Care for Colorado

September in Colorado has traditionally been a time when tourism seasons wanes and Coloradans become the majority of people on the trails. However, 2020 is unlike any other year. And now, with remote working and learning officially a thing, visitors have extended their mountain stays far into the fall. 

We’re just fine with that at RMOC. After all, Colorado is fabulous in the fall, and we’re happy to share it with all visitors. However, with the influx of summer visitors, we noticed a few habits we’re not 100% keen about, and so too has the Colorado Tourism Office, which is currently promoting its Care for Colorado campaign made of messages that include:

STICK TO TRAILS
Help natural areas stay natural by staying on the path. 

TRASH THE TRASH
If you pack it in, pack it out – even food scraps. If you come across trash, pick it up. 

LEAVE WHAT YOU FIND
Take home the beauty in a photo and not in your backpack. 

BE KIND TO OTHER VISITORS
Yield to the uphill bikers and hikers; silence your cell phone and search for the trail less traveled. 

KNOW BEFORE YOU GO
Do your research to know what you’ll need. Take a reusable water bottle everywhere. 

We’d like to echo the Care for Colorado campaign with a few suggestions of our own to ensure your mountain stay is as wonderful as it can be while also respecting the locals who call these small towns home. 

• Campsites do not usually have potable water. Bring your own water and preferably not plastic bottled water. Refill a reusable jug instead. If you do use bottled water, be sure to recycle it and not leave it lying around.
• Please slow down while driving. We have lots of wildlife on the roads. Drive the speed limit and enjoy the view.
• Recycling has to be sorted. Do not just throw a bag of comingled items into our bins. This will lead to the whole bin getting thrown out.
• Not all businesses have parking spaces for large RVs. Please call ahead to ensure there’s a spot for you. 
• Consider packing your own staples like bread and juice. Our mountain towns have small grocery stores that don’t always have enough stock for visitors and locals.
• Pack everything out, even when car camping. Likewise, please do not use a local business’s trash for your camping trash disposal. Our bins fill up fast!
• Make reservations ahead of time. We want your business, but it’s hard to accommodate last minute requests. Advanced reservations also help us offer a better product as we can better plan out guides and gear ahead of time.

We encourage everyone to discover fall in Colorado but ask that you “Care for Colorado. It’s the only one we’ve got. Respect the place, leave no trace – it sure would help a lot!”