Attractions (in category: Natural Areas)
Enjoy wildlife viewing at San Luis Lakes State Park, where shrublands of salt grass, greasewood, and rabbitbrush surround Head and San Luis Lakes, within eye shot of the Great Sand Dunes. The area features a combination of wetlands, ponds and shallow lakes, fed by intermittent water from springs and creeks. The wetlands attract a variety of ducks, geese, cranes and shorebirds. The southern one-third of the area is a state park; the northern two-thirds is the State Wildlife Area. The state park offers a variety of amenities and activities seasonally.
A trip up the 7-mile trail by foot or by 4-wheel drive vehicle is only for the well prepared. However, the ghostly spires and flowing folds of earth will reward you with one of the most astounding geologic sites in Colorado. The unearthly landscape seems to have been plucked from an alien planet and dropped in the middle of the forest. The 640 acre area became America's first National Monument in 1908 but was later decommissioned due to its inaccessibility. There is now a rough 4-wheel drive road to the site, but many say it's easier and faster to walk.
Valley View Hot Springs is an historic hot springs, enjoyed by visitors since the early 1900s. Relax in the natural rock-lined hot springs among fire-flies and grazing wildlife in a natural setting. Stay overnight in original rustic accommodations or camp among gamble oaks. Highlight your experience with opportunities to learn about the history, flora and fauna, geology, and ecology of the area. Valley View is a clothing/swimsuit-optional area. Facilities include swimming pool, sauna, hot tub, several natural ponds, camping, cabins, and rooms.
A spring creek flows through this relatively flat 5,433-acre property, feeding a maze of wetlands, dikes, canals, and shallow lakes designed and built by the Colorado Division of Wildlife in 1992 to restore habitat for nesting waterfowl. Much of the site is closed February 15th through July 15th for nesting, but a boardwalk/viewing trail located just off of Hwy 285 (look for the grove of cottonwoods on the east side) is open year-round.
When you think of gulls, sandpipers and pelicans, you picture a vacation paradise on an ocean beach, but few people realize there is a salty shore paradise located right here in the San Luis Valley. Flocks of these shorebirds find refuge at the Blanca Wetlands along with the other 158 bird species found there. What appears at first glance to be a salty desert environment with flooded low areas reveals to the more studious observer a plethora of birds, amphibians, mammals, fish, and yes, insects. Wheelchair accessible trails help to make this bird watcher's paradise accessible to all.
Explore the tallest dunes in North America! The most recognized and most photographed natural feature of the San Luis Valley, the massive dunes rise unexpectedly from the floor of the San Luis Valley and nestle up against the Sangre de Cristo mountains. The dunes, alpine tundra, forests, grasslands, and wetlands are all protected elements of the Great Sand Dunes natural system. The periodic surges of Medano Creek, flowing at the base of the dunes, creates a favorite spring playground of water and sand. The dunes themselves provide endless hours of family friendly climbing, sliding, and sand-skiing or boarding.
In the heart of the arid San Luis Valley is a birdwatchers paradise. Lush wetlands provide year-round habitat for songbirds, water birds, coyotes, deer and other wildlife. Starting in 1952 a series of water works were created at the MVNWR to restore some of the wetlands that were common throughout the Valley when it was first settled. In March and September, twenty thousand migrating Sandhill Cranes use the refuge as a major stopping point. This migration is one of the Valley's greatest spectacles and is celebrated every spring in early March at the Monte Vista Crane Festival.
Wherever you find yourself in the San Luis Valley, you're likely within sight of La Sierra Blanca (Mt. Blanca). Considered a holy mountain and called "Sisnaajini" by the Navajos, the name has been translated as "white maid mountain." The snows on its massive ridges seem to persist even when the rest of the Sangre de Cristo range has melted bare. Just south of the Great Sand Dunes National Park and 14,435 feet in elevation, the unmistakable, massive form of La Sierra presides over the Valley like a benevolent lord.
See the San Luis Valley through the eyes of Zebulon Pike. In 1807 he used the Mosca Pass Trail to enter the valley and became the first American to write about the nearby Great Sand Dunes. The 3.5 mile trail winds through aspen and evergreens to the summit of Mosca Pass in the Sangre de Cristo mountains. It served as an entrance to the valley for nomadic hunters, Spanish soldiers, homesteaders, and traders carrying goods bound for Plains Indian tribes. For a shorter hike, visitors may take the self-guided Montville Trail, a half-mile loop that parallels Mosca Creek and leads past the remnants of a historic toll station.
Penitente Canyon is the site of rich geological and cultural history. Part of the La Garita Caldera, the unusual rock formations and hoodoos in the canyon have become a premier rock-climbing destination. The canyon was originally used as a place of worship for the Brothers Penitente and the painted image of the Virgin Mary high on one of the walls is evidence of their devotion.
Located on the western flank of Sierra Blanca (Mt. Blanca), just north of the Great Sand Dunes, Zapata Falls will invigorate you on a hot summer day with its cool air and chilling mist. Cut from the rock face by glaciers and scoured by millennia of rushing water, cold water crashes through a 30 ft. cleft in the rock walls. The falls are a half-mile hike from the parking area, where mountain bike and wilderness hiking trails can also be accessed. The recreation area makes a refreshing stop or a great place for a day's activities.
In the heart of the arid San Luis Valley lies a birdwatchers paradise. Lush wetlands provide year-round habitat for songbirds, water birds, coyotes, deer and other wildlife. Starting in 1962 a series of water works were created in the ANWR to restore some of the wetlands that were common throughout the valley when it was first settled. In March and September, twenty thousand Sandhill Cranes migrate through the valley and use the refuges as a major stopping point. This migration is one of the valley's greatest spectacles and is celebrated every spring in early March with the Monte Vista Crane Festival.
