Highline Lake State Park Named Leave No Trace Gold Standard Site

Rachael Gonzales
Northwest Region Public Information Officer
970-773-8587 / [email protected]
Twitter: @CPW_NW

Erin Collier
Leave No Trace Education & Program Manager
303-442-8222, Ext. 115  /  [email protected] CPW announces Highline Lake State Park named Leave No Trace Gold Standard Site

LOMA, Colo. - Colorado Parks and Wildlife is excited to announce Highline Lake State Park has been designated as a Leave No Trace (LNT) Gold Standard Site, joining an elite group of sites nationwide to earn this honor. Highline Lake is the first state park in Colorado on the western slope to receive the LNT Gold Standard designation.

“Leave No Trace is excited to announce Highline Lake State Park as a Gold Standard designated site,” said Dana Watts, Leave No Trace Executive Director. “The hard work of staff and community stakeholders means that Highline Lake is a leading force in the Leave No Trace movement nationally and an example of how effective the role of education is in protecting our outdoor spaces.” 

In order to be designated as a Leave No Trace Gold Standard Site, a location must meet the following criteria:

• Demonstrate successful implementation of Leave No Trace outdoor skills and ethics into management, programming, outreach and education efforts at the site.

• Formally train staff and community partners in Leave No Trace and outdoor ethics.

• Include Leave No Trace language and messaging on signs at trailheads, as well as in pamphlets and other distributed materials for visitors.

• Facilitate Leave No Trace interpretive programs, including ranger talks, youth programs, and trail outings for visitors. 

"We are extremely proud to receive the Leave No Trace Gold Standard Designation," said Howard Asal, Highline Lake State Park Park Ranger. "We owe our success to the dedicated volunteers who worked tirelessly alongside us, including the Friends of Highline Lake, Pomona Elementary, and Orchard Avenue Elementary. As we face the challenges of managing increased visitation and its impact on our natural resources, we rely on the Leave No Trace Principles to guide our programs and management decisions."

About Leave No Trace
The Leave No Trace organization is a national nonprofit organization that protects the outdoors by empowering everyone through science, hands-on training and simple guidelines. The Leave No Trace Gold Standard Site designation recognizes public lands implementing the highest standard of onsite Leave No Trace education. The program aims to achieve a critical mass of Gold Standard designated sites across the country to ensure minimum-impact education is part of every public lands visitor’s experience and thereby alleviate the significant impacts currently affecting these outdoor areas. For more information, visit www.LNT.org.

About Highline Lake State Park:
Highline Lake State Park is the recreation epicenter of the Grand Valley in Western Colorado. The park serves nearly 150,000 visitors annually and provides excellent camping, fishing, hiking, and boating opportunities, among many others. Due to the park’s low elevation, Highline Lake is a great base camp for hikers, bikers, and wildlife watchers year-round. Education and interpretation of Colorado’s natural resources is priority to the park and is very popular with field trips in the spring, summer, and fall. With an activity for every visitor, Highline Lake State Park is the gem of Mesa County.