Reverend’s Ridge Campground – Golden Gate State Park, Colorado

It has been a family tradition for the last fifteen years. My siblings and their families pick a campsite somewhere in the state of Colorado, and we go camping over the weekend. Sometimes we are all able to attend, and on other occasions, only a few of us are able to go. It has led to some memorable moments over the last fifteen years as we have endured violent rain storms, wandering moose, hot sunny days, and strange neighbors. No matter what stories are created during these trips, it is always worth going on.

I was able to go this year, and the place we went was one that I had been to a couple of times, Reverend’s Ridge Campgrounds. It is a popular campground because it is less than an hour away from the western part of the Denver Metro Area, and its quick location to both Black Hawk, and Central City, two small mountain towns which offer casinos for people to play in. The campground is also an attraction to this area.

Other than the regular setting up a tent, and cooking meals, Reverend’s Ridge Campgrounds offers campers many other things that they can do while they are there. The campground’s center schedules many different people to come in to talk about the wildlife, flora, and night skies that can be seen around the sites. A little ways away are a couple of ponds that are always well stocked with fish offering a chance for anybody with a license to catch one. Also, a series of trails wind themselves through the wilderness that offers many levels of hikes. The most common one, Panorama Point, offers beautiful views of the surrounding Rocky Mountains, and it is common to see both hikers and mountain bikers on the trail.

Another trail, the coyote trail, hooks up with the Panorama Point trail, but it is better to take a short drive to hook up with it a little further down the mountain. It is the one that I enjoyed the most, and I would describe it as a moderate trek. Despite the challenge, it boasts two locations that are worth seeing. The first is an old cabin where bootleggers used to make what they called skunk whiskey during Prohibition. The other place is not as preserved as well. It is a homestead that was developed by a man named John Frazer, but was left to fall apart when he passed away.

It is a great place to go camping, but like any sites in Colorado, the campsites fill up quickly. If you are interested in coming here or any campsite in the state, you need to reserve your spot early. The spots usually open up for the next year in December, and I have applied to reserve spots the day they opened on Reserve America. They are usually gone within that first week especially for the weekends or the holiday periods. I know that means that you have to be on top of things during a busy holiday season, but it is worth the five minutes to make the reservation. It just means that you will have a perfect spot waiting for you when the summer months roll around.

Thank you for reading, and keep getting out there to have those adventures. Until next time.