CPW revoked the contract for Never Summer Nordic Yurts in the fall and now says the company must remove 10 yurts and cabins by the end of June
camping
Posted inEnvironment
There’s a crappy situation in Colorado’s backcountry: too many pooping hikers
Outdoor recreation groups hope handing out poop-disposal kits will cut down on the problem piling up on Colorado’s public lands
Posted inOpinion
Drew Litton: Colorado campers endure the other back-to-school rush
More cartoons from The Colorado Sun.
Posted inNews, Outdoors
Welcome to Colorado. Do you have a reservation?
If you want to visit some of Colorado’s most iconic and beautiful outdoor spots this summer, you’re likely going to need to make a reservation. Park officials say the reservations are needed to manage crowds that are growing bigger every year. “It improves their visitor experience because they’re able to find parking at the sites […]
Posted inNews, Outdoors, Outsider
30,000 expected at Rainbow Gathering’s 50th anniversary in Colorado, sparking wildfire concerns
The Rainbow Gathering of the Tribes plans to return to Colorado this summer to celebrate its 50th anniversary. The weeks-long confab that draws tens of thousands of hippie campers to public lands announced this week that the national gathering of possibly 30,000 would be returning to Colorado. The group’s national bacchanal was last in Colorado […]
Posted inClimate, Environment, News, Outdoors
BLM will end free camping at western Colorado’s Rabbit Valley by next spring
So many visitors are heading to Rabbit Valley near the western border of Colorado that the Bureau of Land Management will immediately require camping reservations and begin building or revamping campsites to open no later than next spring. Located west of Fruita in the McInnis Canyons National Conservation Area, Rabbit Valley is managed for motorized […]
Posted inNews, Outdoors
Dispersed camping is out of control in Chaffee County. Officials are seeking solutions.
A surge in recreational camping around Buena Vista and Salida is wreaking havoc on natural areas and spurring public lands managers to mull the closure of dozens of dispersed campsites. In the county that’s 82% public land and home to a fifth of the state’s fourteeners, wildlife populations are plunging in the face of habitat […]
Posted inClimate, Environment, News, Outdoors, Wildfire
As people are increasingly drawn outdoors, the risk of wildfires is rising
In July 2020, Seth Zachek was volunteering at a wildly popular trail in the San Juan mountains just outside of Silverton. The goal: teaching hikers how to tread lightly in the Ice Lakes Basin, a pristine wonderland high in the range. The irony wasn’t lost on Zachek when volunteers discovered a plume of smoke and […]
Posted inBusiness, Coloradans, Economy, Housing, News, Outdoors
Big Agnes started by sketching plans on beer-stained napkins. 20 years later, the gear company is a local hero.
STEAMBOAT SPRINGS — Bill Gamber, co-owner, co-founder and president of tent, sleeping bag—and now, pack—maker Big Agnes, stoops over and picks up an empty Diet Coke can from a willow bush next to the bike path, just a block away from the company’s new headquarters. It’s a small gesture, really, but one that’s symbolic of […]
Posted inColoradans, COVID, Environment, News, Outdoors
Crested Butte’s new camping rules are restoring resources and producing few complaints — so far
CRESTED BUTTE — On a Saturday morning at the end of July, Aaron Drendel, a recreation staff officer with the U.S. Forest Service’s Gunnison Ranger District, walked through Musicians’ Camp, a group camping area along the Slate River. Recent rain seemed to have scared some campers away, leaving several sites empty, but Drendel was focused […]