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Photo: mark byzewski / CC BY 2.0 · source

Canyons & deserts

Garden of the Gods

Colorado Springs, CO · Rocky MountainsFreeFree; the park and visitor center are both free

About

In 1909 Charles Elliott Perkins' children deeded 480 acres of Garden of the Gods to Colorado Springs as "a free and public park forever," and it's still free. The paved Perkins Central Garden Trail runs 1.5 miles round trip among the sandstone formations with less than a 30-foot rise, so it works with a wheelchair or a stroller. The dirt Siamese Twins Trail is the one with Pikes Peak framed in a natural window. The Visitor Center lot has fewer than 200 spaces and fills in peak summer and on holidays, so go early; the gates open at 5 a.m. Climbers need a free permit, and anything above 10 feet takes technical gear.

Highlights

Balanced RockGateway Rock formationsPikes Peak framed at Siamese TwinsPaved Perkins Central Garden TrailClimbing by free permitFree Visitor and Nature Center exhibits

Getting there

1805 N 30th St, Colorado Springs, CO 80904

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