How is a trail system on some of the most beautiful and iconic land in Southern Colorado even possible? In an era of wild-west land-grabbing and rapid development, how did the area around the Royal Gorge remain largely untouched? As it turns out, the land at the Park was thoughtfully preserved by one particular visionary, and it has been owned by the City of Cañon City for over 100 years.

For well over a century, visitors from all over Colorado and the country have been visiting the "Grand Canyon of the Arkansas". It has always been beautiful, but the gorge and surrounding areas have not always been accessible. In the early 1800's, visitors to the area were relegated to the bottom of the Gorge, and were not treated to the sweeping vistas and glorious views that we can see from Fremont Peak and the rim today. It was simply to difficult of a journey for most people to make. In fact, in the late 1800's, it was over a full day's journey from downtown Cañon City just to get to the rim of the Royal Gorge. Most travelers simply rode the train or walked up a defunct rail line to access the deep canyon. 

At the turn of the century, the founding fathers of Cañon City realized what a financial asset the Gorge could be to the residents of the area. One particular resident, Mr. Guy U. Hardy, took a special interest in the area. Hardy was the original publisher of the Cañon City Record (later called the Cañon City Daily Record), and took it upon himself to secure the land surrounding the Gorge. He didn't want it for himself, however, he wanted the City to own it. With his own time and money, he drafted a bill and left for Washington D.C., where he was able to convince Congress to cede the land to Cañon City. The bill passed and reads (in part): 

"Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the United States of American in Congress assembled, That there is hereby granted to the city of Cañon City, all lands now belonging to the United States of America located in sections...along and on either side of the Arkansas River...and containing thereon a certain canon designated as the Royal Gorge; the said lands to be held by the said city solely for park purposes and for the use and benefit of the public.." - Public Bill No. 222; June 11, 1906

Convicts from the local penitentiary built a road up to the newly acquired land, but most vehicles of the day could not climb the steep grade. The land remained mostly untouched until 1927 when an enterprising Texan - Lon P. Piper - was granted permission to build a bridge (you may have heard of it) across the chasm. The City leased him a small portion of the park for annual rent of $1,000. The attractions and amusement park - and the agreement with The Royal Gorge Bridge and Amusement Company - remains today. The company is an active member of the community and is known to sponsor, assist with, and participate in a number of events. 

At one point, a group even petitioned to have the Royal Gorge admitted into the National Park system. The bill eventually failed, but evidences the community's pride in their park. 

"The Royal Gorge Park Association was organized in Pueblo in September, 1939 for the purpose of attaining national recognition of the Royal Gorge area and advancing development of the recreational resources there. […] A U.S. Weather Bureau report showed that the facility could be a year round proposition since the mean temperature there is fifty-four degrees and it is protected from excessive cold by the natural flow of air. […] Although the sponsors of the memorial were unsuccessful in their attempts to make the Royal Gorge part of a national park, they did draw attention to the area." (Campbell, 183)

In the years following, attempts were made to create attractions for tourists, but the city was unable to "meet the recognized need for drives, trails, and picnic places in its two mile wide and four mile long park" (Campbell, 183). In recent years, the City has added campgrounds, overlooks, restrooms, and improved roads in the areas. In 2014, FAR helped complete the 1.7-mile Canyon Rim Trail - the first recorded public trail in the Royal Gorge Park (outside of the leased area). 

It was through the generosity, foresight, and good will of Guy U. Hardy and the citizens of Cañon City that the eight square miles (four long and two wide) surrounding the majestic Royal Gorge belongs to the citizenry. Were it not for him, the land would most likely have been sold in sections to private owners, thus making a trail system virtually impossible. 

* Campbell, Rosemae Wells. 'From Trappers to Tourists', 1972.
** Image courtesy of the New York Public Library Digital Collections

To create a great trail system, a few things need to be in place: an informed plan, a funding source, a group of dedicated volunteers, and a supportive community. FAR is committed to helping to develop and maintain trail systems in the Royal Gorge Region. This often requires a very specific skill set, one that city or state departments often don't have the staff or resources to fulfill. Trails don't just "happen", they require ecological studies, topographical planning, runnoff mitigation, heavy machinery (for cutting the actual trail), and hours of work maintaining brush and overgrowth. 

So how to great trail systems come to be? The process is a long one that can take years, but with creativity, healthy partnerships, and dedication, new trail systems can be a valuable asset to our community at large. 

1. Concept - The Royal Gorge Region is a veritable playground of outdoor recreation opportunities. Unfortunately, hiking and biking aren't easy to do when trails don't exist. Rogue trails can also be damaging to the ecosystem. Trail systems begin when an individual looks over a plot of land and thinks, "This would be a great, beneficial, and beautiful place to invite others to hike, bike, and play." 

2. Partnership - FAR contacts the appropriate government or private entities who own the land. In many cases, the land is operated by BLM, and FAR is proud to partner with our local Royal Gorge Office. In fact, Oil Well Flats (located just 10 miles north of Cañon City) was the brainchild of resident, BLM adviser, and biking enthusiast Kalem Lenard. The BLM provided a significant amount of funding to help bring the project to fruition, and FAR provided additional funding and manual labor. The 7-mile system is now one of the most popular in our area. Sometimes private citizens offer an easement through their land so trail connections can be made - as did the Schepp family in the case of the South Cañon trail system. We are always incredibly grateful to those selfless individuals who offer their faith in our organization, trails, and the community at large. 

3. Studies - Before land can be utilized, in many cases studies must be conducted to make sure that no flora or fauna will be adversely effected by the plans. These studies are conducted by an experts in the field. 

4. Financial Consideration - Trails cost about $3-$7 per foot (and possibly more), depending on many factors, including the difficulty of the terrain. We rely heavily on money earned from our events (like runBlossom, Bikes & Brews, and the Whitewater Festival) to help us fund trail work. You'll find board members Brian V., Chris, Joanna, and Megan assisting with all of these crucial events. FAR also rolled out our 1% for Trails initiative in 2014, which has been gaining momentum. Our community partners have been incredibly generous in opting into the program, which provides a 1% donation toward our trail funds with each purchase.  When we can, we also apply for state and local grants. Our grant writer, Kristyn, is instrumental in this step of the process. She puts in long hours researching and writing the grants. 

5. Planning - This is both a science and an art. Board member Brian L. is a skilled engineer and utilizes his understanding of mapping, flood mitigation, and other environmental concerns to plot a trail that is both sensitive to the area and also fun. As a hiker and bicyclist, Brian plans trail systems that will be fun to ride, hike, and explore, but also sensitive to the ecosystem. 

6. Flagging - The next step is to head out to the trail site and 'flag' the trail. You may sometimes see bright orange flags dotting the landscape in a proposed trail area. These have been carefully placed either by the BLM, Brian and/or Board member Thom to correspond to the best route given the above considerations. 

7. Cutting - Cutting a trail can be done by hand, but for maximum progress, a trail cutting machine is often used. We partner with the City of Cañon to use a machine that makes each foot of trail the correct width. It takes the place of hand tools that would take volunteers hours of effort. FAR utilizes the expertise of other individuals and groups to aid in this step. For instance, Volunteers for Outdoor Colorado and the Youth Corps have helped cut trail in our area. We have also recently contracted with a professional trail cutter to help us work on some longer stretches of trail. Our amazing FAR volunteers, often led by board members Adam, Thom, Scott, or Brian, have also been attending Second Sunday Singletrack Workdays to help us create more trail in the Hogbacks, Oil Well Flats, and Section 13 areas. Your help is invaluable, as manual labor is much easier with many hands. 

8. Promotion - If no one hears about a trail, it isn't a benefit to the community. FAR has worked hard in the last year to create our Recreation & Trail Guide. A resource for locals and visitors alike, the new publication is geared toward guiding hikers, bikers, whitewater enthusiasts, and and rock climbers to our local gems. We also promote outdoor recreation in the Royal Gorge Region at area events in Cañon City and Colorado Springs. 


9. Maintenance - The environment has a funny way of reclaiming land. Oftentimes, trees will fall into the trail, brush grows over areas, and rocks fall into the paths. Our volunteers meet every Second Sunday of the month to work on particular areas or trail systems in order to keep them free of debris and ruts. 

Stay tuned for more information on how this process is being applied to two new trail systems: South Cañon Trails and the Royal Gorge Park Trail System.