Open in App
Upload to Gaia GPS
Please wait - Uploading to Gaia GPS
Pierson Park South
Estes Park,
Colorado
(Larimer County)
Last Updated:
06/17/2022
Trail Information
Highlights
The valley below Pierson Mountain is known as Pierson Park. Pierson Park Road South travels through the backcountry south of Estes Park, Colorado. Along the trail, you will find several opportunities to view the iconic 14er, Longs Peak, which is only a few miles to the west. With an abundance of dispersed camping along the road, Pierson Park is a popular destination for those visiting the Rocky Mountain National Park and Estes Park, Colorado.
In 2013, heavy rainfall created havoc on the landscape of the surrounding area. The excessive rain caused a significant landslide from the Twin Sisters Mountain that borders the western edge of Pierson Park Road. The landslide was deemed unstable by the US Forest Service and the Pierson Park Road was basically cut in half by the natural disaster. Today, the once-through road is open as an out-and-back from the north and from the south. Remnants of the landslide are still clearly visible on the eastern slope of Twin Sisters Mountain.
Trail Difficulty and Assessment
Start your next adventure on Pierson Park South
Upgrade your Membership
Unlock all of the details on every Trail Guide and Scout Route.
Start a 7-day Free TrialUploading to Gaia GPS
Share Trail
Trail Navigation
Trail Reviews
4.3/5 (18 reviews)
Open
Rated
4/5
Visited: 06/17/2022
Difficulty Accuracy:
Spot On
Fun trail to spend a couple of hours on but nothing too fun about it in the way of views and obstacles (given, I was out on a cloudy/rainy day so Meeker and Longs were a bit hidden unfortunately). Because the trail was just recently opened, I had to do some clearing of trees on the way in but unfortunately, the saw I keep with me was only large enough to remove one of the trees. I was able to cut a portion of the other tree and then had to drive over it. On the way back, I turned right at Waypoint 3 to do some exploring on USFS 325 and found a couple of nice campsites that could accommodate 3-4 vehicles. Overall, it's an easy trail and fun to kill some time on if you're in the area.
Open
Rated
4/5
Visited: 10/24/2021
Difficulty Accuracy:
Harder
I ran this yesterday. Good weather except slight flurries of snow so light you could barely tell it was snowing, then suddenly bright sunlight. We ran this right after Johnny Park. The description stating that there are no obstacles I find to be incorrect. I'm a fairly experienced offroader but was in an older rig, '77 J10 with a 3" lift on 31" BFG KO2s. I had to be pretty careful with tire placement and hit my differentials more than once. I think this could be something that could turn a newcomer to offroading off if they get damage the first time they take a rig out. We even met someone who seemed to be new at offroading on Johnny Park that was surprised at how difficult it was when the descriptions made it seem like it would be boring, and same thing with Pierson Park.
I'm concerned that with these descriptions newcomers will head out alone and find the trails a lot more difficult than expected. On the other hand, where I was expecting a rather boring day I ended up having some nice challenges to shake out the new lift.
From the Community
Start a free trial and get this level of detail on every trail
guide
Start Free Trial
Print Trail Guide
Purchase
Company
Community
Recent Updates
By clicking "ACCEPT", you agree to be the terms and conditions of each policy linked to above. You also agree to the storing of cookies on your device to facilitate the operation and functionality of our site, enhance and customize your user experience, and to analyze how our site is used.