Our trek continued deeper into Golden Gate Canyon State Park. This park is located about 16 miles northwest of the town of Golden and less than an hours drive from downtown Denver, yet feels miles and miles away from anything.
While driving Mountain Base Road, we had stopped at several of the picnic – trailhead pull-outs to take in our surroundings. Hubby was loving the pine scented air while I was ogling the mountain wildflowers.
Next stop; the campgrounds. We drove through the Reverend’s Ridge Campground checking out the sites. Since it’s located in a pine forest there aren’t any mountain views from the campsites, but the large paved sites make up for any lack of view. This campground is laid out beautifully offering sites with electric geared toward RV’s and none electric sites exclusive to tents. The tent sites have nice level pads.
Camping fees are $22.00 a night with electric and $18.00 a night for non-electric. Since this is a Colorado State Park there’s an additional vehicle fee; either $7.00 a day or the yearly pass for $70.00. Al and I always get the yearly pass for both trucks, which allows us unlimited access to all Colorado State Parks. The pass is vehicle specific and is applied to the windshield. The second vehicle is charged a reduced rate and there’s a discount for those of a certain age. Yep, hubby qualifies for the ‘Aspen Leaf’ which also saves us $2.00 a night on camping fees. Ah, an upside to being old… LOL. Shhh, don’t tell him I said that 😉
I’d say the RV sites are long enough for any size RV. My only concern would be the width in regards to all the trees and RV slides, mostly those RV’s with opposing slides. But with a little strategic maneuvering, I’m sure she’ll fit.
That said, this is a campground Al and I would really enjoy staying at, but be warned….. there is no cell phone or internet coverage…. nada, zilch, nil. Consider this time to walk away from the ‘devices’ and enjoy all this gorgeous scenery.
There’s nearly 35 miles of hiking trails within the State Park. Some of the trails are for hikers only and others are multiple use: hiking, biking, horseback riding. Fishing is allowed in any stream or pond within the park, but does require a Colorado fishing license.
I was particularly interested in the park’s brochure: Discovering Historic Places. This part of Colorado is rich in mining history dating back to the 1800’s. The Golden Gate Canyon State Park offers hiking trails to the remains of some former homesteads.
Al and I opt for a quick hike to Dude’s Fishing Hole and along the way we pass the remains of The Belcher Barn. This hay barn was built in the 1890’s.
Another trail we hope to hike would take us past The Bootlegger’s Cabin. There are no records of when the cabin was built or by whom. The fact that barrel hoops and coiled copper tubing were found nearby leads one to believe that this was probably a shelter for bootleggers making illegal whiskey during the 1920’s.
Golden Gate Canyon State Park is definitely a great place to camp with a lot to see and do not only within the park but within an hours drive in any direction from the park. Downtown Denver is easily accessed via vehicle or for those anti city drivers, the Light Rail can be taken from the station in Golden. Golden offers its own array of fun stuff which I’ve blogged about in the past. You can read about it here and here.
The town of Boulder isn’t far from Golden Gate Canyon State Park via Highway 72. Rocky Mountain National Park is a scenic one hour plus drive to the north and Mt. Evans is a one hour drive to the south.
Just remember, this is Colorado and that means the roads go up, down, and sideways….. miles are irrelevant, it’s all about how much time it takes to get from point A to point B and whether one needs Dramamine or has a fear of heights.
Welcome to my little slice of paradise!
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