Rockies Near Denver

If you ever wondered why folks living along the Front Range (as the area west of Denver and east of the Continental Divide is known) continually brag about their lifestyles, you need only look at the western horizon where the 14,000-foot snowcapped Rocky Mountains rise a 35-minute drive from downtown. For those drawn to the Front Range, a morning workout might mean an hour-long single-track mountain bike ride at Meyer Ranch Park, a half-hour kayak session in Golden's Clear Creek, or a 40-minute hike in Mount Falcon Park. The allure of this area, which rises from the dusty foothills cloaked in mountain mahogany and ponderosa pine to shaded spruce forests and summer snowfields, has brought increasing recreational pressures as mountain bikers, equestrians, hikers, dog lovers, hunters, and conservationists all vie for real estate that is increasingly gobbled up by McMansion sprawl. On the Front Range the days of the elitist "Native" bumper stickers are long since gone; almost everyone here is from somewhere else. Finding an outdoor paddling, climbing, or skiing partner is about as difficult as saying hello to the next person you meet on the trail.