Jones Park lies in the high foothills south of Pikes Peak and west of Colorado Springs. The 1,200-acre open-space park includes coniferous forest, aspen groves, high mountain meadows, and the remnants of the original settlers’ cabins, including Loud’s Cabin and its stonework chimney. Bear Creek tumbles through Jones Park, which is accessed by numerous U.S. Forest Service Trails, including the Seven Bridges Trail and the recently constructed Trail 667 which traverses the slopes of Kineo Mountain.
- Location:
- Park Hours:
Dawn to Dusk - Driving Directions:From Colorado Springs, take either 26th Street or Cheyenne Road to North Cheyenne Canyon Road to Gold Camp Road. Park at the Trailhead Parking near the High Drive road gate and walk up High Drive road till you get to Trail #667.
- Trail #667
- This trail is open to motorcycles which are often seen on the trail.
- Pack it in/Pack it out rule applies. Respect other trail users.
- Trail is also known as “Captain Jacks” trail.
- Parks Department:
(719) 520-7529 - Park Weather: NOAA
One of the first routes to Pikes Peak, known as the Bear Creek Trail, traversed through Jones Park.
Joseph C. Jones came to Colorado as part of the 1859 gold rush. Jones filed a “Declaration of Occupancy” in 1873 for 160 acres to establish a hotel and restaurant for travelers using the Bear Creek Trail. Mr. Jones constructed a log house, gardens, and fishing ponds which were stocked with greenback cutthroat trout from the South Platte River. Mr. Jones passed in 1882.
Other families settled in the Jones Park area and established several inns and hotels in the 1890s to serve travelers.
The City of Colorado Springs began to purchase property and water rights in order to construct pipelines in the Bear Creek Watershed and Jones Park area in the 1890s
In 2015, Jones Park consisted of 1,191 acres with 731 acres in El Paso County and 460 acres in Teller County. The City of Colorado Springs approved conveying Jones Park to El Paso County on January 13, 2015, because County ownership would ensure that local officials continue to manage the site and the County would ensuring the site remained open for recreation use.
Here is the Blurb of information one can put into the page.