Poudre Canyon facts for kids
The Poudre Canyon is a beautiful, narrow valley in Colorado, USA. It's about 40 miles (64 kilometers) long. This canyon was carved out by glaciers a long, long time ago. It follows the Cache la Poudre River, which people often just call the "Poudre" (pronounced "Pooder"). The canyon is located in Larimer County, northwest of Fort Collins, in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains.
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Exploring Poudre Canyon
The Poudre Canyon starts high up in Rocky Mountain National Park, about 9,000 feet (2,700 meters) above sea level. Here, the Poudre River begins its journey near the continental divide. This is a line where rivers on one side flow to the Atlantic Ocean and rivers on the other side flow to the Pacific.
The canyon gently winds its way northeast and then east, going downhill. It ends near Bellvue at about 5,000 feet (1,500 meters) in elevation.
Getting Around the Canyon
Most of the canyon has a road called Colorado State Highway 14. This highway is the main way to get into the canyon. It also connects Fort Collins to an area called North Park, which is on the other side of Cameron Pass.
Most of the Poudre Canyon is part of the Roosevelt National Forest. This forest is managed by the Canyon Lakes Ranger District, which has its main office in Fort Collins.
What the Canyon Looks Like
The sides of the canyon are usually gently sloped and covered with trees. But in some spots, called "narrows," the river has cut through rocks, leaving behind large piles of glacial debris.
People live along most of the canyon, especially downstream from a place called Kinikinik. The small communities in the canyon are not officially towns. Most homes are small cabins, and some are only used during certain seasons. You can find resort cabins for fishing and hunting along the river, especially downstream from Rustic. Rustic used to be a busy summer resort in the late 1800s, but it burned down in 2008.
The Poudre Canyon is quieter than some other canyons in Colorado. This makes it a peaceful place with only a few small shops for visitors. Places like Poudre Park mostly serve local people. However, during fishing and whitewater rafting season, more visitors come from nearby areas and other parts of the country.
Education and Camps
Colorado State University has a small campus in the mountains at Pingree Park. This area is named after George Pingree, who was an early settler in the canyon. Near Pingree Park is Sky Ranch Lutheran Camp, a summer camp for kids.
Fun Things to Do
The national forest around the canyon has many trails. These trails follow small valleys into the surrounding mountains. You can use them for hiking in the summer and cross-country skiing in the winter. One trail near Long Draw Reservoir goes over La Poudre Pass. It leads to the beginning of the Colorado River in Rocky Mountain National Park.
Fishing and Camping
The Poudre River is a great place for fishing! The most popular fish are different kinds of trout. The Colorado Parks and Wildlife adds trout to the river every year.
The United States Forest Service has many picnic areas and campgrounds along the river. One campground is named after a local historian, Ansel Watrous. He wrote an important book about the canyon in 1911.
A Look Back in Time
In the 1800s, the Ute people lived in the Poudre Canyon. Early settlers also came here for trapping animals. The canyon didn't have many valuable minerals, so it didn't get a huge population boom during the Colorado Gold Rush.
In the early 1880s, two big railroad companies, the Union Pacific Railroad and the Chicago, Burlington and Quincy Railroad, looked into building a railroad through the canyon. They wanted to create a train line across the Rocky Mountains. However, a railroad was never built in the Poudre Canyon. It wasn't until the 1920s that a proper road was built through the narrow parts of the canyon.
See also
In Spanish: Cañón Poudre para niños
