Colorado Parks and Wildlife To Raise Camping Fees Effective Nov. 1

To assure the continued high quality of Colorado's State Parks, Colorado Parks and Wildlife announces increases to basic, electric, full hook-up and cabin/yurt camping fees at the 33 parks where camping is available, effective Nov. 1. This is the first increase in camping fees since 2010.

“Our wonderful state parks require a large amount of maintenance, and rising costs of utilities, equipment and personnel has made this fee increase imperative,” said CPW Statewide Parks Pass and Reservations Coordinator, Devon Adams.

The change was approved by the Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission at its September meeting. Depending upon the type of site, fee increases range from $2 to $10 per night.

Yurts and cabins incurred the greatest hike, but CPW notes the experience for campers provides a cost-effective getaway.

“Some of Colorado’s most pristine sights and panoramic views are found at state parks that offer cabins and yurts, some still as low as $70/night,” adds Adams. “It is a great deal and no wonder our most popular camping sites fill up six months in advance.”

CPW has more than 3,900 campsites available, many including electrical hookups and close-by restroom and shower facilities, plus 50 cabins and yurts located throughout the state at elevations ranging from approximately 3,800 to 9,400 feet. Almost 300 campsites are ADA accessible. More information is available here.

The current camping fees will not change for those who have already made future reservations.

Most camping fees range from $10 - $28, not including the reservation fee and park pass. Every vehicle entering the park, including RVs and towed vehicles, must have a park pass for each day. Annual park passes are $70, and most daily parks passes are $7.



Jeff
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Outdoor Survival - Fire

In this episode of the Colorado Parks & Wildlife outdoor survival video series, outdoor expert Peter Kummerfeldt discusses techniques for starting fires in a survival situation:




Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

Outdoor Survival - Shelter

In this episode of the Colorado Parks & Wildlife outdoor survival video series, outdoor expert Peter Kummerfeldt discusses the use of shelters in a survival situation. He has some fairly surprising recommendations on what you should bring into the wilderness:




Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

Outdoor Survival - Clothing

In this episode of the Colorado Parks & Wildlife outdoor survival video series, outdoor expert Peter Kummerfeldt discusses clothing (your only dependable shelter) and layering:




Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

Signaling

In this episode of the Colorado Parks & Wildlife outdoor survival video series, outdoor expert Peter Kummerfeldt discusses signaling for help in the backcountry:



Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

Map & Compass

In this episode of the Colorado Parks & Wildlife outdoor survival video series, outdoor expert Peter Kummerfeldt discusses the use of maps and compass in the field:




Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

Outdoor Survival - Hydration

In this episode of the Colorado Parks & Wildlife outdoor survival video series, outdoor expert Peter Kummerfeldt discusses hydration in the field:




Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

Outdoor Survival - Controlling Panic

In this episode of the Colorado Parks & Wildlife outdoor survival video series, outdoor expert Peter Kummerfeldt discusses controlling panic, including the elements of S.T.O.P.:




Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

The Survival Kit

In this episode of the Colorado Parks & Wildlife outdoor survival video series, outdoor expert Peter Kummerfeldt discusses the survival kit, including the three main components of that kit: fire, shelter and signal.




Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

Understanding Survival

In this episode of the Colorado Parks & Wildlife outdoor survival video series, outdoor expert Peter Kummerfeldt discusses weather, lightning and altitude:




Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

Defining Survival

Below is the first in a series of outdoor survival videos, produced by Colorado Parks & Wildlife, that I will be posting on this blog over the next several weeks. Each episode deals with a different aspect of survival in the outdoors. Although the videos are geared towards hunters and fishermen, the excellent advice and tips they provide are applicable to anyone who ventures into the wilderness, including hikers and backpackers. Preparation and knowledge are the keys to surviving any number of events that could happen while in the wilderness.




Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

Colorado Parks and Wildlife Opens 2013 Let’s Camp! Program for First-time Campers

Calling all new campers and those who’ve always wanted to learn to camp. Registration is now open for Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s 2013 Let’s Camp! program. This year’s program will be held at Cheyenne Mountain State Park and Lake Pueblo State Park. Let’s Camp! covers all the fundamentals of camping, from setting up tents to smoothly taking things down in a safe and comfortable setting.

Offered in partnership with The North Face’s Explore Your Parks, the Let’s Camp! program introduces families to the great outdoors with experienced staff and volunteers who are available to answer questions and teach the basics in a relaxing and fun environment. No prior outdoor experience is required.

The overnight adventure will include all the fundamentals of camping, from set up to break down in a safe, comfortable, and relaxed setting. This program is perfect for beginners who are looking to develop confidence for rewarding outdoor experiences in the future.

All equipment except food, sleeping bags and personal utensils/dishes will be available for participants who need it. Don’t worry, the program will also provide you with a list of food you should bring and show you how to cook it, camping style!

The Let’s Camp! Program will take place from Sunday morning through Monday afternoon.

The cost is $34 per family/group at Lake Pueblo State Park, or $40 per group at Cheyenne Mountain State Park. Groups can have up to six participants and a maximum of two tents. One 6-person tent will be provided.

· June 2-3: Lake Pueblo State Park ($34)
· June 30-July 1: Cheyenne Mountain State Park ($40)
· July 14-15: Cheyenne Mountain State Park ($40)
· Aug. 4-5: Lake Pueblo State Park ($34)

Space is limited to ten families per program so early registration is encouraged. For more information about the Let’s Camp! Program and to reserve your spot today, click here.


Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

Colorado Parks & Wildlife: Bears have emerged from winter dens

Black bears have emerged from their winter dens and it's time for Colorado residents to take precautions to help keep bears wild.

Because of dry conditions in some parts of the state, Colorado Parks and Wildlife officials are cautioning residents that bear activity in towns and residential areas may be high again this year. Human-bear conflicts are a fact of life in Colorado, but with some simple actions residents of bear country can help to significantly reduce those conflicts.

The biggest issue in conflict situations is the availability of human sources of food -- garbage, pet food, livestock food, compost piles, bird feeders, chicken pens, etc. Bears have a phenomenal sense of smell and can pick up odors of food sources from miles away.

"Bears receive a big calorie reward if they get into something like pet food, or bird seed or leftover pizza," explained Patt Dorsey, southwest regional manager for Colorado Parks and Wildlife. "Once they get a taste they quickly become habituated to human food and conflicts start. When that happens, things usually don't go well for the bear."

Once black bears have discovered a food source they may defend it and can become dangerous. Those types of situations can be dangerous and it is undesirable to have wild, unpredictable animals in close proximity to people.

"Some bears can be relocated. But bears deemed dangerous must be destroyed. We put down problem bears because we have to, not because we want to," Dorsey said.

From the Front Range to the mountains to the Western Slope, Colorado offers bears good natural habitat. Bears will go to the areas with the best food availability, and it's best that they find their food in the wild. If food sources in town are limited, bears will likely spend more time in wild lands.

Colorado residents play a major role in keeping bears wild, explained Renzo DelPiccolo, area wildlife manager in Montrose. "The public can help us by being conscientious and not leaving any types of food available to bears," DelPiccolo said. "Without the public's diligence in reducing human sources of food, we have limited success in avoiding and reducing conflicts."

Colorado Parks and Wildlife ask that residents follow the following tips to keep bears out of trouble and to reduce conflicts:

- Obtain a bear-resistant trash can or dumpster. Check with local authorities or your trash service to determine what types can be used where you live. Keep garbage in a well-secured location; and only put out garbage on the morning of pickup.

 - Clean garbage cans regularly to eliminate food odors. If you don't have secure storage, put food scraps and items that might become smelly into the freezer. Then put them in the trash on pick-up day.

- Don't leave pet food or feeding bowls outside.

- Attract birds naturally to your yard or garden with flowers and water features. For those who use bird feeders, suspend them high above the ground so that they're inaccessible to bears; clean up beneath them every day and bring them in at night,

- Tightly secure any compost piles. Bears are attracted to the scent of rotting food.

- Clean-up thoroughly after picnics in the yard or on the deck. Don't allow food odors to linger.

- If you have fruit trees, pick fruit before it gets too ripe. Don't allow fruit to fall and rot on the ground.

- If you keep chickens or other small livestock, build a secure enclosure and bring the animals inside at night. Clean up pens regularly to reduce odors.

- Keep the bottom floor windows of your house and garage doors closed when you're not at home. Lock car doors.

- Never intentionally feed bears or other wildlife. It's illegal and dangerous.

- When backcountry camping, hang food high in trees; at campgrounds, lock food and trash in vehicles.

- For more information, go to the Living with Wildlife section on the Colorado Parks and Wildlife website: http://wildlife.state.co.us/WildlifeSpecies/LivingWithWildlife/Pages/LivingWith.aspx.

If you know of someone in your neighborhood or town who is intentionally feeding wildlife, please call the nearest Colorado Parks and Wildlife office to make a report.

If you would like a wildlife officer to come to your neighborhood or homeowners' association to talk about bears or other wildlife issues, contact your local Parks and Wildlife office.


Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

Colorado Parks and Wildlife Considering Use of Unmanned Aircraft for Wildlife Management

Colorado Parks and Wildlife and the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) will work together to evaluate whether small unmanned aircraft operated by the USGS can save state wildlife managers time, money and offer a safer and enhanced alternative to gather greater sage-grouse data.

On Wednesday, April 3 beginning at 5:30 p.m. at the CSU Cooperative Extension Hall in Kremmling, interested members of the public can see the aircraft and learn more about its benefits for science and wildlife management as well as its cost saving potential. Representatives from Colorado Parks and Wildlife, the USGS and the Bureau of Land Management will on hand to answer questions.

"The aircraft proved successful in other recent wildlife inventory projects conducted by USGS," said Lyle Sidener, area wildlife manager for Colorado Parks and Wildlife in Hot Sulphur Springs. "We are interested to see if greater sage-grouse will tolerate the craft flying near their leks at the lower altitudes necessary to provide useful data."

A "lek" is the traditional breeding ground where males perform a distinctive, dramatic and complex dance to attract mates in a ritual believed to be thousands of years old.

The evaluation will occur on both public and private land. Local landowners where flights are planned have been consulted and have agreed to allow the craft to fly near leks on their property.

Currently, to gather the critical data necessary for effective management, Colorado's wildlife managers spend enormous amounts of time in the air every year; however, data from low-flying helicopters and fixed-wing aircraft is often difficult to obtain and can be unsafe for employees. In addition, wildlife managers estimate that the cost saving potential is substantial, with the expense of unmanned aircraft being a fraction of the costs of manned flights.

Because the small unmanned aircraft is smaller, less noisy and can fly safely as low as 150 feet off the ground, it may provide wildlife managers with views of known, historic, or undiscovered leks currently inaccessible due to snow, mud and difficult terrain.

"It could prove to be an invaluable tool," said Brad Petch, senior terrestrial biologist for Colorado Parks and Wildlife. "Manned flights will always be necessary, but if a smaller, less expensive remote controlled aircraft can give us safer access and views we have not had in the past, wildlife will certainly benefit, and so will the citizens of Colorado."

Greater sage-grouse are an important and iconic species found in Colorado and several other western states. In recent years, Colorado Parks and Wildlife, local governments, stakeholder groups, landowners and land management agencies have been collaborating on strategies to preserve and increase the species' numbers across the northwest part of the state.

The aircraft, or sUAS, weighs 4.2 pounds, measures 36 inches in length and has a 54-inch wingspan. It carries two types of cameras, is remote controlled and flies from 100 to 400 feet above ground. Its flight duration is 60 minutes can be flown within line of sight up to one mile from the pilots location.

Additional information about the USGS sUAS program, including video of the aircraft in flight, can be found here.


Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com

Pueblo's 17th Annual 'Eagle Days'

Colorado Parks and Wildlife's 2013 "Eagle Days" festival features eagle-viewing opportunities, hands-on activities for youngsters, live bird programs and educational presentations by raptor experts.

This year's festival, Feb. 1-3, takes place at three locations: Lake Pueblo State Park, the Pueblo Nature & Raptor Center and the Pueblo Zoo. Each year the event draws hundreds of visitors from across the state to learn more about these unique birds of prey.

Numerous bald eagles spend the winter at Lake Pueblo State Park and the Pueblo Reservoir State Wildlife Area. They roost in the large trees and dine on fish from the large expanse of open water.

The area around Pueblo Reservoir offers excellent opportunities to view a variety of birds of prey year-round, but during the winter months, the bald eagles are the star attraction. The eagles tend to gather at the west end of the lake, but park employees and visitors report sighting individual eagles around the south marina, the Boggs Creek area and the river corridor below the dam.

Programs at the Park Visitor Center and entry to the Visitor Center from Hwy. 96 are free, but vehicles are required to have a Park's Pass if they enter or drive through other portions of the park.

The festival starts Friday, Feb. 1 at 6:30 p.m. at the Lake Pueblo State Park auditorium with the announcement of the winners from this year's photo contest and a slideshow by Colorado photographer and premiere taxidermist Todd Huffman. Activities continue from 9 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday and 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. on Sunday.

The schedule of events:

Friday, Feb. 1:
6:30 p.m. – Colorado photographer Todd Huffman will present a "Spectacular Colorado Slideshow" at the Eagle Day Photography Contest Awards Ceremony at the Park Visitor's Center Auditorium.

Saturday, Feb. 2:
Ongoing all day - "Eagle Viewing" through spotting scopes at west fishing area at Lake Pueblo State Park, and kids' activities including making owl puppets, owl cookies and badge making at the Park HQ.
9 a.m. - Live Raptors Demonstration" by Diane Miller at the Pueblo Raptor & Nature Center, next to Lake Pueblo State Park.
10 a.m. - "Scamper, Gallop and Fly: The Wildlife of Colorado," by nature author Mary Taylor Young.
11:30 a.m. – "Air Force Academy Falcons Demonstration" by USAFA Cadets.
Noon - The Pueblo Mountain Park will present a program and activities for kids of all ages.
1 p.m. - "Bird Conservation on National Forest Lands" by Richard Roth, retired U.S. Forest Service biologist.
2 p.m. - "Bald Eagles," by Bernadette Atencio of the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service.
3 p.m. – Release of a rehabilitated raptor at the west fishing area on the north side of Lake Pueblo State Park.

Sunday, Feb. 3:
 9 a.m. - Wildlife viewing field trip meets at the north entrance to the Pueblo Reservoir State Wildlife Area, located west of the north entrance to the Park and south of Pueblo West
10:30 a.m. - Bird walk at the Pueblo Raptor & Nature Center.
11:00 a.m. to 2 p.m. - Live birds on display at the Pueblo Raptor & Nature Center
Noon to 4 p.m. - "See the Eagles" at the Pueblo Zoo. View the Pueblo Zoo's pair of bald eagles.

For more information about Pueblo Eagle Days, visit www.eagleday.org or call Colorado Parks and Wildlife at 719-561-5300 or 719-561-9320.

More about eagles:

Eagles are the number one animal that Americans say they want to see in the wild. Colorado, in the winter offer prime viewing opportunities for both bald eagles and golden eagles.

Up to 1,200 bald eagles spend the winter in Colorado. Bald eagles are attracted here by relatively mild winters. Look for them near open water where they hunt for fish or ducks.

Most of the bald eagles leave Colorado in late February and March, heading north to nesting grounds in the northern U.S., Canada and Alaska, but a few remain year-round.

Golden eagles prefer rugged cliffs with adjacent open country where they feed on a variety of birds, reptiles and mammals, though jackrabbits are their primary prey.

Unlike bald eagles, golden eagles are common nesting birds in Colorado but they too move about during different times of the year. There are roughly 900 active golden eagle nests in Colorado. The majority of the golden eagles nest in the northwest part of the state during the summer. In wintertime, golden eagles are more broadly distributed throughout the state, but they are particularly visible on the eastern plains.


Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com