Greeley's Newest Natural Area
Greeley’s Newest Natural Area is a 978-acre expanse of prairies, bluffs, and arroyos located between Greeley and Windsor. Visitors experience magnificent plateaus and stunning mountain and valley views. This place is home for a diversity of wildlife.
Click here to view a map showing Greeley's Newest Natural Area.
Possibility
The property is a blank slate in terms of recreation opportunities. Due to its location and size, this natural area will draw visitors from across northern Colorado. People will find a unique, close-to-home recreation experience. The same geography that excites visitors also provides homes for many wildlife species. White-tail deer, bald eagles, and coyotes have all been spotted on site. Check out the pictures and links to the right to see some of the critters who call this place home. The needs of both people and wildlife must be carefully balanced as the project moves forward.
Growing Greeley’s Natural Areas
The purchase of land on Greeley’s west side doubles the City’s acres of public natural areas for the community to enjoy. Greeley Natural Areas & Trails has a vision to provide equal access to nature for all Greeley residents. The long-term goal is for everyone to live within a 10-minute walk to nature. This new natural area moves us closer to that goal. The project was jointly funded by the Trust for Public Land, Great Outdoors Colorado, the Land and Water Conservation Fund, the Town of Windsor and the City of Greeley. Click here to read more about this property.
Making the Dream Happen
This project would not be possible without strong partnerships and community input. Together, the City of Greeley, Mundus Bishop, and Trust for Public Land are putting the community's voice first in this project. Typically, a natural area is opened after all the trails have been built and the design is finished. We are doing things differently here. We are bringing you, the community, into the process at the beginning. We want to know what your vision is for this place. Please take part and share your ideas.
Creating a Vision
This long-range project includes several phases, such as analysis, community input, design, and the creation of a master plan. The master plan is a road map, guiding the management of the property into the future. It will take many years before this natural area becomes the vision described in the master plan - see the Lifecycle timeline on this page. Budget and staff capacity will determine the work that can be done. We need your help to make this community vision a reality. Please take a moment to share your ideas and vision by clicking the various tabs below. We want to hear your ideas!
How are you hoping to use this natural area?
CLOSED: This discussion has concluded.
Videos
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Experience the property from the comfort of your own home, then take a few minutes to click through the tabs at the bottom of the project page and share your ideas.
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I just read someone’s thought about a fitness path- those are quite common in many areas ( especially in Korea) and would be terrific here. There are so many good suggestions that I hope may be implemented
I hope this new area with connect to the PRT and extend the biking possibilities for casual and mountain bikers. An area for skateboards would probably be welcome for a lot of people as well. Areas for seating with shade ( trees or shelters) would be terrific, especially if they could be close enough together that our oldest residents could rest often while out enjoying the area. I hope the bike/ walking paths will be wide enough that walkers and bikers will feel comfortable. If there was a space to house more vehicles for the CWA ( cycling without age) that would be terrific. That program gets many people out into nature who aren’t mobile on their own. They would just need a space to store the trishaws safely.
I would love to see a bike park, mtb and hiking trails.
Horseback riding trails please with trailer parking in the lot! The closest ones are in Larimer county or Pawnee. There are a lot of local horseback riders with no good close options. This would be amazing!
Mountain biking and all-purpose trails (i.e. hiking, horseback riding, running, etc.) would be an excellent use of this space. Currently, in order for those who live in Greeley to get access to mountain biking trails, you have to travel 60 minutes or more just to get a ride in. Providing mountain biking would provide an opportunity for the city to create an outdoor space that many would not associate with the community. We lose a ton of revenue because people leave the community to pursue outdoor activities. Utilizing this space for mountain biking and other activities like hiking helps to defeat some of the negative stigmas associated with this great community. This could be an opportunity to partner with other stakeholders like UNC and their Outdoor Pursuits program, incentivizing students to explore the area and find value in the community in which they are studying. The impacts of creating mountain biking trails would appeal to a demographic that might not naturally look to Greeley as a place they'd like to work, live and play. We already have outstanding parks for walking, bird watching, etc. Pairing a mountain biking space along with options like the Poudre River trail system would expand the options for Greeley and create a destination for others across Northern Colorado.
An outdoor obstacle course / fitness path for adults and kids would be awesome! It could actually draw in visitors from other areas around northern Colorado as well.
I also second what another commenter said about making a take-off/landing space for paragliders. I've met several people with this hobby in Greeley, Fort Collins, and Colorado Springs and I don't even participate in it myself. Creating a resource like that could also draw in more people from surrounding areas as well as provide a space for Greeley residents to use so that they don't have to drive long distances to practice.
How about Orienteering? I know only a little about Orienteering, but am fascinated with it, and this new area seems like an ideal space.
As an avid ebike rider, I hope that the trails would be available for that use as well. There are two short dirt loops off the Poudre trail, one of which is open to bikes and the other is not. The addition of other such trails here of greater length is my great hope.
Andrew submitted this comment: I am a member of a local paramotor group that flies in Northern Colorado. We mainly fly out of Erie, Fredrick, and Windsor but would love to have a local spot in Greeley. All the pilots have extensive training and hold either a Powered Paraglider (PPG) 1 or 2 certificate. We adhere to all the FAA 103 regulations and take substantial steps to ensure air and ground safety.
I would like more mountain bike trails. I would like these trails to be for all skill levels. I would like to get my wife and young children into the sport but all the trails that they would have fun riding are a long drive. There are organizations that might provide funding for mountain bike trails (IMBA). Also, mountain bikes are notorious for volunteering to build and maintain trails. The mountain bike model has proven to be beneficial to many communities in Colorado and through out the nation. Some examples in Colorado are Fruita, Salida and the open spaces in Jefferson County. Some examples across the nation are Bentonville, Arkansas, Bend, Oregon, and Sedona, Arizona. I have personally traveled to many of these places, stayed in hotels in the area, ate at their restaurants and drank at their breweries.
It would be great if part of it could be set aside for a dog park. Incorporating the river somehow would also be great! Otherwise looking forward to having a place to walk/hike that isn't flat in Greeley.
A multi-purpose site seems ideal.....a place to meander/walk/bike; view habitat and wildlife, evening gazing, educational/interpretative signs to appreciate the unique sense of place (limited/strategic), a few spots to rest and view, link to Poudre River Trail, invite shared stewardship. All passive forms of recreation....no ziplines or motorized use of site please :)
Mike submitted this comment: "It seems to me that this acquisition opens up a large opportunity to have some sort of mountain biking in the area, which most of Weld county is sorely lacking. I believe the only trails in the county that could be classified as mountain biking trails are at Erie Singletrack, and while it's a fun place to ride for an hour or two, it's only 5-6 miles in total. I'd love to see at least a portion of the Shurview property be built with an eye toward making it a real mountain biking destination. Even something similar to Erie Singletrack would be a fantastic start, and if the land allows for it, something built like Curt Gowdy (understandably on a smaller scale due to the amount of space available). Something with purpose built features (berms, jumps, drops, etc) would attract a lot of people in the entire NoCo area. Nearly all the trails in NoCo, including the trails in Larimer, are really just horse trails that mountain bikes are allowed to ride on, and they lack the purpose built features that mountain bikers really want to ride."
Carlos submitted this comment: "Greeley area has a lot of parks but there are not a lot of dirt trails for runners or bikers. The Poudre trail is nice but for distance running it can be hard on your joints so wanted to ask if dirt trails for running/ jogging can be considered in the open space plan. Most of the dirt trails in the area(Josephine Park, Signature Bluffs, etc) may go a little over a mile so most of the time have to run several loops to get some distance in. The longer trail in the area (Great Western Trail) is a little out of the way for most people in Greeley so having a trail nearby with a couple of miles of continuous running/jogging/walking would be awesome. Hopefully this is considered in the open space plans."
Heard on the trail: John stopped by one of the tours at the new natural area and had this to share. "My interest in the site is as a possible place for high school cross country races. I work as an official and am always on the lookout for places to host meets. I know of several coaches interested in that possibility and think I might find more."