One of the best gem near Colorado Springs. It was about 700ft gain and sight is truly worth it. We saw beautiful monarch butterflies on our way. The lake is so peaceful to enjoy, definitely a good hike for family with little champs. The color of the water was amazing with blue dragon flies hovering over the grass and water. There is a paid parking with straight fee of $5.5 for the day.

Decent hike. Incline is fairly steady without much variation. The main trail is a dirt road leading into the mountains. Reservoirs are beautiful, but journey is not as interesting as it can be. Could be good for fishing or hanging out. Did notice some 4x4ers up the trail some. Notes: no dogs allowed. Do have to pay for parking.

Was recommended by someone I met on a different hike, and it did not disappoint at all. Ensure to use GPS as this place is off the beaten path. Would recommend going clockwise. Otherwise, it’s a very tough ascent. Absolutely recommend hiking shoes as there is loose gravel everywhere.

Note to others: you CANNOT go all the way around the second (top) reservoir. You can see a hiking path when you look across the lake; do not be fooled, lest you find yourself with a 7 year old on your back running down a gravel road mountain after nightfall. Hypothetically, speaking, of course, because what parent would be so reckless. However, if you plan to make this 2.5 hour long trip, and therefore begin well before 4:30pm, and you do find yourself on the other side of the lake, find the pictured spot. I hear it is really cool, hypothetically speaking.

It was a good hike up to the reservoir, but worth it. Very quiet and so beautiful I didn't mind that the fish weren't biting

The trail was a little steep, so it was a fun little hike. The lake was beautiful in the evening.

Really lovely hike and the Reservoir is so pretty. Fishing is allowed but no swimming because it's the town's water supply. The trail is quite steep, so it's a little work to get there but it's also not super far.

This is a very popular hike but you can’t take dogs up to the reservoirs because it is used as a water source. There are cameras and the cops will hunt you down on their atv and possibly give you a $800 ticket. I got away with having my dog there because I hiked to the top of Chautauqua Mt first and came down the reservoir trail. I didn’t know about the ‘no dog’ rule at that time. It is hard to find the trail that goes up the mountain. The best views are at the second reservoir and there is a beaver that is below the boulders on the back side. The parking fills up on the weekends by 8am and additional parking can be found at Glen Park or the elementary school.

1.5 miles out and 1.5 back, wide trail, goes up hill for about. 5 miles, then flat and downhill on the return. Was beautiful, quiet, saw maybe 5 people from start to finish. It's just peaceful and very well maintained. *Also, for the ones with furry friends, no animals allowed on the trail. The lakes/ponds are for the people that live there, I belive its their driving water, a lot of signage that days do not go in, swim, fish etc.

We didn’t have the time to go very far on this trail, but even the first part of it is stunning. You’re immediately in the forest with a babbling stream running beside you and mountains towering over you to the right and left. In our week in the area, this was probably my favorite place. Parking is pretty limited, and you have to pay - current price is $5.30. Ticketing is enforced - an officer was checking for parking receipts and writing tickets while we were there. Also, no dogs are allowed on the trails - there’s signs stating an $800 fine.

Sadly, they don't allow dogs anymore. Drove 30 mins to go for a scenic body of water to enjoy a walk with my furry companion AND pay for parking. A fine of $800 for each dog. It's a nice hike, but not dog friendly. Too bad City of Palmer Lake made this ruling. I'm a responsible dog owner too.

This place was shockingly beautiful! With amazing places to hike!

It’s not busy in the morning. Great trail with beginner-intermediate difficulty. I personally couldn’t find many opportunities to take great photos while on the hike. Not 5 starts only because it’s not very scenic, but there are still great stops for photos.

Make sure and get to the second bigger reservoir. Some challenging trails above second reservoir.

This is a lovely park. It gets busy on sunny, summer days, so get there early. The bathrooms and port-a-potties were not well maintained on the Sunday we were there, though it is possible they were serviced on Friday and used heavily that day and the next.