected by creosote. The trails that stretch on either side of the flume are narrow dirt-and-rock, what one would think of as true hiker trails, not especially difficult, with mild ascents and descents. The climbing area, which lies on the Trail, is very well-defined and protected by low concrete walls. When Miss Mountain Manners was hiking the Trail, there were two groups of climbers who seemed to be enjoying themselves, as they scaled the sheer rock walls.

Below the Welch Ditch Trail, the Gateway Segment Trail stretches along Clear Creek. On the photo, the trail is at the bottom, on the south side of Clear Creek. Access to the Trail at this point is west of the Tunnel 1 Trailhead (at the top of the photo), to the Tough Cuss Bridge. This is a wide, stained concrete trail that can readily accommodate hikers, strollers, and even recumbent bikers.  There are brand new (and full flush) restrooms at both Trailheads, along with 136 parking space at the Gateway Trailhead and 41 parking spaces at the Tunnel 1 Trailhead.

Some fun facts and features about the Gateway Segment (taken from the Fact Sheet, dated 8/18/2021 – download your own copy here):

• This segment of the Peaks to Plains Trail includes approximately 22,140 square feet of sidewalk and 47,520 feet (9 miles) of cable on the pedestrian railing.
• The amount of dirt transported to and from the project site could fill 15 Olympic-sized swimming pools.
• 5,280 feet of railing was installed in the Gateway Segment, a true mile-high project.
• 1,495 linear feet of Type 9 Concrete Barrier was built for this project, to create a safety buffer between Hwy 6 and visitors on the trail. This is more than the height of the Empire State Building.
• The Tough Cuss Bridge weighs a total of 85,950 pounds. It was transported in three segments, and required closing the highway for 12 hours to install.
• 128,000 permeable pavers were installed for the Gateway Trailhead parking lot, creating a permeable surface that allows storm water to seep into the ground.
• Many of the walls on this project were constructed with Redi-Rock Blocks, which are a lot like gigantic Legos. In total the project used about 5,254 of these blocks.

Miss Mountain Manners wants to remind everyone at JeffCo Open Space know how proud we at PLAN Jeffco are of the terrific work that they’re doing. The next time you’re in one of our Parks and you see a JCOS Staffer or Volunteer, introduce yourself and say “thank you”.