Editor’s note: This is part of The Know’s series, Staff Favorites . Each week, we give our opinions on the best that Colorado has to offer for dining, shopping, entertainment, outdoor activities and more. (We’ll also let you in on some hidden gems.)

A short section of orphan railroad tracks is among the reminders of what came before Denver built one of its more inspired flood-mitigation projects, the 39th Avenue Greenway, in the near-northeast part of town.

So is the auto salvage yard that still sits just over a fence from the walking path.

The greenway, which opened five years ago this month , nods to the past of Denver’s Cole and Clayton neighborhoods — for decades a mix of industry and working-class homes — even as the area is changing rapidly.

As it unfurls for a mile going ea

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