The Arkansas River - In Colorado????

Hi Blog! Today is Tuesday, September 22, 2015. It is our first full day in Pueblo, Colorado. After spending a couple weeks in the Rockies hiking around, we thought it might be good to give our feet a break and to do a little bike riding today. We did a little internet searching and found that Pueblo has a number of bikes trails. One of the most popular trails leads from Lake Pueblo State Park along the Arkansas River into downtown Pueblo. We also learned the Nature and Raptor Center of Pueblo is located along the trail route. We decided to set the Nature Center as our turnaround point. Leaving the rest of the trail into downtown for another day.

We started by driving up to the Lake Pueblo State Park Visitor Center. The first thing we learned was that the lake is actually a reservoir. The rocks around the reservoir make the perfect habitat for the rare triploid checkered whiptail. All of these lizards are females that "clone" themselves to reproduce. How cool is that! We tried to capture a photo, but these little ladies are fast. Here is what they look like.

After touring the Visitor's Center, we jumped on our bikes and began our ride on the South Dam Bike Trail. The Pueblo Dam was constructed in the 70's across the Arkansas River.

THE ARKANSAS RIVER???  We thought the Arkansas River was in Arkansas.  Must be a mistake.  Or at least a coincidence.  Maybe it's not the same river.  After all, people in Colorado and Kansas call their river the "ArKANSAS," where people in Arkansas and other Eastern states pronounce the name of their river as ARR-kan-saw. It came from the Quapaw Indians, by way of early French explorers. The explorers met a group of Native Americans known as the Ugakhpah (which means people who live downstream). These Native Americans later were called the Quapaw, who were also called the Arkansaw (meaning South Wind).

It turns out that the Arkansas River is a major tributary of the Mississippi River. At 1,469 miles, it is the sixth-longest river in the United States, the second-longest tributary in the Mississippi–Missouri system, and the 45th longest river in the world. Its origin is in the Rocky Mountains in Lake County, Colorado, near Leadville.  So, believe it or not, the river runs all the way from the Rockies to the Mississippi, and so into the Gulf of Mexico.

Here is the view from on top of the dam. Don't you just love red rocks.

We continued over the dam. Here is the water from the reservoir that rushes out from the bottom of the dam to continue on its way down the Arkansas River.

Once we crossed the river, we turned right onto the Downstream Trail. This section of the Arkansas River is very popular with trout fisherman.

While the main section of the bike trail was paved with old asphalt, there were a number of dirt tracks which took us right along the banks of the river. We stopped a couple times to chat with a fisherman and fisher woman. At one point, we startled a deer, but were not able to get a good photo. Wouldn't it be fun to float your way all the way from Colorado to the Mississippi River!

As we continued downstream, we left the state park and soon found ourselves on the Arkansas Riverwalk, a relatively new concrete multi-use trail.

All of the trails we biked are part of the Colorado Front Range Trail. In 2003, Colorado State Parks initiated the Colorado Front Range Trail project. The vision of this trail is to create a multi-purpose trail from Wyoming to New Mexico, along the Front Range of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado. The 876-mile trail will link diverse communities, scenic landscapes, cultural and historic points, parks, open space and other attractions. To date, over 270 miles of the CFRT have been finished – one-third of the corridor. The section we are biking took us through Rock Canyon.

In six miles, we arrived at the Nature and Raptor Center of Pueblo. Founded in 1979 as the Audubon River Trails Nature Center, in 1981 they added wildlife rehabilitation with the founding of the raptor center and changed their name. Each year more than 200 injured and orphaned birds of prey are admitted to the facility from throughout southeastern Colorado. The birds are provided with the best possible care with the hope that they will soon be returned to the wild.

Half of these birds of prey will be returned to the wild. But a very special few remain at the center due to permanent disabilities. These “resident raptors” become a very vital part of the staff and will assist with educational efforts. Over 8,000 school children participate in educational field trips at this facility each year. Meet the residents:

After chatting with the raptors, we hiked back down to the nature center. Along the way, we stopped to admire the desert landscape.



We ate our picnic lunch on the deck of nature center as the Arkansas River continued on its journey. Before long, it was time to turn around and head back. We are looking forward to exploring more of the Pueblo area tomorrow. Until then, stay thirsty my friends.