Maxwell Natural Area

A beautiful foothills natural area where visitors can enjoy scenic views of the mountains and of the city. Listen for the spotted towhees call, which sounds like drink-your-teeeee, and look for mule deer which are common but easily blend into the mountain mahogany shrubs. The rare Bells twinpod grows at Maxwell. Watch out for rattlesnakes here.

Trails

For trail updates including closure information, please visit COTREX at https://trails.colorado.gov/.

The 1.5 mile trail at Maxwell Natural Area is part of the 9.6 mile Foothills Trail which crosses city, county, state and federal lands. The Foothills Trail connects Pineridge, Maxwell and Reservoir Ridge natural areas. Trail markers show you the way. Biking on the Foothills Trail is for the experienced cyclist — the trail is challenging.

View the Natural Areas Map(PDF, 25MB) for more information. This document is provided for printing purposes. For assistance viewing or reading this document, please contact the City's ADA Coordinator via email adacoordinator@fortcollins.gov or phone: 970-416-4254.

Plan Your Visit

Popular times.

Graph of popular times at Maxwell Natural Area. Weekdays start high at 7 a.m. before lowering and gradually rising, peaking at 4-5 p.m. Weekends are much busier, with the highest use from 11 a.m.–2 p.m.