Roxborough State Park is a

state park State parks are parks or other protected areas managed at the sub-national level within those nations which use "Federated state, state" as a political subdivision. State parks are typically established by a state to preserve a location on accou ...

Colorado Colorado is a U.S. state, state in the Western United States. It is one of the Mountain states, sharing the Four Corners region with Arizona, New Mexico, and Utah. It is also bordered by Wyoming to the north, Nebraska to the northeast, Kansas ...

, United States, known for dramatic red sandstone formations. Located in Douglas County south of

Denver, Colorado Denver ( ) is a List of municipalities in Colorado#Consolidated city and county, consolidated city and county, the List of capitals in the United States, capital and List of municipalities in Colorado, most populous city of the U.S. state of ...

, the park was established in 1975. In 1980 it was recognized as a

National Natural Landmark The National Natural Landmarks (NNL) Program recognizes and encourages the conservation of outstanding examples of the natural history of the United States. It is the only national natural areas program that identifies and recognizes the best e ...

Geography

Roxborough State Park, a

Colorado State Park This is a list of the state parks in the U.S. State of Colorado. Colorado Parks and Wildlife manages the state park system to accommodate both outdoor recreation and tourism. There are currently forty-two parks open to the public, and there are ...

, is known for dramatic red sandstone formations. It is located in Douglas County south of

. In 1980 it was recognized as a

because of the number of ecological systems and geological formations. It is also a State Historic Site and National Cultural District because of the number of archaeological sites.

Climate

According to the

Köppen Climate Classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

system, Roxborough State Park has an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...

, abbreviated "Cfb" on climate maps. The hottest temperature recorded in Roxborough State Park was on July 17, 1997, and July 21, 1997, while the coldest temperature recorded was on February 2, 2011.

Geology

Roxborough State Park is a designated Colorado Natural Area and

for its 300-million-year-old red sandstone

Fountain Formation The Fountain Formation is a Pennsylvanian bedrock unit consisting primarily of conglomerate, sandstone, or arkose, in the states of Colorado and Wyoming in the United States, along the east side of the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains, and a ...

s that tilt at a 60-degree angle. The park includes great examples of exposed Precambrian to Late Mesozoic hogback, monolithic and spire formations from the

Permian The Permian ( ) is a geologic period and System (stratigraphy), stratigraphic system which spans 47 million years, from the end of the Carboniferous Period million years ago (Mya), to the beginning of the Triassic Period 251.902 Mya. It is the s ...

Pennsylvanian Pennsylvanian may refer to: * A person or thing from Pennsylvania * Pennsylvanian (geology) The Pennsylvanian ( , also known as Upper Carboniferous or Late Carboniferous) is, on the International Commission on Stratigraphy, ICS geologic timesc ...

and

Cretaceous The Cretaceous ( ) is a geological period that lasted from about 143.1 to 66 mya (unit), million years ago (Mya). It is the third and final period of the Mesozoic Era (geology), Era, as well as the longest. At around 77.1 million years, it is the ...

age. Carpenter Peak's exposed monzonite is from the

Precambrian The Precambrian ( ; or pre-Cambrian, sometimes abbreviated pC, or Cryptozoic) is the earliest part of Earth's history, set before the current Phanerozoic Eon. The Precambrian is so named because it preceded the Cambrian, the first period of t ...

era.''Roxborough State Park: Geology.''
Colorado State Parks. Retrieved 9-28-2011.

Flora and fauna

The park consists of forests of ponderosa pine and Douglas fir, prairie land, and woodlands that support many forms of wildlife. There are 145 bird, over 50 butterfly and moth, and 11 amphibian and reptile species. Mammals commonly found in the park include black bear, coyote, deer, elk, fox, mountain lion, prairie dog, and rabbit. Sources of water include Little Willow Creek, Willow Creek and Mill Gulch. Elevations range from .

Visitors

The park has visitors center with exhibits, a bookstore, and restrooms. There are six hiking trails in Roxborough State Park, a network of easy to moderate trails that also connect to Douglas County trail system,

Pike National Forest The Pike National Forest is located in the Front Range of Colorado, United States, west of Colorado Springs including Pikes Peak. The forest encompasses 1,106,604 acres (4,478 km2) within Clear Creek, Teller, Park, Jefferson, Douglas an ...

and

Waterton Canyon The Platte Canyon is a deep, narrow, scenic gorge on the South Platte River in the Rocky Mountains of Colorado. The canyon is southwest of Denver, Colorado, Denver in Park County The canyon is at the entrance to the mountains, where the South P ...

trails.''Roxborough State Park Trails.''
Colorado State Parks. Retrieved 9-28-2011.

References

External links

* {{authority control State parks of Colorado Fountain Formation National Natural Landmarks in Colorado Protected areas of Douglas County, Colorado Protected areas established in 1975 Rock formations of Colorado Landforms of Douglas County, Colorado