“People drive up and dump a refrigerator. People drive up and dump a stolen car. People are shooting up trees.”
The Pikes Peak Gateway entrance that leads drivers to the top of Pike Peak in Cascade, Colorado on April 23, 2024. As most Coloradans know, the lyrics to “America the Beautiful” were inspired by a trek to the summit of Pikes Peak via prairie wagon in 1893. But when Katharine Lee Bates penned a poem called “Pikes Peak,” which became an American anthem after it was set to music in 1910, she could scarcely have imagined the great mountain becoming a trash heap.
Among advocates for recreation on Pikes Peak and in the surrounding forest, there is widespread alarm that something must be done. Similar behavior has occurred in popular recreation areas across Colorado in recent years, especially since the pandemic which brought out an influx of nature neophytes. But Pikes Peak has unique pressures. It is the only Colorado fourteener located on the outskirts of a metropolitan area — Colorado Springs being Colorado’s second-largest city — and one of the few that is a drive-to tourist destination. Nearly 24 million visited the area in 2022.
“The experience isn’t as great as it used to be,” Leinweber added. “A lot of people end up going off-trail, or off-system trails, creating their own , so we’re seeing more resource damage that way. Bathrooms, if they’re open and maintained, are getting overwhelmed. We truly don’t have enough infrastructure to support all of this use we’ve seen seeing.”
“Even at that time, we were seeing quite a bit of growth, and what we were hearing from our land managers was that they were seeing changes, not just the numbers of people using our public lands, but the impacts and their level of education, just people knowing how to be out there,” Leinweber said. “They were seeing a lot of irresponsible use, some user conflicts, way back then.
That was the example of the Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area, a massive swath of land that extends nearly 150 miles along the Arkansas River from Leadville to Pueblo Reservor through Buena Vista, Salida, Cañon City and Florence. Most of the land belongs to the BLM or U.S. Forest Service, but CPW manages it.
United Kingdom Latest News, United Kingdom Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
White knuckle relief: New shuttle service opening to the top of Pikes PeakCracked ribs and a broken finger are the latest evidence of News5 reporter Bill Folsom’s love for Southern Colorado.
Read more »
Hyundai Ioniq 5 N to gun for EV records at Pikes PeakGet in-depth info on the 2025 Hyundai IONIQ 5 N including prices, specs, reviews, options, safety and reliability ratings.
Read more »
Hyundai Chasing Pikes Peak EV Glory With Four Ioniq 5 NsThe carmaker is bringing two standard models and two modified Ns to the Race to the Clouds
Read more »
Hyundai Ioniq 5 N to tackle 2024 Pikes Peak Hill ClimbHyundai will be chasing the record for a production electric crossover at this year's Pikes Peak International Hill Climb.
Read more »
Hyundai gunning for Pikes Peak EV recordNot the I.D R one, obviously - the Ioniq 5 N will enter the production SUV/Crossover class
Read more »
younger people reporting less happiness than older people.The U.S. dropped out of the Top 20 in the latest World Happiness Report with younger people reporting less happiness than older people. Here are some reasons for this record.
Read more »