Active Outdoors: Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs, CO

In 1871, General William Jackson Palmer founded the town of Colorado Springs while extending his Denver and Rio Grande Railroad lines westward. Convincing his friend, Charles Elliott Perkins—who owned the Burlington Railroad—to follow in his footsteps was a decision present-day Garden of the Gods runners, hikers, bikers, and sight-seers should be thankful for every day.

A Flurry of Natural Excitement

Garden of the Gods is a garden of sorts that is open to the public. On any given day, the outdoor environment is buzzing with people who love celebrating the majesty of five life zones and ecosystems: cottonwood-willow, prairie grassland, pinyon-juniper, mountain shrub, and ponderosa pine.

Nineteen Famous Formations

Travel through its red-dusted roads in your car, on a bike, or by foot to see a wide variety of awe-inspiring natural attractions. Within the expansive park, you can see nineteen famous formations, including my favorites: Cathedral Spires and Balanced Rock. The Balanced Rock is a unique formation that features a massive boulder that solidly balances on top of another rock.

The genesis of the park’s name came about in 1859 during a funny exchange between surveyors about it being a prime spot for “a beer garden – fit for the gods”. Thankfully the park’s reputation as an outdoor paradise has outlasted the notion that a beer garden would be better than its purpose as a public park.

The Garden of the Gods Park is a registered National Natural Landmark in Colorado Springs. Both the Park and Visitor & Nature Center are free and open to the public.

Park Hours: 5am – 11pm, May 1 – Oct 31;  5am – 9pm, Nov 1 – Apr 30
Visitor & Nature Center: 8 am – 8 pm, Memorial Day to Labor Day;  9am – 5pm in winter