Lulu City From Long Draw Road
From USHikingtrails
Lulu City From Long Draw Road
Originating from the end of Long Draw Road, the Lulu City hike crosses the headwaters of the Colorado River, through the back door of Rocky Mountain National Park and into the Colorado River Valley to the Lulu City townsite. The hike offers terrific views of Mount Richthofen (12,940') and the Never Summer Mountains, the Little Yellowstone Canyon and the Colorado River along the way.
For an easier hike to Lulu City (a similar distance, but less elevation gain/loss), try the Lulu City From The Colorado River Trailhead trail. The trailhead is located on Trail Ridge Road (Hwy 34), about 9.5 miles north of the Grand Lake entrance to the park.
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Trailhead Information
La Poudre Pass Trailhead
Near To: Long Draw Reservoir and Fort Collins, Colorado
Driving Directions To Trailhead
From Ted's Place at Hwy 287 and Hwy 14 north of Fort Collins, drive up the Poudre Canyon (Hwy 14) 53 miles to to the Long Draw Road (Forest Rd 156) turnoff, between Chambers Lake and Joe Wright Reservoir. Turn left (south) on Long Draw Road, and continue for approximately 12 miles, past Long Draw Reservoir, to the end of the road. Long Draw Road dead-ends into the parking lot for the trailhead. Restrooms are available at the trailhead, no water. Moose are often seen in abundance in the meadows and wetlands along Long Draw Road, an unexpected treat on what can otherwise be a long drive from Fort Collins.
NOTE: Long Draw Road is often closed until later in the summer due to a "soft road bed", especially in years with a lot of snow or spring rains. If you are considering hiking this trail (or any other trail with access through Long Draw Road prior to early July, I recommend checking the road status at the US Forest Service Canyon Lakes Ranger District's Forest Road Status Web Page.
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La Poudre Pass Trailhead
Maps & Images Lat: 40.48039 Long: -105.82211
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Trail & Hike Description
Shortly after leaving the trailhead, the trail meets up with the gravel road that follows the Grand Ditch*. You'll soon encounter a chain across the road, with a sign notifying hikers that they are entering Rocky Mountain National Park. Motorized vehicles and dogs are not allowed on the trails in the park, so resist the temptation to bring your dog on this hike; the fines are steep, and there is a ranger cabin just ahead at the bridge that crosses the Grand Ditch. From the trailhead, the route continues on the gravel road for 1.3 miles before dropping into the forest and on to the Colorado River and Lulu City. Although the trek along the gravel road may not be the most picturesque part of the hike, it does provide great views of Mount Richthofen (elevation 12,940') and other peaks of the Never Summer Mountains.
At about 1.3 miles, look for a wooden trail sign directing you to the route into the trees to Lulu City. Take this trail into the evergreen forest. The trail meanders through the forest for about a mile before emerging onto a steep cliff overlooking the North Fork of the Colorado River. The ruggedness of the area and the rock formations and spires have earned the area the name Little Yellowstone Canyon, named for its similarity to the big Yellowstone Canyon in Wyoming - on a reduced scale.
The trail continues its gentle descent toward Lulu City. The trail is well maintained, with bridges or logs crossing the numerous streams along the way, one of which is the headwaters of the Colorado River. As you head toward the valley below, from several vantage points you'll see a large meadow area in the valley. This is the site of Lulu City. The trail will split a couple of times, but follow the wooden trail signs to Lulu City.
As you leave the forest and arrive at the valley floor, proceed until you get to the large meadow area, and look for remnants of the ghost town. There is not much left of Lulu City today. It's hard to even ascertain where the town was located. It's a nice hike in, but we found the site to be a little disappointing (we had the expectations of a ghost town with dilapidated buildings). There are numerous potential foundation depressions, and some brick chunks around on the ground, but the forest has reabsorbed almost all of it. There are no buildings standing, even in poor shape. The surrounding area is more interesting, with numerous old mining site with foundations, remnants of buildings and rusted equipment and hardware.
History Of Lulu City
Joel Shipler, a prospector, built a cabin in 1876 on the edge of a meadow south of the area that was to become Lulu City. He later would discover a silver lode on the mountain that now bears his name. This lead to an influx of miners to the area, and soon plans were laid for a town in the valley, to be namded Lulu City. Lulu City was founded in 1879, and at its height boasted a hotel, assay office, post office, either two or four lumber mills (depending upon which history you read), a biweekly stage coach, an a population of 500. Flowers Road, now the Old Flowers Road hiking trail, was built to connect Lulu City with Fort Collins. However the high cost of extracting and hauling out the low-grade gold, silver and lead ore mined in the area doomed Lulu City, and by 1884 it was largely abandoned. Joel Shipler continued to live in his cabin until around 1914. The Shipler Mine apparently extended only about 100 yards into the earth, and was probably never very profitable.
If you'd like to extend your hike, you can continue south 1.5 miles to the Shipler Cabin Ruins. Another 4/10 of a mile will take you to the Shipler Mine site, where the mine tailings pile are clearly visible.
The Grand Ditch*
The Grand Ditch, which parallels the beginning part of this hike, is visible as a line along the Never Summer Range to the west of Lulu City and the Colorado River Valley. As the population grew along Colorado's eastern plains, the locally available water supplies were not sufficient to support the growth. Colorado's Wetern Slope receives more rainfall, but because it is on the west side of the Continental Divide, it drains into the Colorado River and flows west. In the late 1800s, people began to devise ways to divert the water from the west to the eastern slopes and the Front Range. Construction of the Grand Ditch began in the late 1880s, and by 1936 extended over 14 miles, diverting water from the Never Summer Range over La Poudre Pass into Long Draw Creek, which feeds the Cache La Poudre River which flows through Fort Collins.
Grand Ditch was named after the river whose waters it diverted, the Grand River. Grand River was the original name of the Colorado River. When it joined the Green River in Utah did it become the Colorado River. With some politicing by a Colorado Congressman, in 1921 President Harding signed a bill that renamed the Grand River to the Colorado River.
External Links & References
US Forest Service Canyon Lakes Ranger District's Forest Road Status Web Page (to check the status of Long Draw Road).
Lulu City From Long Draw Road Picture Gallery
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Click on the picture to see a larger version. Contribute additional pictures - the more the better! |
 Dirt road following the Grand Ditch, the first part of the Lulu City Trail |
 View to the southwest from Lulu City Trail |
 Lulu City Trail |
Looking towards site of Lulu City (in the meadow) from Lulu City Trail |
 The Colorado River near Lulu City |
 Lulu City Townsite |
