Starting at 6 p.m. on Monday, Nov. 16, crews will close the right lane of westbound CO 119 near County Road 5½ and use cranes to lift a pedestrian bridge into place. The work is expected to take one night, and the lane should reopen by 7 a.m. Tuesday. It's the second of two bridges on Phase 13 of the St. Vrain Greenway. That's the stretch running more than two miles northeast from Sandstone Ranch Nature Area to the trail network at St. Vrain State Park.
When it opens, you'll be able to walk or bike from a free city nature area straight into a state park that charges you on foot. The two ends also differ on dogs, hours and parking. The city's construction schedule runs through spring 2027, so this winter is a good time to get to know each end separately.
The Bridge Lift Is One Night in a Plan From 2001
The route itself is old news. Longmont adopted the St. Vrain Greenway Master Plan East Corridor Update in 2001, and it mapped a trail along St. Vrain Creek from Main Street to where the creek meets Boulder Creek. Design wasn't finished until February 2025. The construction bid was completed in September 2025, and crews started in January 2026. The city's current target for finishing is spring 2027. That's about 25 years from the plan on paper to a trail you can walk.
Here's what's being built:
- Two pedestrian bridges. One is north of CO 119 over St. Vrain Creek, and the other is south of the highway, overlooking the creek.
- A concrete underpass beneath CO 119. People on foot and on bikes will cross under the highway instead of across it.
- A 10-foot-wide trail. Parts of it are surfaced with crusher fines instead of the concrete used on the rest of the Greenway. The city chose the crushed rock to reduce runoff and heat and to keep the open-space look along the undeveloped land next to the trail.
The first bridge went in on Sept. 24. Five prefabricated sections were delivered, assembled and lifted by crane in about five hours, with no closures on CO 119. The second one needs the overnight lane closure, and the work zone runs on westbound CO 119 between CR 7 and CR 5½. Traffic has been back to its normal configuration since the Oct. 18–19 shift into Phase 3. Some shoulder closures remain, and the acceleration lane near CR 5½ stays closed.
Part of the project is paid for by a Multimodal Options Fund grant from the Denver Regional Council of Governments, which CDOT administers. Interpretive signs will come later. The city plans to add them in a future phase, and the locations haven't been chosen.
Two Ends, Two Sets of Rules
At the west end, the new trail joins the existing Greenway through the driveway and parking area just west of the Sandstone Ranch Visitor Center. The east end is inside a Colorado Parks and Wildlife property. Here's how the two compare this winter.
| Sandstone Ranch Visitors & Learning Center | St. Vrain State Park | |
|---|---|---|
| Who runs it | City of Longmont | Colorado Parks and Wildlife |
| Cost to get in on foot or bike | Free admission to the Visitors Center | $4 Individual Daily Pass per person |
| Dogs | No pets at the center or on its trails, due to wildlife | Leashed dogs permitted |
| Hours | Regular 2026 Visitors Center hours ended Oct. 24 | Day use 5 a.m. to 10 p.m.; entrance station 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. |
| Parking note | Upper lot limited by construction; overflow at athletic-field lots | Vehicle passes sold separately from walk-in passes |
The dog rule is where these differences matter most. The city's Fall 2026 brochure says no pets are allowed at the Sandstone Ranch Visitors Center or on its trails because of wildlife. CPW lists leashed dogs as permitted at St. Vrain State Park. In its wildlife-viewing guidance, CPW also asks that dogs stay leashed and under control at all times and suggests leaving pets at home for the best viewing.
Sandstone Ranch in the Off-Season
The Visitors & Learning Center is at 3001 Sandstone Drive, and admission is free. The city lists hands-on displays, early Longmont history, a nature trail and a scenic overlook. The guided tours of the Coffin Family Home run 90 minutes and cover pioneer Morse Coffin, his family, the restoration of the house and the ranch's role in the community today.
The regular 2026 schedule has ended. Wednesday hours ran May 6 through Aug. 26, and the second-and-fourth-Saturday hours ended Oct. 24. For upcoming programs, check the city's Sandstone Ranch events page or call 303-651-8404. Programs there require registration and carry a suggested donation of $4 per person unless otherwise noted.
Parking is tight because of the Greenway work. The city says the upper lot has limited spaces during construction. Visitors are asked not to park along the road and to use the nearby athletic-field lots for overflow. From the upper lot, a trail on the west side leads down the hill to the Visitors Center, and accessible parking is next to the building. To get there, turn south onto Sandstone Drive from Highway 119, east of County Line Road, drive past the ball fields and follow the signs to the Visitors Center/Trailhead Parking Lot.
The State Park Side, Pond by Pond
CPW lists seven miles of trails at St. Vrain State Park. These named trails, which add up to just under six miles, are all open to hiking and biking:
- Blue Heron Trail, 1.6 miles
- Pelican Pond Trail, 1.3 miles
- Muskrat Run Nature Trail, 1 mile
- Bald Eagle Pond Trail, 1 mile
- Coot Pond Trail, 0.5 miles
- Red Tail Pond Trail, 0.35 miles
In winter, CPW points visitors to bald eagles along with waterfowl and deer, with views of Longs Peak. CPW also calls the park one of the best places in Colorado for close-range birding. It's known for great blue herons, pelicans, great horned owls, osprey and American kestrels. Picnic tables are on or near Bald Eagle, Blue Heron Reservoir, Mallard, Pintail, Pelican and Sandpiper ponds. Pelican and Sandpiper ponds have universally accessible fishing piers.
Ice fishing is allowed only when conditions permit. CPW names Pelican Pond as a good ice-fishing spot and asks anglers to use caution, carry proper safety gear and follow its safety guidelines.
Through December, Part of the Park Is Being Repaved
If you're heading out to see eagles this month, plan around a paving project. According to CPW, the south campground access road has been closed since Oct. 13, so full-hookup sites 42–87 are unavailable. Trails on the south and east sides of Bald Eagle and Coot ponds, and all of Red Tail Pond, are closed through November and possibly into December 2026. That takes in the short Red Tail Pond Trail and parts of the loops at two of the ponds named in the eagle-viewing guidance. Blue Heron Trail and Pelican Pond Trail, the two longest, aren't on the closure list.
What the $4 Pass Covers
CPW's Individual Daily Pass is required for any entry without a vehicle, including on foot, by bicycle or on horseback. It costs $4, covers only the person holding it, and has to be carried with you inside the park. Daily passes are good until noon the day after you buy them. You buy them at the park entrance gate. CPW notes that not every park has a credit-card kiosk, and paying at a drop box takes exact cash and a pen to fill out the pass slip.
The Keep Colorado Wild Pass, the $29 option offered with Colorado vehicle registration, is tied to your license plate. It covers that vehicle, not a person walking in. CPW sells a separate $29 Individual Annual Pass that covers the holder plus up to three people with them at most state parks. Fees and pass rules are set by Colorado Parks and Wildlife, so check CPW's parks passes page before you go.
CPW lists free state-park entry on Friday, Nov. 27, for Fresh Air Friday, the day after Thanksgiving. It's a no-cost way to try the pond trails before the Greenway connection opens.
Where the Line Goes After Spring 2027
The state park isn't the end of the route. The city says the Phase 13 link will eventually connect to the Weld Legacy Trail east of I-25 in the Town of Firestone. The St. Vrain Greenway is also part of the Colorado Front Range Trail, which is planned to run from Wyoming to New Mexico. Once those links are built, the St. Vrain State Park pass station will sit on a much longer trail than the one Longmont is finishing now.
Until then, the city posts updates on overnight closures and parking changes on its St. Vrain Greenway Phase 13 project page, and CPW posts closures on the St. Vrain State Park page.
I'm always curious which new trail connection is going to change a Longmont weekend routine, and this one ends at a pass station with a herd of pelicans behind it. If you want to talk through how the east side is changing, whether you're out there with binoculars every week or just driving past the cranes on 119, reach out to The Harvey Home Team. Call me. Seriously.
