It’s SLASH season again!
The 2025 SLASH (Sustainable Lands and Safer Homes) season is upon us. From May 15th to October 25th, four SLASH collection sites will be open for business, mostly on Thursdays thru Sundays, 9AM to 4PM, unless otherwise posted. You should plan to arrive no later than 30 minutes prior to closing. Read more
Information Specialist Judy Smetana, Volunteer Program Coordinator Ronnie Terry, and Volunteer Gardeners Michelle Poolet and Sandy Bates stand in front of the Boettcher Mansion display at this year’s Volunteer Recruitment Fair, which was held at JCPOS Headquarters in Golden.
Volunteerism isn’t anything new – it’s been around for hundreds if not thousands of years. Officially, volunteerism can be traced back to the 12th century in Britain, where more than 500 hospitals were staffed by volunteers.
The word “volunteer” stems from the Latin voluntarius – “willing, of one’s own free will”. It became part of the English language via Middle French, initially referring to someone who willingly offered themselves for military duty. Today, it has evolved to mean anyone entering service freely, whether military or community service.
Every year, Jeffco Parks & Open Space (JCPOS) hosts a Volunteer Recruitment Fair, during which time folks who are interested in becoming more engaged with our parks can investigate what being a hands-on part of Open Space might be like, i.e. entering service freely. Read more
The Boettcher Mansion as seen from the Mule Deer garden.
By Victoria Gits, PLAN Jeffco Staff Writer and Board Secretary
Three years ago, the lovely, historic Boettcher Mansion on Lookout Mountain was surrounded by a mostly neglected landscape of overgrown grasses and weeds not really in keeping with the grand Arts and Crafts home known as a popular wedding venue.
Thanks to volunteer gardeners, today the grounds on three sides of the house are full of thriving annuals, perennials, shade-or-sun loving plants, flowering shrubs and vines. Even in mid-September one can peruse the zinnias, sunflowers, impatiens, daisies and mums – and petunias, calibrachoa, and sweet potato vine – lots and lots of them.
Instead of forgettable space, the outdoors is now a horticultural showcase and a destination worthy of taking visitors for a peaceful walk any time of day for free, with or without a wedding to attend. Read more
You’re hiking or cycling in one of our Open Space parks. You encounter a group of kids with a couple of adults, and they seem totally engrossed in a patch of shrubbery. You stop for a moment, you hear children’s voices exclaiming about what they’ve found – they seem so excited about everything around them.
Welcome to ENOR – Eagle’s Nest, Owl’s Roost – Environmental Discovery Camp, which is sponsored by the Jeffco CSU Extension office. ENOR has been in the business of getting kids outdoors for more than 50 years.
Jeffco Parks & Open Space was so impressed with ENOR’s achievements that, in 2024, they presented ENOR with the Gambel Oak Award, as a Pioneer in Environmental Education, at that year’s Conservation Awards Ceremony. Read more
By Vicky Gits Staff Writer Photos: Jefferson County Parks and Open Space
Conservation Awards night Jan. 29, 2026, at the Lakewood Cultural Center did not disappoint, with inspiring videos starring parks volunteers raving about how much they enjoy their duties, even cleaning toilets for Jefferson County Parks and Open Space.
The annual awards night is a tradition that has taken place since 2018 with the exception of 2021, when it was suspended because of COVID.
Currently there are about 550 regular, ongoing volunteers donating thousands of hours per year to educate visitors, build and maintain trails, restore vegetation, give advice to hikers, supply toilet paper, pick up litter and welcome visitors. A couple of thousand also turn out for one-time projects.
Emceeing the event this year was the newly appointed director of JCPOS, Aaron Roth, former National Park Service deputy regional director of eight states, in Lakewood for 20 years. His responsibilities there included oversight of Rocky Mountain and Great Sand Dunes national parks in Colorado. Read more
By Vicky Gits, Staff Writer PLAN Jeffco
After being closed for restoration since 2017, the former dog park and trailhead off Stagecoach Boulevard reopened Oct. 25, 2025, as a feature inside Elk Meadow Park in Evergreen. Dogs are still welcome in the park, as they are elsewhere in the system, but they must be on leash, as there is no fenced, off-leash area.
The Stagecoach Trailhead is about two miles west of Evergreen Parkway on the south end of Elk Meadow Park. The enclave has 107 acres compared to 1,600 acres in the whole of Elk Meadow Park. Read more
The Mountain pine beetle (Dendroctonus ponderosae) is back in Jefferson County. This little bug, this native to the western North American pine forests, is responsible for the periodic loss of millions of pine trees – most normally Ponderosa, Lodgepole, Scotch and Limber pines.
Mountain pine beetles (MPB) are always with us, having evolved with the western pine forests. Under ideal conditions, their attacks are low-level, limited to trees that have been stressed due to injuries, drought, over-crowding, fire damage, root disease or old age. However, every 10-30 years, whether due to beetle population explosions, enhanced drought, or warmer temperatures (or all three), major outbreaks occur. The last major MPB outbreak in Jeffco occurred from 1996 to 2004. Since 2023 there have been signs of a new resurgence of MPB in our area.
Traffic comes to halt in both directions on Hwy-6 as construction workers place bridges over Clear Creek and create the underpass for river access as Peaks to Plains Trail makes substantial progress.
By Vicky Gits, PLAN Jeffco Staff Writer
Photos courtesy of Anne Ludolph, Jeffco Parks & Open Space Multimedia Specialist
UPDATE 11/20/2025: The trailhead formerly known as the “as yet to be named trailhead” now has a name. The CCR (Colorado Central Railroad) Trailhead was the site of a grand opening ceremony for the eastern 1.25 miles of the Huntsman Segment on this day.
An engineering miracle on Jeffco Parks & Open Space land is nearing completion in Clear Creek Canyon along U.S. 6. Just beyond Tunnel One, the new segment of the Peaks to Plains Trail is expected to partially open before the end of 2025. This is a moment that Open Space has been planning for years.
Currently under construction is a 3-mile concrete trail deep inside one of the least forgiving passages along the rugged river’s granite gorge. Read more
Since the recent passage of Colorado Senate Bill 25-149, the “Local Government Duties Equestrian Protections”, or the Equestrian Bill of Rights, as it’s more familiarly called, Miss Mountain Manners has decided that it’s time to refresh this post on how to share the trail with equestrian visitors.
SB25-149 aims to enhance equestrian safety by:
The 2025 SLASH season is upon us. From May 16th to October 26th, four SLASH collection sites will be open for business , mostly on Thursdays thru Sundays, 9AM to 4PM, unless otherwise posted. You should plan to arrive no later than 30 minutes prior to closing. Read more
