Colorado's Deer Creek Canyon Park to partially reopen as park recovers from Quarry Fire damage
Colorado's Deer Creek Canyon Park is scheduled to partially reopen this month after the Quarry Fire caused significant damage to the park in 2024.
Jeffco Open Space said the park will open an hour before sunrise on May 15. Officials will also hold a ceremony from 10:30-11:30 a.m. to celebrate the park's reopening.
CBS
CBS
Approximately 35% of Deer Creek Canyon Park was damaged when the Quarry Fire broke out last July. Since then, recovery efforts have been underway for fire suppression cleanup, trail maintenance, standing dead tree removal and erosion mitigation in severe and moderate burn areas. Cleanup crews also made water quality protection repairs to bulldozer lines on the east and west sides of the park.
CBS
Emergency Watershed Protection provided $350,000 to help cover helicopter mulch and seed drops for slopes that suffered severe burns. Jeffco Open Space used more than 10,000 pounds of native seed mix, some of which was sourced from JCOS parks, along with 60,000 pounds of straw mulch and pelletized hydro mulch to help stabilize slopes in the most erosion-prone areas. Officials said those efforts will help protect the Chatfield Reservoir from sediment runoff.
Recovery work continues as the Conifer Wildland Division helps identify and remove hazard trees in burn scar areas and geologists assess rockfall hazards.
CBS
The parks' reopening was delayed until spring growth began to cover re-seeded areas due to concerns over off-trail use and the spread of invasive plants. Officials asked park visitors to stay on the trails to protect the area and for their own safety.
Jeffco Open Space plans to fully reopen the park on Aug. 1, along with the seasonal reopening of the Black Bear Trail.
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