State Forest State Park
State Park in Walden, CO
Hours:
Entrance Fees:
Daily Vehicle Pass: $12
Individual Daily Pass: $4
Animals Permitted:
- Leashed Dogs
- Service Animals
- Horses
Park Address:
56750 Highway 14
Walden, CO 80480
United States
State Forest State Park
State Park in Walden, CO
Hours:
Entrance Fees:
Daily Vehicle Pass: $12
Individual Daily Pass: $4
Animals Permitted:
- Leashed Dogs
- Service Animals
- Horses
Park Address:
56750 Highway 14
Walden, CO 80480
United States
Gold aspens mixed with pine trees cover the mountains under a cloudy blue sky.
Welcome to State Forest State Park
In the ultimate rugged Colorado, State Forest State Park offers visitors 70,932 acres of forest, jagged peaks, alpine lakes, wildlife and miles of trails. With so much space and natural diversity, visitors can experience a wide array of outdoor recreational favorites such as camping, hiking, wildlife viewing and geocaching.
70,932
acres
228
campsites
14
picnic sites
136
miles of trails
Accessing the Park
From Denver
Take I-70 to the Empire exit, Highway 40, over Berthoud Pass through Winter Park and Granby. Two miles west of Granby, take Highway 125 for 45 miles to the east side of Rand. Take County Road 27 for 14 miles to Highway 14. Turn right and follow for three miles to the park.
The State Forest Visitor Center is located one mile east of the town of Gould, on the right side of Highway 14.
Hours: Daily, 9 a.m. to 4 p.m.
North Michigan Reservoir Boat Ramps
Two boat ramps are located on the north side of the reservoir off Highway 41.
No watercraft of any type are allowed on Ranger Lakes.
- Gould Loop trail bridge crossing the Michigan River will be closed beginning 6/26 for maintenance.
- Michigan Ditch and American Lakes Trailhead and Trail will be closed for Summer 2025.
Fees and Passes
Pass |
Description |
Duration |
Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
|
Daily Vehicle Pass |
Single vehicle and its occupants |
1 Day |
$10-$12 |
|
Individual Daily Pass |
For individual entry on foot, bicycle, horseback, etc at select parks |
1 Day |
$4 |
|
DMV vehicle registration renewal option for Colorado residents |
12 Months |
$29 |
|
|
Annual Vehicle Pass (Affixed) |
Pass for a single vehicle and its occupants |
12 Months |
$80 |
|
Family Annual Pass (Hang Tag) |
Members of the same household |
12 Months |
$120 |
|
Aspen Leaf Annual Pass |
Colorado residents 64+ |
12 Months |
$70 |
|
Centennial Pass |
Income-eligible Colorado residents |
12 Months |
$14 |
|
Columbine Pass |
Colorado residents with disabilities |
12 Months |
$14 |
|
Veterans License Plate |
DMV vehicle registration renewal option for military veterans (disabled veterans or purple heart plates) |
Lifetime |
Free |
|
Independence Lifetime Pass |
Colorado resident veterans with disabilities |
Lifetime |
Free |
|
Blue Spruce Pass |
Colorado resident first responders with disabilities |
Lifetime |
$10 |
Nature and Wildlife
State Forest State Park is home to a diverse array of wildlife, making it the perfect destination for both wildlife watching and photography.
Be on the Lookout for Birds
Can you spot all the resident and visiting bird species? Download the Bird List Brochure (PDF).
Birds You Might Find
- Northern Mockingbird
- Yellow Warbler
- Lark Bunting
- Merlin
Mammals You Might Find
- Moose
- Snowshoe Hare
- Mule Deer
- River Otter
Reptiles and Amphibians You Might Find
- Wandering Garter Snake
- Western Toad
- Norther Leopard Frog
- Wood Frog
Geology at This Park
The Medicine Bow Range, bordering the park's east side, resulted from localized crustal movements that uplifted the entire region during the Mesozoic era. Thrust faulting, where one crustal end is pushed over the other, impacted State Forest State Park. Since there were multiple faults, slices between faults were exposed, including the iconic Nokhu Crags. Originally shale, the Crags metamorphosed into hard hornfels due to magma eruptions from below.
Volcanic eruptions covered the region in lava flows, remnants of which are visible on Iron Mountain. Erosion revealed fault slices, exposing the near-vertical hornfels layers forming the Nokhu Crags. Glaciers shaped the landscape we see today, carving cirques where high mountain lakes have formed.
The East Sand Dunes Natural Area features the only undisturbed, cold-climate dune in Colorado, unique for its sedimentary structures. Unlike North Sand Dunes, East Sand Dunes is not open for OHV use, preserving its natural state. Geologically distinct from the Great Sand Dunes National Monument, North Park's dunes formed as winds carried sand from eroded peaks. When winds hit the Medicine Bow Mountains to the east, they slowed, depositing sand at North Park's edge, creating dunes. Both East and North sand dunes are part of a larger, mostly dormant dune system spanning approximately 25 square miles.
The park's climate mirrors high Rocky Mountain valleys, featuring abundant sunshine, low humidity, low precipitation and significant temperature variations. As elevation increases, temperatures drop and precipitation rises. Annual precipitation varies across the forest, exceeding 100 inches in some areas.
Habitats and Plants at This Park
Coniferous trees cover about 52,000 acres of State Forest. Those trees include mostly lodgepole pine, followed by Englemann spruce, sub-alpine fir, Douglas fir, Colorado blue spruce, ponderosa pine and limber pine.
State Forest also has a shrub zone found on south and southwest exposures, as well as flat areas that receive sun throughout the day, riparian zones occur along the streams and the tundra above timberline.
- Shrub zones include: bitterbrush, big sagebrush, rabbitbrush, prickly pear, serviceberry, blue grama, sedge and wheatgrass
- Riparian zones include: willows, chokecherry, horsetail, sedge and squaw currant
- Alpine-zone summer flowers include: yellow snow buttercup, white marsh marigold, blue alpine forget-me-not, moss campion, rydbergia, fairy primrose and more
History
North Michigan Reservoir was constructed in the mid-1960s by Colorado Game, Fish and Parks, and opened as the North Michigan Reservoir Recreation Area with camping along the shores. In 1965, a tour of the area with legislators, stakeholders and Colorado Game, Fish and Parks representatives started the effort to create a new state park on the Colorado State Forest. In 1972, a lease was signed with the State Land Board to create State Forest State Park.
Known as the Moose-wiewing capital of Colorado, the park opened the Moose Visitor Center in 1997. Today, State Forest State Park hosts well over 330,000 visitors a year.