The Royal Cascade seasonal closure begins June 1. Cañon City's newest trail - Royal Cascade - offers hikers, trail runners, and mountain bikers incredible views of the Royal Gorge and Arkansas River. But if you're looking to enjoy the trail, you'll need to plan your excursion before June 1, when the trail will be subject to a seasonal closure for two months. In cooperation with Colorado Parks and Wildlife, Royal Cascade will be completely closed to all users in June and July, to reopen on August 1. This closure will not affect Tunnel Drive or the Royal Gorge Park Trails.
In March 2022, Canon City's Royal Cascade trail opened to the public. Planned for over 25 years and eventually brought to fruition through the combined efforts of the City of Cañon City, Terra Firma Trails, and Fremont Adventure Recreation, Royal Cascade is truly an epic route from
Tunnel Drive (at about 5,530 feet elevation) to the base of Fremont Peak (about 7,150 feet of
elevation). The rugged, steep, incredibly scenic trail was immediately adopted by hikers, runners,
and adventurous mountain bikers as a unique location for a challenging excursion. The trail is
about 3.6 miles long and climbs / descends an impressive 1,800 feet. Royal Cascade is unlike any
trail in the Royal Gorge Park trails system, and not simply because of its difficult nature.
It's also the first trail in Fremont County to have an established seasonal closure - limiting the time
throughout the summer and fall that the trail will be open. Royal Cascade runs through bighorn
sheep habitat. The seasonal summer closure is to allow sheep, especially those with lambs, to
enjoy the area free from disturbances. When sheep are threatened or scared, they run. When
they run, they expend calories. If sheep expend calories running from trail users, they have
fewer calories with which to feed their lambs. Especially in a year that has proven to be more dry
than usual, the amount of forage for wild animals is scarce.
Seasonal trail closures exist across Colorado - all with goals specific to that area's needs in terms of wildlife management and trail conditions. As recreation users increase, open spaces shrink due to development, fences cut off wildlife corridors, and roads continue to infringe on habitat, land managers are challenged with defending wildlife populations.
In August, the trail will be open all hours. In September and October, the trail is open only from
9 a.m. to 5 p.m. This is to allow hunting of bighorn sheep for those who pull a tag (are allowed through a lottery system to hunt for a sheep) to hunt safely. Hunters and anglers pay a fee for this use and contribute to funds used for conservation of public lands. Please respect all closures.
For more information on the closure, please visit http://www.joinfar.org/royalgorgeregion or contact
Ashlee at coordinator@joinFAR.org.
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