Goal Nearing completion to visit and photograph of all 42+ Colorado State Parks. As part of Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW), these are only the state parks but there are numerous county, city, and federal parks in Colorado. An $80 park pass gets me into all 42+ free for the year. Highlighted and dated are those I’ve already visited marked as CPW#1 thru CPW#42.
- Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area (AHRA) – June 2017
- Barr Lake – August 2019
- Boyd Lake – August, 2019
- Castlewood Canyon – Oct 2015 – Hiking only.
- Chatfield – local favorite multiple visits
- Cherry Creek – local favorite multiple visits
- Cheyenne Mountain – Memorial week 2019
- Crawford – Sep 2021
- Eldorado Canyon – May 2023
- Eleven Mile – May 2017
- Elkhead Reservoir – Oct 2021
- Golden Gate Canyon – May 2023
- Harvey Gap June 2021
- Highline Lake June 2021
- Jackson Lake – August, 2019
- James M. Robb Colorado River – Aug 2016
- John Martin Reservoir – July 5, 2019
- Lake Pueblo – June 2016
- Lathrop LM. Lone Mesa – June 2020
- Lory – August 11, 2019
- Mancos – Oct 2020
- Mueller – May 2017
- Navajo – Oct 2020
- North Sterling – Labor Day weekend 2019
- Paonia – Sep 2021
- Pearl Lake – Oct 2021
- Ridgeway – Oct 2020
- Rifle Falls June 2021
- Rifle Gap June 2021
- Roxborough – May 2023
- St. Vrain – May 2023
- Spinney Mountain May 2017
- Stagecoach – Mar 2020
- State Forest – Oct 2021
- Staunton – Oct 2019
- Steamboat Lake – Oct 2021
- Sweitzer Lake – Sept 2021
- Sylvan Lake – Sep 2021
- Trinidad Lake – June 2020
- Vega – July 2021
- Yampa River – Oct 2021
- (just opened) Fishers Peak State Park
- (not opened) Sweetwater Lake
Outdoor enthusiasts, rejoice: Colorado’s 42nd state park officially opened Friday, October 30, with Colorado Parks and Wildlife’s (CPW) announcement of initial public access to 250 acres, three trails, and a picnic area at the property near Trinidad, dubbed by its prominent landmark, Fishers Peak. CPW purchased the property back in May, eight months after Governor Jared Polis had announced his goal of providing “a meaningful level of public access to the property” by 2021. The 19,200-acre ranch—just 7 miles north of the New Mexico border and across I-25 from Trinidad Lake State Park—boasts the 9,633-foot namesake peak, varied habitat, and native wildlife like elk, deer, mountain lions, and black bears.
Fishers Peak itself is an outcrop of ancient lava flows from Raton Mesa, and the land is largely undeveloped according to Vogrin, making for a unique experience. “You get a sense for what it was like when Native Americans were using it as a beacon, and pioneers were drawn to it, and the Santa Fe Trail was routed around it,” Vogrin says. “You’re stepping back in time in a big way there, and that’s very cool.”