Outside Denver Part 4 - The Garden of the Gods!

The Garden of the Gods is close to Colorado Springs, and boasts some incredible rock formations. The park used to belong to Charles Elliott Perkins, the head of the Burlington Railroad. Although he first bought the land to use as a home, he never built anything. Instead, he made it open to the public for everyone to enjoy. It was officially made a public park in 1909, when Perkins’ children gave the land to the City of Colorado Springs.

So how did the park get its name? In 1859, two men were exploring around Colorado Springs for a place to build a new town. When they came across the rock formations in the center of Garden of the Gods, one said that it would be a great place for a beer garden. His friend replied, “A beer garden? Why it is a fit place for the Gods to assemble. We will call it the Garden of the Gods.” That has been the park’s name since then!

There are 15 miles of trails around the park for those who love to walk and hike. Dogs are welcome, as are those who would rather ride their bikes! There are also stables nearby where you can take a guided trail ride on horseback, and get a new perspective on the park!

If you just want to relax and take in the beautiful scenery, there are two picnic areas in the park. Bring food, friends, and a camera and enjoy the Garden of the Gods!

Formation: a structure or arrangement of something 

Outside Denver - Part 3! Great Sand Dunes National Monument

Great Sand Dunes National Monument

Located in the San Luis Valley, the Great Sand Dunes National Monument is unique among Colorado’s many parks and natural spaces. The tallest dune is about 1200 feet high, making the dunes the tallest in all of North America. The scenery here is unlike any other part of Colorado, making Great Sand Dunes National Monument a great place to visit!

So what made these strange sand dunes? Thousands of years ago, lakes covered the floor of the San Luis Valley. Over time, the lakes dried up, leaving behind the sediment from the bottom. As winds blew across the valley, the sediment was pushed against the mountains and created the stunning dunes you can see today.

The Great Sand Dunes are about as close to a beach vacation as you can get in Colorado! Medano and Sand Creeks flow in front of the dunes, so bring your swimsuit, cool off in the water and build some sandcastles! There are a lot of campsites at the dunes, but you’d better come early if you want to get the ones closest to the water.

You can get an amazing view of the valley if you climb the dunes – but get started early or it will be very hot! Bring a sled with you, and you can sled down the sandy faces of the dunes.

Nearby Zapata Falls is a great short hike if the dunes are getting a little too hot for you! The water cascades down an enclosed canyon which is cool and damp – a great break from the heat in the valley below!

Sediment: matter (sand, dust, rocks, etc) that settles at the bottom of a liquid

Outside Denver – Part 2!

Roxborough State Park

If you only have an afternoon free, but you want to go somewhere great near Denver where you can enjoy the outdoors, then you should absolutely visit Roxborough State Park. Only 45 minutes away from downtown Denver, it’s a perfect destination for a short day trip.

Roxborough State Park is a designated Colorado Natural Area, National Cultural District and National Natural Landmark. It is most famous for the “Fountain Formation”, which runs the length of the park. Huge pieces of red sandstone, left over from the formation of the Rocky Mountains, stick up from the ground at an angle, creating a beautiful ridge which can be seen from any of the park’s trails.

The park has a great Visitors’ Center where you can learn more about geology and the wildlife that call the park home. There is a list inside of all the wildlife sightings park visitors have reported recently – Roxborough is an especially great place to see deer. There are also educational programs at the Visitors’ Center which anyone can take part in – like classes about the different types of birds and flowers that are found in the park, and guided hikes where a park ranger will tell you more about the history of Roxborough.

Roxborough is not a big park, but has many different ecosystems, so it is just as diverse and interesting as many of the bigger parks. After your hike at Roxborough, you can visit the other outdoor attractions nearby, like the Chatfield Reservoir (perfect for swimming on a hot day) and the Denver Botanic Gardens at Chatfield.

designated: assign a specific status or quality to something

geology: science that deals with Earth's physical structure and substance (rocks, mountains, etc.)

ecosystems: a community of animals, plants, and other organisms and the environments they live in

Outside Denver - Part 1!

Outside Denver – Part 1!

Denver is an amazing city that has everything you could need…almost. Colorado has a lot to offer outside Denver – like our mountains! The mountains bring people from all over the world to Colorado, but there are so many amazing places to go – how are you going to choose?

I am here to help!

Rocky Mountain National Park

Rocky Mountain National Park is Colorado’s most famous park. It is HUGE. The park is 415 square miles in size, with over 300 miles of hiking trails. It is home to a lot of Colorado wildlife, like bears, deer, elk, moose, coyotes, marmots, and all kinds of birds. It has thick forests and barren alpine tundra landscapes. If you are looking for incredible scenery, this is it!

The park is also home to the highest National Park Service building in the contiguous United States (all the states minus Alaska and Hawaii). The Alpine Visitors' Center is at about 12,000 feet above sea level, and is only open for 3 months every year! From the viewing area, you can use binoculars to see the herds of elk grazing in the fields below. You can reach the Alpine Visitors' Center from Trail Ridge Road, a drive that takes you above treeline (where tall trees stop growing) into the tundra. Tundra is a landscape that is so cold most of the year that only a few plants and no trees can grow. If you visit the park in the Spring and are lucky, you will get to see the tundra flowers bloom, like these Alpine Forget-Me-Nots!

So if you love hiking, seeing wildlife and experiencing Colorado's best views, go to Rocky Mountain National Park this Summer!

Kat