Monday is Colorado Day, the commemoration of Colorado’s acceptance into statehood. Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) will mark the event by providing free park entrance at all 42 state parks.
Colorado was first recognized as a state on Aug. 1, 1876. The first addition to the Colorado state park system, Cherry Creek State Park, emerged some fifty-six years later. This Colorado Day, CPW invites the public to come watch the sunrise, float a boat, view wildlife, catch fish, ride or hike trails, explore, learn, picnic, or climb.
Most Coloradans live less than 30 minutes from a state park. Go to http://cpw.state.co.us/placestogo/parks/Pages/parkMap.aspx to locate a state park near you and plan a visit.
Seniors Outdoors continues its active summer season with seven new activities for area seniors.
At 7:30 a.m. Saturday there will be a climb to Grand Turk from Molas Pass. The outing will feature off-trail hiking. The group size limit is 12 and the carpool cost is $5. Well-behaved dogs are permitted. Please RSVP to Chris Blackshear at chris.blackshear@gmail.com.At 7 a.m. Monday there will be a hike to Island and Ice Lakes. This is a perennial favorite for the spectacular mountain scenery, beautiful alpine lakes and abundant wildflowers. The carpool is $6, and the group size limit is $15. Dogs are permitted. RSVP to Norm Stern at 385-8554 or normstern@frontier.net. At 8:30 a.m. Monday there will be an intermediate road ride for cyclists. This is a relaxed, social ride from Home Depot to Bread. Meet in the Home Depot south parking lot by the nursery. The group will leave promptly at 8:30 a.m. Helmets are required. The ride leader is Helen Root. Contact her at helen@northandroot.com or 505-320-3441 for questions and to be added to email list for weather cancellations and other notifications. At 8 a.m. Tuesday a group will hike to 13,416-foot Little Giant Peak via Little Giant Basin Drive and a trail through Little Giant Basin and its ridgeline. The route includes some off-trail hiking and scrambling. This is a moderate pace hike. The carpool cost is $10, and vehicles with four-wheel drive, high-clearance are necessary. The group limit is 12, and well-behaved dogs (limit of two) are allowed.At 7 a.m. Wednesday there will be a WW hike to Hope Lake. The trailhead is near Trout Lake in the Lizard Head area, about a 2 hour drive from Durango. This will be an all-day outing instead of the usual morning trip. A high-clearance vehicle is needed for the last 3 miles of driving. Last year the wildflowers were stunning. Please RSVP and arrange your own carpool ahead of time. The carpool cost is $15. Contact trip leader Tricia Bayless at 799-4535 or tbayless@bresnan.net.From 9:30-11 a.m. Wednesday there will be a tennis clinic for all levels of play. The clinic will be lead by Seniors Outdoors member and former tennis pro Art Wahl. The clinic is limited to 10 participants. No dogs allowed. RSVP to Betsy Norton at 764-4568 or betsynorton@mac.com.At 7 a.m. Friday, Aug. 5 there will be a hike to Hematite Lake and Tower Mountain (13,552 feet). The group will climb to Hematite Lake via a steep but decent trail, then go off-trail to Tower Mountain. Carpool cost is $6, group size limit is 10, and dogs are allowed. RSVP to Lynn Coburn at 247-0914 or harrisoncoburn@gmail.com.Durango Herald
