Garden of the Gods

A National Natural Landmark And A Colorado Springs City Park, Deeded To The City In 1909 On The Condition That It Remain Free To The Public Forever. Three Hundred Foot Fins Of Fountain Formation Sandstone Tilted Vertical By The Rise Of The Rocky Mountains. · Colorado Springs, Colorado

Garden of the Gods is three hundred feet of red sandstone standing on end - beds laid down flat three hundred million years ago and tipped vertical when the Rockies rose behind them - and it sits inside the city limits of Colorado Springs with Pikes Peak framed behind it. Charles Elliott Perkins bought the land intending to build on it, never did, and his children gave it to the city in 1909 on one condition: that it remain free to the public forever. It still is, which makes it one of the most visited free attractions in the United States, with several million people a year. The central loop is a paved mile and a half among the fins. The formations have names - Kissing Camels, Cathedral Spires, Balanced Rock - and the light on them at sunrise is the reason photographers set alarms. It is also one of the most genuinely accessible great natural sights in the country, because that central loop is paved and flat and runs among the largest formations in the park.

1805 North 30th Street, Colorado Springs, Colorado, 80904, United States

The park is open daily from early morning until evening, with hours extending in summer and contracting in winter; the gates close at night. Admission is free and always will be, under the terms of the 1909 gift. The visitor and nature centre across the road is also free and keeps its own daytime hours. Parking inside the park is free but limited and fills by mid-morning in summer; a seasonal shuttle runs from the visitor centre. Technical rock climbing requires free registration.

Garden of the Gods on Spottos · Explore more places on Spottos