Colorado Parks and Wildlife seeks public feedback on Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan

Every five years, Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) leads the development of the Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP), to maintain eligibility for funding through the Land and Water Conservation Fund and to inform investments from other federal, state, local and private programs.

Given the significance of outdoor recreation in Colorado, the SCORP is more than a federal requirement for funding. The plan reflects Colorado outdoor partners' shared vision and commitment to advancing recreation enjoyment and conservation of Colorado’s outdoor resources.

Colorado’s previous 2019-2023 Statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan (SCORP) was developed in close collaboration with a wide range of partners to provide a shared vision for the future of Colorado’s outdoors. This plan also looks at current and changing demographics and recreation trends to help the outdoor recreation sector be culturally relevant and respond to future shifts.

The SCORP identifies four top priorities:

1) Enhance sustainable access and opportunity to enjoy the outdoors

2) Promote stewardship of natural, cultural, and recreational resources

3) Conserve lands, waters, and wildlife

4) Ensure adequate funding to sustain Colorado’s outdoors for the future

Currently, CPW is asking for feedback from the public on the relevance and importance of Colorado's outdoor recreation objectives that help achieve the top priorities listed in the 2019-2023 plan. There are nine main objectives listed in the 2019 SCORP, which help prioritize outdoor recreation and conservation projects across the state based on the priority areas.

CPW staff want to ensure that the objectives we use to accomplish our outdoor recreation and conservation priorities in the 2024-2028 SCORP reflect the values of our community’s diverse interests. Share your feedback with us using the comment form on EngageCPW. Comments on this plan are open now through Feb. 28, 2024.



Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com
HikinginGlacier.com
TetonHikingTrails.com

Ramble On (2nd edition book on the rich history of hiking)
Exploring Glacier National Park
Exploring Grand Teton National Park

Along The Trail At The Head Of Cascade Canyon

The photo below was originally published by the U.S. Department of the Interior in a pamphlet called, Grand Teton [Wyoming] National Park. Published in 1937, the photograph appears with the title, Along The Trail At The Head Of Cascade Canyon.

After some discussion on social media, and a closer analysis of the photo, I now believe this photo was taken from South Teton. It appears it may have been taken by Don Grant, who appears to have been a mountain climber from that era (I originally thought that the rock outcropping in the lower left-hand corner of the photo was Inspiration Point, but this is incorrect). Regardless, this is a pretty amazing shot:

Even as far back as 85 years ago, Cascade Canyon was considered to be a popular destination in the park. The Spring 1939 issue of Grand Teton Nature Notes reports that, "By far the most popular trail in the park is the lower portion of the Cascade Canyon Trail which leaves Jenny Lake and climbs above Hidden Falls."



                *******************************************************************************

Rising more than 7000 feet above Jackson Hole, the majestic mountains of Grand Teton National Park provide one of the most dramatic landscapes in the world. With more than 240 miles of trails meandering throughout this park, how will you find and choose the most scenic and rewarding hikes?

Exploring Grand Teton National Park takes all the guesswork out by focusing on the most amazing hikes, and provides you with handpicked recommendations that will allow you to make the most of your trip to Grand Teton:

New map will help inform Coloradans on general areas inhabited by gray wolves in Colorado

A map published earlier this week on Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s website will inform the public, recreationists and livestock producers on where wolves have been in the past month. This map will be updated with new information on a monthly basis, produced on the fourth Wednesday of every month, and will reflect data for the prior month, give or take several days.

These maps are created using GPS collar data collected from all 12 collared wolves in Colorado. This includes the 10 animals reintroduced from Oregon, as well as the two collared wolves in North Park.

This map depicts watersheds where the 12 collared wolves in Colorado have been for the last month. A watershed is a geographic unit that drains water into a specific waterbody. These are also known as Hydrologic Unit Codes (HUC). Information is shared at the HUC 10 level. Watersheds are the appropriate mapping unit to display wolf activity information because wolves are far more likely to use geographic features to affect their distribution than they are political boundaries.

In order for a watershed to indicate wolf activity, at least one GPS point from the wolf collars was recorded within the boundaries of the watershed. Simply because a watershed indicates wolf activity, it does not mean that a wolf or wolves are present throughout the entire watershed nor that they are currently in the watershed. For example, a wolf has not yet been located south of I-70, even though the watershed in which a wolf was detected spans both north and south of the Interstate.



Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com
HikinginGlacier.com
TetonHikingTrails.com

Ramble On (2nd edition book on the rich history of hiking)
Exploring Glacier National Park
Exploring Grand Teton National Park

2024 Colorado Trail Crews open for registration on Feb 1, 2024!

The Colorado Trail Foundation is seeking trail crews for the upcoming season. Here's some information they sent me via email:

With snow covering most of the Trail and the rest of the Colorado high country, the reminder that trail season is just around the corner may come as a surprise. Soon, the snow will start melting, trail enthusiasts will pick up their packs, and trail crew volunteers will grab their green CTF hard hats. If you are one of the latter group, you'll be excited to see the 2024 trail crew schedule below.

Trail crews are made up of volunteers from many different groups and backgrounds. Some have been volunteering on the CT for decades, some have done trail work in other areas and are eager to put those skills and passion to work on the CT this year, and some have had a life-changing experience on the Trail and are now looking for a way to give back through trail work for the first time.

Whether you're a seasoned volunteer or someone that's excited, and maybe even a bit nervous, to try out trail work for the first time, we welcome you! I'm confident you will find the CTF trail crew community to be welcoming, supportive, and appreciative. All the information you need to join one of this year's crews can be found on our website. New to volunteering and not sure what it's all about? Visit our website to view a short orientation video that tells you all about volunteer trail crews and answers many common questions.

If you are more interested in supporting our trail crew efforts through a financial contribution, reach out to me via email at tisha@coloradotrail.org to get further details or click here to make your donation online and pick which crew you would like to support. Each trail crew sponsorship is $2,000 (based on the average cost of our 2024 trail crews), which covers supplies, food for volunteers, construction materials, and other associated costs. In the past, CTF charged a fee from participating volunteers to help cover a small portion of these fees; however, we changed this policy to no longer ask participants to pay to help off-set these costs. Instead, each trail crew will be sponsored by a donor looking for a specific project to fund to support CTF's ongoing efforts to keep the Colorado Trail the most well-maintained long-distance trail in America!

Now that you have the schedule, mark your calendars to head over to our website on Feb 1st to register. Some trail crews fill up very quickly, and we want to be able to see all of you out on the Trail this year!

Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com
HikinginGlacier.com
TetonHikingTrails.com

Ramble On (2nd edition book on the rich history of hiking)
Exploring Glacier National Park
Exploring Grand Teton National Park

Avalanche danger remains "considerable" throughout Rocky Mountain National Park

Posted on Rocky Mountain's social media earlier today:

Following recent storms, there is fresh snow on most trails in Rocky. Before heading out on any backcountry trip, make sure that everyone in your group is avalanche aware. Avalanche danger remains "considerable" throughout Rocky Mountain National Park.

Travel across and under steep slopes is not advised unless all members of your party have rescue equipment, education and experience to make informed decisions about traveling in avalanche terrain. An avalanche can be triggered by skiers, snowshoers, and even wildlife.

To see the latest avalanche forecast and additional safety information, visit the Colorado Avalanche Information Center's webpage at https://avalanche.state.co.us/.

Jeff
RockyMountainHikingTrails.com
HikinginGlacier.com
TetonHikingTrails.com

Ramble On (2nd edition book on the rich history of hiking)
Exploring Glacier National Park
Exploring Grand Teton National Park