One-way Distance: 1.5 miles
Difficulty: Easy
Skill level:
Elevation: 6900 - 6925 feet
Cellphone: 1-4 bars
Time: 30 mins.
Trailhead: Dallas Creek
Fee: $7/vehicle
Attractions: Paved path, fishing access
The Marmot Run trail is in the Dallas Creek area of Ridgway State Park about 5 miles north of the town of Ridgway, Colorado. The trail is a paved path that runs through the Dallas Creek day use area connecting the Cookie Tree trail and the Dallas Creek trail. The paved path continues from Dallas Creek all the way into the town of Ridgway as the Uncompahgre River trail.
This post begins at the east end of the Marmot Run trail where it connects with the Cookie Tree trail.
The entire length of the trail, as it passes through the Dallas Creek area of Ridgway State Park, is paralleled by the road that services the same area.
While a road parallels one side of the trail on the other side are the headwaters of Ridgway Reservoir. After completing the trail for this post we stopped for a little bank fishing and had no trouble at all catching enough rainbow trout for dinner. (We were using salmon eggs and powerbait.)
As the trail moves through the Dallas Creek area it passes several restrooms with running water and flush toilets. Some of the restrooms even have drinking fountains outside of them. The amenities at Ridgway State Park are actually very nice. For this visit we had our trailer parked in the Elk Ridge Campground where we had an electrical hookup and access to a camper services building that had a laundromat and showers.
As the trail bends its way past the reservoir it turns up the valley and begins running alongside of the Uncompahgre River that is feeding the reservoir. This is a hot place to be during the fall when the kokanee salmon are running. The fishing can be pretty good throughout the year as well.
With the San Juan Mountains as a backdrop the area around Ridgway has the type of scenery that you never get tired of looking at.
The Marmot Run section of trail comes to an end at the Confluence picnic area. From here you can checkout the Confluence Nature trail and the East Dallas Creek trail or continue on along the paved path to the town of Ridgway. A popular local mountain bike ride is to combine the Uncompahgre River trail with the Marmot Run, Cookie Tree, Pinyon Park, Mears Bay and Enchanted Mesa trails for an epic ride that takes you from Ridgway to the Pa-Co-Chu-Puk area of Ridgway State Park and then back to Ridgway. If you would like to see it for yourself then all you have to do is 'Take a hike'.
