Colorado National Parks

Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site

Features reconstruction of original trading post built in the early 1830's that became a major trading site for Plains Indian tribes and trappers.

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

No other canyon in North America combines the narrow opening, sheer walls, and startling depths visible here.

Cache La Poudre River Corridor

This heritage area commemorates the contributions of the River to the development of water law in the Western United States, the evolution of water delivery systems, and the shaping of the region's cultural heritage.

California National Historic Trail

The road to California carried over 250,000 gold-seekers & farmers to the gold fields & rich farmlands of California during the 1840's and 1850's - the greatest mass migration in American history. More than 1,000 miles of trail ruts and traces can still be seen in the vast undeveloped west - reminders of the sacrifices, struggles, and triumphs of early American travelers and settlers.

Colorado National Monument

Features include monoliths, sheer-walled canyons, dinosaur fossils, remains of prehistoric Indian cultures, and a variety of wildlife.

Curecanti National Recreation Area

Three lakes — Blue Mesa, Morrow Point, and Crystal — extend for 40 miles along the Gunnison River and the Black Canyon.

Dinosaur National Monument

Include spectacular canyons cut by the Green and Yampa Rivers, a quarry containing fossil remains of dinosaurs, and diverse plant and animal communities.

Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument

A variety of fossil insects, seeds, and leaves, as well as a display of petrified sequoia stumps are preserved here.

Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve

Large sand dunes in the U.S. were deposited over thousands of years by southwesterly winds blowing through the passes of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.

Hovenweep National Monument

Pre-Columbian Indians built these six groups of towers, pueblos, and cliff dwellings, fine examples of ancient stone architecture.

Mesa Verde National Park

The first cultural park set aside by NPS features the best preserved and most notable pre-Columbian cliff dwellings and other works of early Americans.

Old Spanish National Historic Trail

Take a journey across the Southwest on the Old Spanish National Historic Trail between Santa Fe and Los Angeles for history, culture, and scenic beauty.

Pony Express National Historic Trail

The Pony Express NHT was used by young men on fast horses to carry the nation's mail from Missouri to California in the unprecedented time of only ten days. The relay system became the nation's most direct and practical means of east-west communications before the telegraph, and it played a vital role in aligning California with the Union in the years just before the Civil War.