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Colorado State Parks
Parks > Vega State Park > Trails

Trails

Find a Trail at Vega State Park

All of Vega’s trails are open year-round and offer great views of the surrounding forest and lake.

Seasonally, visitors enjoy wildflower and wildlife viewing, hiking, trail biking, snowshoeing, cross-country skiing, and snowmobiling (South Road Winter Trail only).

Trail Use Rules

  • Dogs are allowed on all trails but MUST BE leashed.
  • Horses, mountain bikes or off-highway vehicles (OHVs) are not allowed on any of Vega’s trails.

Aspen Nature Trail

  • Distance: 2.2 miles one way
  • Difficulty: Easy-moderate
  • Use: Medium
  • Surface: Natural dirt
  • Location: The trail begins at the off-highway vehicle (OHV)/snowmobile staging area parking lot located in the southwest corner of the park. It follows the southern side of the lake and ends at the Aspen Grove Campground.
  • Features: Wildflower viewing in spring and summer. Vegetation is aspen forest and mountain shrub with views of the lake.

Vega Trail

  • Distance: 1.6 miles one way
  • Difficulty: Easy
  • Use: Light
  • Surface: Packed gravel
  • Location: The trailhead is located at the north end of the park. Begin at the Grouse Day Use Area parking lot, follow the lake, and end at Oak Point campground.
  • Features: Wildflower viewing in spring and summer. Includes scrub brush, small oak trees, and views of the lake.

West End Trail

  • Distance: 1 mile one way
  • Difficulty: Easy
  • Use: Light
  • Surface: Packed gravel
  • Location: The trailhead is located at the west end of the park. Begin at the Grouse Day Use Area parking lot and end at the Visitor’s Center.
  • Features: This is a completely exposed connecting trail from Aspen Nature Trail and Vega Trail, although the main use is for fishing access along the dam.

South Road Winter Trail

  • Distance: 2.2 miles one way
  • Difficulty: Easy-Moderate
  • Use: Moderate
  • Surface: In summer, the road is packed gravel. In winter, when it becomes a trail, it is groomed when conditions allow.
  • Location: Access the closed winter road from the OHV/Snowmobile staging area parking lot.
  • Features: This is a road in the summer and not really considered a trail. Although, in winter the road is closed to allow snowmobiles, cross-country skiing, and snowshoeing traffic.

Access to More Trails

The OHV/snowmobile staging area located in the southwest corner of the park provides parking with easy access to the Grand Mesa National Forest, where there are more than 300 miles of trails south of Vega State Park. Instead of going East on the South Road, head due south via Forest Road 262 (Park Creek Road).

Activities on the Grand Mesa include camping, fishing, hiking, hunting, horseback riding, off-highway access, picnicking, trail biking, wildflower and wildlife viewing in the summer; snowmobiling, cross-country skiing and snowshoeing in the winter. Many campers and hunters utilize this road.