Origin
Applewood, CO
Late night in Applewood on Tuesday
Local time
3:02 AM
MDT
Current temp
34°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Trip from Applewood, CO to Lakewood, CO
Pin this tripCompiled and reviewed by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy · Last reviewed Apr 21, 2026 · Editorial standards
Drive Time
17m
Distance
8.3 mi
13 km
Drive Score
7/10
Good drive
Same Day?
Yes, doable
Fuel Cost
$1
one way
EV Charging
Unknown
Best Time to Leave
4 AM
0h 16m
★
6 AM
0h 18m
8 AM
0h 21m
10 AM
0h 19m
12 PM
0h 18m
3 PM
0h 19m
5 PM
0h 20m
8 PM
0h 17m
Estimated drive times based on typical traffic patterns. Actual times may vary with weather, construction, and real-time conditions.
Applewood, CO
Piotr Arnoldes
Lakewood, CO
Wikimedia Commons
Trip Overview
If you are planning a quick excursion within Colorado’s Mountain West, the 8.3-mile journey from Applewood to Lakewood is an incredibly efficient trip. Expect to spend about 17 minutes behind the wheel, making this an ideal outing for a single day. You will navigate a mix of local streets and arterial roads, including Simms Street and West 20th Avenue. Budgeting is simple here, as you can expect fuel costs to hover around just $1. Since the entire route is quite brief, there is no need to plan for overnight stays or complex logistics. It is a straightforward, practical connection between these two areas that emphasizes speed and ease of travel.
Main Roads
| Road | Distance | Duration |
|---|---|---|
| West 6th Avenue Freeway | 2 mi | 2m |
| West 20th Avenue | 1.5 mi | 3m |
| Simms Street | 1.5 mi | 3m |
| North Wadsworth Boulevard | 1.4 mi | 2m |
| Eldridge Street | 0.7 mi | 1m |
| Berry Road | 0.3 mi | 1m |
| Union Boulevard | 0.1 mi | <1m |
| Garden Road | <0.1 mi | <1m |
Longest stretch:
West 6th Avenue Freeway
— 2 mi, about 2m
Turn-by-Turn Driving Directions
Step-by-step road directions between Applewood, CO and Lakewood, CO.
1
Start on Garden Road
372 ft
·
16 sec
·
Garden Road
2
Continue on Berry Road
0.3 mi
·
1 min
·
Berry Road
3
Turn right onto CR 18
0.7 mi
·
1 min
·
Eldridge Street
4
At end of road, turn left onto West 20th Avenue
0.2 mi
·
27 sec
·
West 20th Avenue
5
Turn left onto West 20th Avenue
1.3 mi
·
3 min
·
West 20th Avenue
6
Turn right onto Simms Street
1.5 mi
·
3 min
·
Simms Street
7
Continue on Union Boulevard
0.1 mi
·
22 sec
·
Union Boulevard
8
Turn left
0.5 mi
·
1 min
Toward US 6 East
Use the straight / left lanes.
9
Merge onto US 6
2.0 mi
·
2 min
·
West 6th Avenue Freeway
10
Take the exit
0.2 mi
·
26 sec
Toward CO 121 South: Wadsworth Boulevard
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
11
Turn slight right onto CO 121
1.4 mi
·
2 min
·
North Wadsworth Boulevard
12
Continue on CO 121
369 ft
·
15 sec
·
South Wadsworth Boulevard
Use the left lane.
13
Arrive at destination
CO 121
Heads-up: tricky spots
5 of 75 decision points cluster between mile 0.3 and 8.2 — GPS handles the exact turns, but know they're coming. Your lane choice matters more than the turn itself.
4
0.3 mi into trip
|
~1m in
|
CR 18 / Eldridge Street
Turn right onto CR 18 / Eldridge Street
Navigation decision point
5
1 mi into trip
|
~3m in
|
West 20th Avenue
At end of road, turn left onto West 20th Avenue
Navigation decision point
7
4.1 mi into trip
|
~10m in
Turn left toward US 6 East
Lane positioning matters here
Use the straight / left lanes.
Toward US 6 East
6
6.6 mi into trip
|
~13m in
Take the exit toward CO 121 South: Wadsworth Boulevard
Exit ramp - move to the correct lane early. Lane positioning matters here
Use the straight / slight right lanes.
Toward CO 121 South: Wadsworth Boulevard
4
8.2 mi into trip
|
~17m in
|
CO 121 / South Wadsworth Boulevard
Continue onto CO 121 / South Wadsworth Boulevard
Lane positioning matters here
Use the left lane.
Fuel & Cost
Regular Gas
$1.25 one way
$2.50 round trip
$3.83/gal
25.4 MPG avg
3 kg CO2
| Fuel Type | $/gal | One Way | Round Trip |
|---|---|---|---|
| midgrade | $4.05 | $1.32 | $2.65 |
| premium | $4.39 | $1.44 | $2.87 |
| diesel | $5.61 | $1.83 | $3.67 |
No toll roads detected on this route.
Drive Cost (one way)
Fuel
$1
Estimated CO2 emission: 2.9 kg one way. Prices: EIA weekly data, 2026-04-13.
Driving Electric?
About $1 in charging · 0 stops · 67% less CO2
| Vehicle Type | kWh | Stops | DC Fast | Home Charge |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Average EV | 2.5 | 0 | $0.87 | $0.40 |
| Efficient EV | 2.1 | 0 | $0.73 | $0.33 |
| EV Truck/SUV | 3.3 | 0 | $1.16 | $0.53 |
Gas CO2
3 kg
EV CO2
1 kg (67% less)
This trip is well within single-charge range for most EVs. No charging stops needed if you start fully charged.
DC fast charging avg $0.35/kWh. Home charging avg $0.16/kWh. US grid CO2: 0.39 kg/kWh.
Travel Intel
Current conditions at both ends of the drive.
Destination
Lakewood, CO
Late night in Lakewood on Tuesday
Local time
3:02 AM
MDT
Current temp
34°F
Unavailable
Live forecast
Time zone
Same local time
Origin and destination are on the same clock, so arrival timing is easier to judge at a glance.
Temperature spread
Very similar conditions
Both ends of the route are sitting at about the same temperature right now.
Road read
17m on the road
Use the two city cards together: check the sky where you start, then compare it with the local time and temperature at arrival.
Weather data from the National Weather Service. Conditions may change; check closer to your travel date.
What kind of drive is this?
This trip functions primarily as a turn-heavy local drive rather than a long-distance highway cruise. You will spend only 24% of your time on major highways, with the longest uninterrupted stretch being a 2-mile segment on the West 6th Avenue Freeway. Because the majority of your 17-minute drive takes place on surface streets, you should stay alert for frequent turns and changing road conditions. The transition from the local grid to the freeway segment is brief, requiring you to shift your driving style quickly. You won't encounter a monotonous interstate grind, but rather a dynamic, short-range route that demands your full attention at intersections.
Only 24% highway — the rest is turn-by-turn surface driving.
13 navigation steps total — most of the decisions cluster near the start and finish.
Longest single stretch: 2 mi on West 6th Avenue Freeway.
How Hard Is This Drive?
4/10
Expect a hands-on drive with frequent turns and local roads rather than long highway stretches. There are only a few real navigation decisions along the way. The trickiest moment comes around 0.3 miles in near CR 18 / Eldridge Street.
Driving Effort
4/10
Easy - simple navigation with a manageable amount of wheel time
Balances navigation complexity with total wheel time.
This is a straightforward 17m drive. You will face about 7 decision points, but nothing that requires special attention if you follow navigation.
Where does it get tricky?
The main spots that need attention: at 0.3 miles (CR 18 / Eldridge Street): Navigation decision point; at 1 miles (West 20th Avenue): Navigation decision point; at 4.1 miles: Lane positioning matters here.
Elevation Profile
High-altitude sections with notable climbs
5,729 ft
5,440 ft
Total Climb
416 ft
Total Descent
476 ft
Highest Point
5,729 ft
~4.2 mi in
Elevation Range
289 ft
Notable High Points
5,666 ft at ~1 miles
+25 ft prominence
5,665 ft at ~2.8 miles
+32 ft prominence
5,729 ft at ~4.2 miles
+77 ft prominence
About the Cities
Arriving in Lakewood, CO
Full guide →Lakewood is a city of about 160,000 in the Denver Metropolitan Area of the western U.S. state of Colorado. The city lies in Jefferson County, immediately west of Denver and east of the Front Range foothills.
City content from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0) and Wikidata (CC0).
Who Is This Route For?
Weekend Trip
Doable as a same-day drive at 17m. Total distance: 8.3 miles.
Family Friendly
Moderate complexity with 0 natural rest stops along the way.
Solo Traveler
17m drive, comfortable solo distance.
EV Driver
0 DC fast chargers along the route. Coverage: unknown.
First-Time Driver
Mostly highway driving (24%). Straightforward navigation.
Scenic Drive
Mostly surface roads route profile.
Frequently Asked Questions
The longest stretch is about 2 miles on West 6th Avenue Freeway. The full list of main roads is in the Roads section above.
Yes. At under 2 hours behind the wheel, this works well for families — plan one quick stop if you have younger kids.
The main spots that need attention: at 0.3 miles (CR 18 / Eldridge Street): Navigation decision point; at 1 miles (West 20th Avenue): Navigation decision point; at 4.1 miles: Lane positioning matters here.
Yes. A round trip is manageable in a single day if you plan a break at Lakewood, CO before heading back.
How this page is built
Compiled by the US Trip Planner planning team at COD Solutions Oy from open government datasets — OSRM over OpenStreetMap for geometry, EIA for fuel prices, and USGS 3DEP for elevation. See our methodology for refresh cadence and limitations.
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