High meadow and peaks along Long Draw Road, the 12-mile dirt climb from the upper Cache la Poudre Canyon to Long Draw Reservoir

Long Draw Road: A High-Country Scenic Drive Above the Poudre Canyon

Long Draw Road is a 12-mile dirt road that leaves the upper Cache la Poudre Canyon and climbs to Long Draw Reservoir, an alpine lake sitting at about 10,030 feet in the headwaters of the Poudre. The turnoff is about 5 miles east of Cameron Pass, and the road ends past the reservoir on the northern boundary of Rocky Mountain National Park. It is one of the most scenic short drives in Northwest Larimer County, and you’ll likely have long stretches of it to yourself.

This is high country with a short season and no services, so a little planning goes a long way. Here is what to know before you point the car up it.

Getting there, and how long it really takes

Almost everyone reaches Long Draw one of two ways: up Highway 14 through the Poudre Canyon from Fort Collins, or over Cameron Pass from Walden and North Park to the west.

Give yourself more time than the map suggests. From Fort Collins it is only about 60 miles to the turnoff, but these are winding canyon roads: plan on a solid 1.5 to 2 hours just to reach the start of Long Draw Road, and longer if you stop along the way (you will). From Walden it is roughly 35 miles over Cameron Pass, close to an hour. Then add the drive itself.

Go on a weekday if you possibly can. The Poudre Canyon gets busy on summer weekends, and this drive is far more enjoyable, and far easier to photograph from, when the road is quiet. A weekday day trip is the sweet spot..

Seasons on Long Draw: When to visit

Long Draw Road opens around July 1 and stays open until the snow closes it, usually sometime in mid-November. There is no winter access by car; once it closes, the route becomes a snowmobile and ski trail. Because the closing date depends on the weather, always check current conditions before a late-season trip.

Mid-summer arnica in bloom along Long Draw Road, the short season when the road is open and the wildflowers peak

Summer Wildflowers

The real highlight up here is the wildflowers. Through mid-summer the meadows along the road fill in with color, and that, more than fall, is the reason to time a visit. If you are chasing autumn color, aim for the last two weeks of September, when the high country turns first, but be realistic about what this particular drive offers.

Cameron Peak Burn Scar

Much of this country burned in the 2020 Cameron Peak Fire, the largest wildfire in Colorado history at nearly 209,000 acres, which ignited in this very area between Cameron Peak and Chambers Lake. You will drive through extensive burn scar: silvered standing timber with young green forest pushing up beneath it. It is a striking, changing landscape, and right now it is part of the story of the upper Poudre.

Open meadow and spruce-fir forest below the peaks on Long Draw Road, the quiet meadow country the drive offers in fall

Fall Color – Red Willows Predominate Over the Golden Aspen

The forest along Long Draw is mostly spruce, fir and lodgepole pine, not aspen. If hillsides of shimmering gold are what you are after, you will find far more of them on the west side of Cameron Pass toward State Forest State Park than up this road. What Long Draw offers in fall is quiet, meadow and willow lining the drainages and ponds, and the reservoir with almost no one else around.

The wide, well-maintained dirt surface of Long Draw Road, passable for a passenger car in dry summer conditions — Long Draw Road is wide and well-maintained.

A rocky forest road running through lodgepole pine under a deep blue sky along Long Draw Road, upper Poudre Canyon, Colorado — Rock in the roadbed on the side spurs.

Do I need 4-Wheel Drive?

Not for Long Draw Road itself. It’s all dirt and generally well maintained and wide, not a narrow shelf with a drop on one side. In dry summer conditions a passenger car can make the trip without trouble. Take it slow, and expect some washboard in places. Nothing to worry about.

Afternoon thunderstorms are the rule up here rather than the exception, so just be aware

And the side spurs off the main road, including the tracks out to the dispersed campsites, are a different animal: rough and rutted, and they genuinely want high clearance and four-wheel drive. Stay on the main road and you are fine.

Long Draw Photo Gallery

What to Look for Along Long Draw Road

What makes the drive worth the time is the variety packed into about 10 miles. You pass creek bottoms with cold snowmelt streams, open subalpine meadows (the wildflowers), stands of lodgepole, the recovering Cameron Peak burn scar, high rock outcrops, and finally the alpine reservoir itself. You can take in nearly all of it from the car, which makes it a good choice on a tight schedule or for anyone not up for a long hike.

This is bighorn sheep country, and the road runs through the headwaters of the Cache la Poudre, the beginning of the river that eventually flows through downtown Fort Collins. At the top, Long Draw Reservoir sits at about 10,030 feet, built in the early twentieth century to store water from the Poudre headwaters. It is about as high as you can drive to a lake in this part of Colorado.

Pearly everlasting on the gravel shoulder, one of the wildflowers to look for along Long Draw Road

Pearly everlasting (Anaphalis margaritacea) colonizing the gravel shoulder.

Alpine yarrow blooming roadside, part of the summer wildflower show along Long Draw Road

Close-up photo of an impressive clump of Alpine Yarrow

Subalpine spruce and fir along Long Draw Road, one of the forest types the drive passes through

Sub-alpine forest along Long Draw Road off Poudre Canyon Highway, Colorado

Spruce and lodgepole framing the road on the approach to Long Draw Reservoir

Spruce and lodgepole pine frame the beginning approach to Long Draw Reservoir

A rough, rocky side spur off Long Draw Road leading to the marked dispersed campsites

A side spur leading to dispersed campsites – rough and rocky

Grouse whortleberry carpeting the forest floor between downed logs along Long Draw Road

Grouse whortleberry line the forest carpet along Long Draw Road

Grouse whortleberry on the forest floor along Long Draw Road, food for wildlife

Close-up shot of Grouse Whortleberry lining the forest floor – food for wildlife.

A cold snowmelt creek running beside the climbing section of Long Draw Road

A delightful mountain stream lines much of the incline sections of Long Draw Road

A snowmelt creek below the recovering Cameron Peak burn scar along Long Draw Road

Fireweed blooming beside a snowmelt creek along Long Draw Road

Fireweed blooms on the side of a rushing mountain stream along Long Draw Road with a backdrop of rock outcroppings, spruce and downed wood.

Fireweed, creek water and rock along Long Draw Road in mid-summer

Honing in on the colors of the fireweed, water, rocks and Colorado blue skies along Long Draw Road

Looking downhill along Long Draw Road between a creek bottom and high rock outcrops

Looking downhill with the stream on one side and cliff faces on the other framing Long Draw Road

Snowmelt water rushing between rocks and summer greenery along Long Draw Road

The rushing water here is a delight for the senses – framed by lush summer greenery and wildflowers.

Wild aster blooming beside a hollowed log along Long Draw Road

Look carefully, and you’ll be impressed by this clump of wild aster next to the hollowed out old log just off Long Draw Road

Meadow arnica along the edge of Long Draw Road in mid-summer

Meadow arnica (Arnica chamissonis) blooming along the road edge.

A young spruce at the base of a high rock outcrop along Long Draw Road

An impressive rock outcropping shields this young spruce tree growing out of rocks along Long Draw Road

Silvered lodgepole in the recovering Cameron Peak burn scar along Long Draw Road

Silvered/Petrified Lodgepole Pine and Colorado blue skies form a backdrop of this burn scar regrowth along Long Draw Road

Long Draw Reservoir, the alpine lake at the end of the drive at about 10,030 feet

Long Draw Reservoir under stunning Colorado blue skies.

Long Draw Reservoir through the trees near mile 11 of Long Draw Road

A shot from approximately mile 11 along Long Draw Reservoir – you can see the water peaking through the trees in the background

A cold snowmelt stream dropping through boulders beside Long Draw Road

One more shot of that rushing mountain stream.

Dining & Shopping

Make It A Day Trip

The drive pairs naturally with the food and stops strung along Highway 14, so it makes an easy full-day outing from Fort Collins. Working your way up the canyon:

Breakfast or early brunch: Start down-canyon at The Mishawaka, the historic riverside spot near the bottom of the canyon. Dine on their outdoor deck overhanging the Poudre River and watch the hummingbirds. It sits well below the drive, so it works best as your first stop on the way up rather than a detour later.
Lunch and shopping: If you get hungry later, stop at Glen Echo Resort and the Poudre Pub, the closest full stop to the turnoff, for lunch, supplies and a little souvenir and gifts browsing.
Maps and conditions: Stop at the Arrowhead Lodge visitor center, the Forest Service visitor center right on Highway 14 just past Rustic/Glen Echo, to check road and fire conditions and pick up a map before you leave pavement.
The drive: Turn off past Chambers Lake and take your time up to the reservoir and back.

The outdoor riverside deck at The Mishawaka, the down-canyon breakfast stop before the drive up Long Draw Road — Deck at the Mishawaka overlooking the Poudre River

The log dining room at Glen Echo Resort, a stop along Highway 14 on the way up to Long Draw Road — Dining Room at Glen Echo Resort

If you want to keep exploring, Long Draw Reservoir fishes for cutthroat, rainbow and brown trout and sits at the heart of the effort to restore native greenback cutthroat to the Poudre. Chambers Lake is right at the turnoff, and Cameron Pass is a few minutes farther west on Highway 14 if you feel like climbing higher.

Camping and Lodging Options Nearby

Overnight Stays -Catch the Sunrise & Sunset

The light up here is spectacular at both ends of the day, but Long Draw is a long, dark, no-signal drive to attempt twice in one day.
If you want to catch sunrise or sunset at the top, or simply not rush, stay close. The nearest options, from every direction:

Long Draw Campground, a small Forest Service campground (25 sites) right at the end of the road at about 10,030 feet. It is first-come, first-served, so arrive early, especially on summer weekends.
Chambers Lake Campground, at the turnoff at 9,200 feet, which you can reserve ahead on Recreation.gov.
From the west, State Forest State Park has campgrounds plus cabins and yurts (including Yonder Yurts near Gould), reserved through Colorado Parks and Wildlife. A Colorado State Parks pass is required.
From the east, The Trading Post Resort offers canyon cabins with an on-site store, an easy basecamp for the drive up.

A shaded campsite at Long Draw Campground, the closest place to stay for sunrise and sunset at the reservoir — A Shady Campsite at Long Draw Campground

Prefer to camp wild? Our Poudre Canyon dispersed camping guide covers the marked dispersed sites off Long Draw Road, and our NW Larimer County camping FAQ answers the practical questions about camping up here.

Before you go

Planning makes every trip a little smoother. Here’s what you need to know:

There are no services

No fuel, water, food or trash facilities anywhere up the road. Fill the tank and stock up in Bellvue, Rustic or Walden before you turn off Highway 14, and pack out everything you bring in.

There is no cell signal

Don’t count on a phone up here for navigation or in an emergency. Download or print your maps before you leave pavement, and tell someone where you are going and when to expect you back. Forest Rangers do regularly patrol up here.

Weather turns fast

Afternoon thunderstorms build over these peaks with little warning, and 10,000 feet is no place to be caught in an electrical storm. Start early, and plan to be heading back to camp or town by mid afternoon.

Fire restrictions apply

This is dry, high-elevation forest, and restrictions change through the season. Check the current stage before you plan any fire; see our Larimer County fire restrictions page for what is in effect right now.

Leave it as you found it

Pack out everything, including what other people left behind. This country stays beautiful because the people who love it carry their trash back down.

Take Your Time

Go on a quiet weekday, take your time, and let the wildflowers and the headwaters be the point. We drive this road ourselves, and every photograph on this page was taken up there.

Author: Faye & Chris

We're Faye and Chris, and we live up here in the Rocky Mountains of Larimer County. Everything on this site comes from actually being out in it — Chris is the driver, and Faye is the writer/photographer. Between us we built the Larimer Wilds apps so other people can find this wild mountain country too. We're not a tourism board and nobody pays us to say any of this. We're two people who love, hike, bike and ride Northwest Larimer County and would rather help you do it right than watch you learn it the hard way.