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Mallory cave

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Highlights:

A short walk, a final 100 ft climb and a cave.
Near:Boulder, CO
Scenery:
Distance:3 miles round trip
Elevation Gain:1015 ft
Hike Time:2 hours
Difficulty:Moderate
Trail Condition:Well maintained trail
HikeType:Out and Back


Summary: This hike starts at the NCAR parking lot. Head west to the Mesa trail and cross it by the information sign. There are lots of offshoot trails, be sure to follow the signs to the final 100 ft rock climb. If there is no ice or snow proceed up to the cave.

NOTE: The cave is seasonally CLOSED from April 1 to October 1 for roosting bats.

Trailhead: In south Boulder, head west on Table Mesa Dr all the way to the NCAR parking lot. Broadway and US 36 cross this road.
(Lat:39.97993 Lon:-105.27398)

Trail Guides for Mallory cave:
Best Seasons: Year-Round
User Groups: Hikers, Dogs,
Ranger Contact: City of Boulder Open Space & Mountain Parks, 303-441-3440
Localhikes Reporter: This hike was submitted by Dennis Camell, who has posted  21 other hikes on this site
Trail Reviews  Page 1 of 2   Submit your own review
Reviewed by Erin on 10/3/2008
My friend and I did this today, WHOO was that fun, quite tiring though...we lost the trail after a bit so be careful about that. AWESOME climbing in that area...I am SO jealous of all the people I saw climbing. But I got my chance at the Mallory Cave slab. It wasn't too bad (although I was a pansy and wore my rock climbing shoes) my friend had a difficult time getting up through the first part of the slab which is a small crevasse that might not be to "big people" friendly...its really steep, and rather hard to do (I am scaring you on purpose so when you get up there your gonna be like this isn't bad at all! Leave you packs at the bottom though...pain in the butt to haul those up

Reviewed by Rena on 6/2/2008
Beautiful hike, took a little less than 3 hours round trip. Started a 2pm so there was adequate shade. Lots of wildflowers in the meadow. Wear good shoes!

Reviewed by Matthew B. on 3/5/2008
Pretty good, I got lost though and somehow ended up on bearcreek trail, which was closed, but I went back and did most of Mallory. Nice trail and easy to get to.

Reviewed by ST on 11/7/2007
A beautiful hike, but not for the faint of heart near the top. The rock climb up to the cave is rather dangerous in my opinion. While the view and cave are great, be careful.

Reviewed by CH on 10/7/2007
Calling this a "short walk" is extremely deceiving! It's about 1 1/2 hours up, and 30 min. down, with steep sections of rock. Do NOT expect to take your dog up the climbing part unless it's small. A man dragged his medium dog 1/2way up, and scared and scraped the dog trying to get it back down. That said, I LOVED the hike-it's probably now my favorite!

Reviewed by T on 8/12/2007
Just walked in the door & I definitely got a work out. A little more than a "short walk" it took 2 hours, The trail had stairs and up hill that is strenuous if you are not use to hiking on a regular basis. Overall the trail felt balanced with up & down hills and rocks and roots. The Cave was closed but we still climbed the wall which was fun too. Too steep for most bigger dogs. I look forward to going back when the cave is open.

Reviewed by Alexis on 8/1/2007
yes it wasn't a short walk, but it was fun. Really hot in the summer, not much shade in the valley part. Really steep and rocky in some parts. Really fun to hike with your family. =] Really good exorcise. the climb up to the cave was really funn but a little scary. but i did have a good time. very beautiful scenery, i thought i saw the devils thumb. really nice hike. looking forward to do it again.

Reviewed by Peg & Aaliyah on 11/27/2006
Saturday afternoon took my 3 year old granddaughter to this hike ~ and she did it!!! It is a great short hike and the climb to the top is well worth the effort. Brought snacks to sit atop and take in a most incredible view of the Boulder valley. The up and down parts of the trail give you time to catch your breath in between!!


Notice: Traveling in the backcountry can be hazardous. You are responsible for informing yourself about these hazards and taking necessary precautions. Information on this web site comes from volunteer reporters and may contain errors or omissions. A current guidebook and proper equipment are essential for safe enjoyment of the hikes posted on this site.
Keys: Colorado Hiking, Colorado Trails, Colorado Hikes, Boulder County Hiking, Boulder County Trails, Boulder County Hikes

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