Difficulty: Beginner ◉
Length: 10.8 miles round trip
Elevation Gain: 750 feet
Dog Friendly: Yes
Trailhead coordinates (copy + paste): 40.6680, -111.4852
Directions: Park at the coordinates, which are at Prospector Park. Follow the Rail Trail away from town for 0.7 miles. At the bridge, follow the sign up the hill to Skid Row, which is a series of switchbacks that connects to Lost Prospector after another 0.7 miles. Follow the trail all the way to Aerie Drive, then walk up it for about 300 feet, where the trail continues on the other side. The next street (Mellow Mountain Drive near Main Street, just past the water tower) marks the end of the trail.
Hugging the hills above town, Lost Prospector is a smooth dirt trail that winds its way through wooded areas and open viewpoints. Once you get up to it, the trail is quite flat and doesn't have any steep or technical sections. Though long, this trail is great for a quick hike, because it can easily be broken up into smaller pieces. For views over Prospector and Park Meadows, start at the trailhead described above. To access only the second part of the trail, which looks over Old Town, follow the parking directions here. (Alteration to these directions: instead of remaining on Freemason the whole time, once you reach Hang Time, turn left up it and connect to Lost Prospector from there, following the signs).
