Pole Hill Road

Begin at the forest service road gate. There is enough room at the gate for two or three cars to park. Be respectful as there is a private residence right next to the gate. You'll start off nice and easy for about 100 yards and then be greeted with a tough uphill climb right off the bat. Don't let it get you discouraged, it's not too long. Once you're up there the road flows pretty well. There are many choices for how to hike this network of roads. All the roads interconnect in such a way that it is possible to create multiple loops and figure eights. You need to be somewhat wary as not every road can be used for looping. Some of them are short spurs that lead to dead-end camp sites. If you follow one of those, no biggie, turn around and go back. The northernmost section of this road provides the most spectacular views looking west over the Estes Park valley and into Rocky Mountain National Park. This section of the road also passes through "the Notch" which is a major outcropping of boulders. If you're into this sort of thing, you can multi-task. Get in some good hiking as well as find a few geocaches!