The Spring Creek Trailhead is just behind the Cucharas Water and Sanitation District offices on State Highway 12 in Cuchara, Colorado. The trail leads uphill quickly as it goes in a westward fashion into the Sangre de Cristo's. The trail is well kept and well marked. Except for half a dozen people on dirt bikes and ATV's, we had the trail to ourselves for a couple hours on a Saturday afternoon.

Once the trail gets above the Cuchara Valley, it opens up into large meadows interspersed among the stands of Ponderosa pine and Douglas fir. A number of trails cross the first big meadow but we went straight on to the west and through the evergreen forest until we came to the sign on the left. In this area we came into a lot of aspen. The trail didn't go up or down too much but it did get higher as we went and got wetter, too. Some little valleys along the way felt like little rainforests with all the moss hanging and the wildflowers sticking up through the high grass.

We only went in about 5 miles, headed in the direction of the northerly Indian Creek Trail. It was a beautiful day in a beautiful place and I highly recommend it to anyone. Take your time along the trail and it isn't much more than a walk in the park.