Colorado Parks and Recreation Areas
You're Here: Home 
Park Guide Worldwide Parks and Recreation Areas USA Parks and Recreation Areas Colorado Parks and Recreation Areas
There are 12 parks and recreation areas in this area.
Pages: 1 2
William and Charles Bent, along with Ceran St. Vrain, built the original fort on this site in 1833 to trade with plains Indians and trappers. The adobe fort quickly became the center of the Bent, St.Vrain Company's expanding trade empire that included Fort St.Vrain to the north and Fort Adobe to the south, along with company stores in Mexico at Taos and Santa Fe. The primary trade was with the Southern Cheyenne and Arapaho Indians for buffalo robes. read more...
Phone: 719-383-5010 Price Range: $2 - $3 Open Season: N/A Camping: No
Nearest Popular City: La Junta Nearest Lake or River: N/A Park Type: National Historic Site Activities: Birding, Interpretive Programs Details Provided By: Bent'S Old Fort
Established on January 26, 1915, Rocky Mountain National Park is a living showcase of the grandeur of the Rocky Mountains. With elevations ranging from 8,000 feet in the wet, grassy valleys to 14,259 feet at the weather-ravaged top of Long's Peak, a visitor to the park has opportunities for countless breathtaking experiences and adventures. read more...
Phone: 970-586-1206 Price Range: $0 - $10 Open Season: N/A Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: Estes Park Nearest Lake or River: N/A Park Type: National Park Activities: Backpacking, Biking / Bicycling, Birding, Cross Country Skiing, Downhill Skiing, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Rock Climbing, Wildlife Watching, Camping, Auto Touring, Nature Walks, Interpretive Programs, Snowshoeing, Star Gazing Details Provided By: Rocky Mountain National Park
Three reservoirs, named for corresponding dams on the Gunnison River, form the heart of Curecanti National Recreation Area. Panoramic mesas, fjord-like reservoirs, and deep, steep and narrow canyons abound. read more...
Phone: 970-641-2337 Price Range: N/A Open Season: N/A Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: Gunnison Nearest Lake or River: N/A Park Type: Recreation Area Activities: Birding, Boating and Watercraft, Cross Country Skiing, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Hunting and Shooting, Kayaking, Rock Climbing, Swimming, Whitewater Rafting, Wildlife Watching, Camping, Auto Touring, Nature Walks, Interpretive Programs, Snowshoeing, Star Gazing, Snowmobiling Details Provided By: Curecanti National Recreation Area
A beautiful mountain valley just west of Pikes Peak holds spectacular remnants of the earth's prehistoric life. Huge petrified redwoods and incredibly detailed fossils of ancient insects and plants reveal a very different Colorado of long ago. Almost 35 million years ago, enormous volcanic eruptions buried the then-lush valley and petrified the redwood trees that grew there. A lake formed in the valley and the fine-grained sediments at its bottom became the final resting-place for thousands of insects and plants. These sediments compacted into layers of shale and preserved the delicate details of these organisms as fossils. read more...
Phone: (719)748-3253 Price Range: $0 - $3 Open Season: N/A Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: Florissant Nearest Lake or River: N/A Park Type: National Monument Activities: Birding, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Wildlife Watching, Nature Walks Details Provided By: Florissant Fossil Beds
Mesa Verde, Spanish for green table, offers an unparalleled opportunity to see and experience a unique cultural and physical landscape. The culture represented at Mesa Verde reflects more than 700 years of history. From approximately A.D. 600 through A.D. 1300 people lived and flourished in communities throughout the area, eventually building elaborate stone villages in the sheltered alcoves of the canyon walls. Today most people call these sheltered villages cliff dwellings. The cliff dwellings represent the last 75 to 100 years of occupation at Mesa Verde. In the late 1200s within the span of one or two generations, they left their homes and moved away. read more...
Phone: 970-529-4465 Price Range: $3 - $10 Open Season: N/A Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: Mesa Verde Nearest Lake or River: N/A Park Type: National Park Activities: Birding, Cross Country Skiing, Hiking, Wildlife Watching, Camping, Nature Walks, Interpretive Programs, Snowshoeing, Star Gazing Details Provided By: Mesa Verde National Park
Nestled in southern Colorado, North America's tallest dunes rise over 750 feet high against the rugged Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The wind-shaped dunes glow beneath the rugged backdrop of the mountains. This geologic wonderland, containing over 30 square miles of massive dunes, became a national monument in 1932. With the passage of the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve Act, resources now also include alpine lakes and tundra, six peaks over 13,000' in elevation, ancient spruce and pine forests, large stands of aspen and cottonwood, grasslands, and wetlands--all habitat for diverse wildlife and plant species. read more...
Phone: 719-378-6300 Price Range: $0 - $3 Open Season: N/A Camping: No
Nearest Popular City: Mosca Nearest Lake or River: N/A Park Type: National Park, National Preserve Activities: Backpacking, Birding, Cross Country Skiing, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Rock Climbing, Wildlife Watching, Camping, Auto Touring, Nature Walks, Snowshoeing, Star Gazing Details Provided By: Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve
The Black Canyon of the Gunnison's unique and spectacular landscape was formed slowly by the action of water and rock scouring down through hard Proterozoic crystalline rock. No other canyon in North America combines the narrow opening, sheer walls, and startling depths offered by the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. read more...
Phone: 970-641-2337 Price Range: $5 - $10 Open Season: N/A Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: Gunnison Nearest Lake or River: N/A Park Type: National Park Activities: Backpacking, Birding, Cross Country Skiing, Fishing, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Kayaking, Rock Climbing, Wildlife Watching, Camping, Auto Touring, Nature Walks, Interpretive Programs, Snowshoeing, Star Gazing Details Provided By: Black Canyon of the Gunnison
Colorado National Monument preserves one of the grand landscapes of the American West. Sheer-walled canyons, towering monoliths, colorful formations, desert bighorn sheep, soaring eagles, and a spectacular road reflect the environment and history of the plateau-and-canyon country. Historic Rim Rock Drive offers 23 miles of breathtaking panoramic views and numerous overlooks. Trails lead across mesa tops and to spectacular overlooks or into backcountry canyons. read more...
Phone: 970-858-3617 Price Range: $3 - $5 Open Season: N/A Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: Fruita Nearest Lake or River: N/A Park Type: National Monument Activities: Biking / Bicycling, Hiking, Horseback Riding, Rock Climbing, Wildlife Watching, Camping, Auto Touring Details Provided By: Colorado National Monument
The Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site was authorized by Public Law 106-465 on November 7, 2000. The purposes of the Act are to recognize the national significance of the massacre in American history, and its ongoing signficance to the Cheyenne and Arapaho people and descendents of the massacre victims. The Act authorizes establishment of the national historic site once the NPS has acquired sufficient land from willing sellers to preserve, commemorate, and interpret the massacre. Acquisition of a sufficient amount of land has not yet occured. Currently, the majority of land within the authorized boundary is privately owned and is not open to the public. The NPS is working in partnership with The Conservation Fund, the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, and the State of Colorado towards establishment of the Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site. read more...
Phone: 719-438-5916 Price Range: N/A Open Season: N/A Camping: No
Nearest Popular City: Eads Nearest Lake or River: N/A Park Type: National Historic Site Activities: Details Provided By: Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site
Hovenweep National Monument protects five prehistoric, Puebloan-era villages spread over a twenty-mile expanse of mesa tops and canyons along the Utah-Colorado border. Multi-storied towers perched on canyon rims and balanced on boulders lead visitors to marvel at the skill and motivation of their builders.
Phone: (970)562-4282 Price Range: $3 - $6 Open Season: N/A Camping: Yes
Nearest Popular City: Cortez Nearest Lake or River: N/A Park Type: National Monument Activities: Hiking, Camping, Interpretive Programs, Star Gazing Details Provided By: Hovenweep National Monument