National Parks, Monuments, Wildlife Refuges,
Fish Hatcheries, Grasslands, and Recreation Areas
in the American Intermountain West

Name and Location	Acreage	Comments
Alamosa National Wildlife Refuge Alamosa, CO	11,169	Rio Grande marshland, migratory waterfowl, wintering bald eagles, self-guided tours
Angel Peak National Recreation Site Bloomfield, NM		Beautiful, heavily eroded badlands area just southeast of Bloomfield.
Anasazi Heritage Center Dolores, CO		Beautiful museum displaying Anasazi artifacts and history. 2 pueblos on site.
Arapaho National Wildlife Refuge Walden, CO	14,500	Nesting and rearing habitat for migratory waterfowl, interpretive trails, self-guided tours.
Arches National Park Moab, UT		Incredible rock formations eroded into red rock sandstone by wind action. The largest concentration of natural stone arches in the world.
Aztec Ruins National Monument Aztec, NM	319	Anasazi Pueblo ruins on the banks of the Animas River.
Bandelier National Monument White Rock, NM	32,737	Anasazi cliff dwellings and pueblo ruins on the east side of the Jemez Mountains. Also, 23,267 acres of National Wilderness Area.
Bents Old Fort National Historic Site La Junta, CO		1833 trading post and Santa Fe Trail depot reconstructed.
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park Montrose, CO	20,000	Spectacular Canyon, viewpoints, interpretive exhibits, guided tours, includes 11,180 acre wilderness.
Browns Park National Wildlife Refuge Maybell, CO	13,500	Prime wetland bottoms of the Green River in a semiarid region. Waterfowl, mule deer, pronghorns
Canyon de Chelly National Monument Chinle, AZ	83,840	Ancient Native American ruins in the heart of the Navajo Reservation. Home of Spider Woman Rock.
Canyonlands National Park Moab, UT		Incredible canyons and rock formations gouged into the Colorado Plateau by water and wind erosion.
Capulin Volcano National Monument Capulin, NM		Take a walk into an extinct volcano crater!
Chaco Culture National Historic Park Nageezi, NM		A large concentration of Anasazi and pueblo ruins in northwestern New Mexico.
Colorado National Monument Fruita, CO	20,450	High plateaus, colorful canyons, wildlife, Rim Rock Drive, Tours.
Comanche National Grassland Springfield, CO	419,000	Prehistoric cave art, dry shortgrass prairie, desert wildlife, 200 bird species, Lesser Prairie Chicken Natural Area.
Curecanti National Recreation Area Gunnison, CO	42,000	3 large lakes created by dams along the Gunnison River in a volcanic landscape: Black Canyon and Curecanti Needle. Tours.
Dinosaur National Monument Dinosaur, CO	211,000	Canyons, peaks, mesas, Gates of Lodore, Echo Park Road, riverboating, rafting, tours.
El Malpais National Monument New Mexico		El Malpais is an area of unique lava flows and badlands in west central New Mexico
El Morro National Monument New Mexico	1,278	A crossroads in western New Mexico, El Morro is inscribed with many old messages, including some from the earliest European explorers in the New World.
Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument Florissant, CO	6,000	Interpretive exhibits, guided tours of an area with 80,000 plant and animal specimens fossilized over 30 million years ago.
Fort Union National Monument Watrous, NM		Fort Union was first built in 1851 and served to protect travellers and merchandise along the Santa Fe Trail for many years. Rebuilt twice, it was the primary military presence in the Southwest until it was finally abandoned in 1891.
Glen Canyon National Recreation Area UT & AZ		Glen Canyon was flooded when the dam was built at Page, AZ, creating Lake Powell. Many, many miles of red sandstone canyons and rock formations.
Great Sand Dunes National Park Mosca, CO		The tallest sand dunes in North America at the foot of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in the San Luis Valley
Hotchkiss National Fish Hatchery Hotchkiss, CO	50	This hatchery produces 1.2 million trout annually for southwestern Colorado reservoirs.
Hovenweep National Monument 25 m. W of Cortez, CO	785	The ruins of cliff dwellings and towers built by pre-Columbian Pueblo Indians. Self guided tour. Main location and facilities in Utah.
Hubbell Trading Post National Historic Site Navajo Reservation, AZ	160	The first trading post on the Navajo Reservation, the Hubbell family operated the business until they turned it over to the National Park Service in 1967. NPS still operates the store.
Leadville National Fish Hatchery 6 m. SW of Leadville, CO	3,000	Built in 1889, 2nd oldest federal hatchery still in use. Nature trails, tours, panoramic views.
Maxwell National Wildlife Refuge 6 miles northwest of Maxwell, NM	3,700	Feeding and resting area for migratory birds. Wildlife, waterfowl.
Mesa Verde National Park Mancos, CO	52,000	World Heritage Site of Anasazi cliff dwellings dating to 1200 AD. Guided tours.
Monte Vista National Wildlife Refuge 6 m. S of Monte Vista, CO	14,000	Unique wetland habitat in a desert setting. Wildlife, migratory waterfowl, self-guided tours.
Natural Bridges National Monument Blanding, UT		A concentration of natural stone bridges carved by water erosion in southeastern Utah.
Navajo National Monument Navajo Reservation, AZ		Anasazi cliff dwellings: Keet Seel, Betatakin and others famous in Hopi legends.
Pawnee National Grassland Briggsdale, CO	193,000	Pawnee Buttes, central plains: lots of Dust Bowl type rangeland
Pecos National Historic Park Pecos, NM		Site of the Pecos Pueblo and Mission ruins. Also included in the Park is the Glorieta Battlefield site (from the Civil War) and the Forked Lightning Ranch.
Petrified Forest National Park AZ	93,533	An area full of the petrified remains of a forest, with special routes into the Painted Desert.
Petroglyph National Monument Albuquerque, NM	7,236	A concentration of Anasazi, Puebloan and early Hispanic rock art on Albuquerque's West Mesa.
Rainbow Bridge National Monument AZ		A large sandstone bridge in the Glen Canyon area.
Rocky Mountain Arsenal Denver, CO	17,000	Former munitions plant is now a wildlife sanctuary. Access only by scheduled guided tours.
Rocky Mountain National Park Estes Park, CO	265,000	Small glaciers and volcanos, 91 peaks over 11,000 feet, Longs Peak (14,255 ft.) Trail Ridge Road, 355 miles of trails.
Ute Mountain Tribal Park Towaoc, CO	125,000	Primitive area with Anasazi ruins in various stages of reconstruction.
White Sands National Monument Alamogordo, NM		A large area of gypsum sand dunes. The state has also been seeding this area with exotic game animals such as oryx and ibex.

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National Parks, Monuments, Wildlife Refuges, Fish Hatcheries, Grasslands, and Recreation Areas in the American Intermountain West

National Parks, Monuments, Wildlife Refuges,
Fish Hatcheries, Grasslands, and Recreation Areas
in the American Intermountain West