Little Scraggy Trail

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This trail is heavily used by mountain bikers. Although you have the right-of-way, the western portion of this trail allows them to travel very quickly - keep an eye/ear out.

The easiest way to reach this trail is from the Little Scraggy parking lot on FS Road 550, just west of County Road 126. Note that this is a fee parking area ($5). Free parking options are also available nearby. Another option is to start from the main Buff Creek parking lot at Forest Road 543, climb Nice Kitty and Buffalo Burn to the Little Scraggy parking lot and connect to the trail that way.

This trail has been in progress for a couple of years, thanks in part to COMBA and many others. The east section of Little Scraggy Trail from the TH at FS550 to Kelsey Campground was opened in September 2014, the west section that continues on to the Colorado Trail was just completed (June 2016) and was well worth the wait! Runners can now combine the Little Scraggy Trail with a short section of the CT segment 3 to run the 12.6-mile Little Scraggy Trail Loop.

From the Little Scraggy parking lot, the trail begins just across FS Road 550. The trail winds through the forest and is reminiscent of other trails in Buffalo Creek; the trail is easy-going and has many cool rock features to scramble on.

At the first junction (5.1 miles), take the marked right fork (the left leads to the Kelsey Campground access loop) and begin a gentle climb west through additional rocky and forested sections. At 6.8 miles, you'll reach the beginning of a purpose-built MTB flow section that winds downhill. This section features good visibility and incredible views amidst cool features for another 2.5 miles to the Colorado Trail.

Don't forget to check out the Little Scraggy overlook toward the end of the new section where you get great views of Little Scraggy Dome, a cool (though rarely used) rock climbing area. The next junction is with the Colorado Trail where you can turn right to complete the Little Scraggy Trail Loop back to the parking lot or turn left to continue on the Colorado Trail and to other Buffalo Creek adventures.