Crews will begin closing the former “Hogback Valley Trail” on the east side of Red Rock Canyon Open Space on Monday, June 12. Originally constructed as an access road by the former landowner, this trail was unsustainable and prone to erosion. The new Chamberlain Trail, which opened in early May, now provides a sustainable trail corridor to replace the existing access road.
On May 1 the Friends of Red Rock Canyon partnered with the school and the City of Colorado Springs to host a full day field trip for the entire student body of Ute Pass Elementary, consisting of 175 students, teachers and parents. The school was able to secure a grant to purchase native flora for the students to plant in the area of the old reclaimed catch pond and the newly redesigned Roundup Trail. Ranger Wes provided safety instruction and was joined by about six other rangers and David, Glenn, Shanti, Sean, Dave and Dan from the board. Everyone had a great time and a rewarding experience.
April 4, 2023 This news from Ranger Wes:
Roundup Trail is officially OPEN!
The trail closures along the Roundup, Red Rock Canyon, and Red Rock Rim Trails in Red Rock Canyon Open Space have been lifted.
Park staff have been hard at work removing man-made features such as roads, dams, and canals from the area, and restoring more naturalized landscape.
Work will continue in the area in the coming months; visitors can expect to see heavy equipment as additional landscaping and revegetation takes place. Closures are possible in the next few weeks, but are expected to be short-term and limited to weekdays.
It is always important to stay on-trail in our open spaces to protect sensitive vegetation, and this will be especially important in the work area in the coming months as revegetation takes place. Please do your part to Leave No Trace by staying on the designated trails! For your safety, do not enter any portion of the work site, except for the designated trails.
We thank everyone for their patience, and hope you are excited as we are to experience a more natural landscape!
Wesley Hermann
Last fall, the Friends received a gracious letter from an instructor at Ute Pass Elementary school thanking us for helping them achieve a Leave No Trace Youth Program Accreditation. This is the first school in the nation to do this. Read details HERE. On April 22, 2022, FoRRC teamed up with teachers, parents and students from the school for an educational field day in Red Rock Canyon Open Space for this(see below).
Below is a link to a KKTV newscast at RRCOS about the importance of staying on designated trails and the damage caused by rogue trails. https://www.kktv.com/2021/08/24/destructive-avoidable-park-rangers-reminding-hikers-not-go-off-trails-or-take-short-cuts/
These photos were sent to FoRRC by Scott Schow, great, great grandson of the original founder of the Greenlee Quarry. The Second photo is of Juanita Schow and Bud Greenlee, grandchildren of the original owner of the quarry.
If you have an idea of how to improve our open space please share it with us. Your friends’ group Board of Directors is looking for suggestions and we will consider all reasonable ideas. Please contact us here .
Here is a link to an interesting article about on rock cairns at National parks: Rock Cairns
LEAVE NO TRACE