Browns Canyon National Monument
Browns Canyon National Monument
4.3
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Most Recent: Reviews ordered by most recent publish date in descending order.
Detailed Reviews: Reviews ordered by recency and descriptiveness of user-identified themes such as wait time, length of visit, general tips, and location information.
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4.3
24 reviews
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13
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7
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KG_TXtraveler
Houston, TX623 contributions
Jul 2024 • Family
There are A LOT of rafting trips that come through the newly created Brown canyon National Monument, however that is only a small portion of the acreage. There is camping, hiking and ATV trails.
With our small kids we hiked to the top of Ruby Mountain, really easy to get to from the main road in. Was hoping to see some larger mammals- but there were plenty of VERY friendly chipmunks and some prairie dogs. The rock formations were very beautiful.
With our small kids we hiked to the top of Ruby Mountain, really easy to get to from the main road in. Was hoping to see some larger mammals- but there were plenty of VERY friendly chipmunks and some prairie dogs. The rock formations were very beautiful.
Written July 2, 2024
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
RBlack7557
Timnath, CO78 contributions
Jun 2021
We stumbled across this place looking for a place to have a picnic. We have a Nat. Park pass so we didn't have to pay. There are several picnic tables with large rocks nearby. The grandkids had a good time climbing around on the rocks. We watched rafts and kayaks for a while and that was interesting. The surrounding scenery and the Arkansas River are pretty.
Written June 8, 2021
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Rick Y
Albuquerque, NM3 contributions
Jul 2017 • Family
Go with Independent Whitewater Rafting they were great extremely friendly guide named Bubby. Very experienced staff.
Written July 29, 2017
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
TravelWithSara
Mason City, IA55 contributions
Oct 2020
I'm not sure how one would know this was a national monument unless you looked at a map or a sign a few miles from the actual entrance, which is not well marked. We visited this national monument recently and were not sure if we were actually in the right spot. A little signage and information to help visitors would be helpful. We paid the fee to the national recreation area- and wondered why we did.
There are other national monuments in Colorado that are worth visiting, this is not one of them.
There are other national monuments in Colorado that are worth visiting, this is not one of them.
Written October 11, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
LauraG050
San Diego, CA259 contributions
Sep 2019
Browns Canyon National Monument is a fairly new site, only created as a national monument in 2015. I'm trying to visit as many NPS sites as possible, but it was very difficult to find any information on this one. There is no visitor center. What information I found was on the Friends of Browns Canyon web site. The passport stamp is available at the Forest Service office in Salida (only open Monday-Friday), and at the Arkansas Headwaters Visitor Center, also in Salida (fortunately open 7 days a week). The only trail system is in the northwestern part of the park, but the trails don't seem to really go into the canyon at all, so I don't feel like I visited Browns "Canyon". We saw a few rock formations on our hike on the "Bench Trail", but a lot of the trail was on grassland looking up at the hills, rather than being in the hills. It was a nice hike to an overlook of the Arkansas River, but there was really nothing very special about the area. If you want to hike, program your GPS to find the Ruby Mountain Campground. Then go through the campground to the parking area for the trailhead. There's an outhouse there, and a sign with information on the trails. The first trail junction is confusing - there's no names on the sign, just the number of the Turret Trail, which is 6045. You want to take the left fork to stay on the Turret Trail. After that the signs were better, though there were still a couple of places where there were use trails that would have put us onto private property, and it wasn't always immediately obvious which way we should go. Honestly there are many much more interesting and scenic places to visit in Colorado.
Written October 6, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Sarah S
Westminster, CO1,074 contributions
Jun 2017 • Family
I'm one of those people trying to see as many sites of the National Parks system as possible, which is why we visited here. It's very pretty, but you'll want to go with another activity, such as rafting, as the primary objective. We underwent some work to get here and then pretty much just looked at a river. :)
Written January 26, 2018
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
RKWh2o
North Kingstown, RI218 contributions
Jun 2016 • Couples
My review was a warning about Browns Canyon National Monument, not Browns Canyon Adventure Park. The National Monument was just designated in 2015 and was featured in the Colorado Map that I picked up. There was even a sign on the road. However, this National Monument is not yet developed in any way. For information, we were able to get complex directions from the Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Center in Buena Vista. Looks like a rugged hike to the canyon.
Written July 20, 2016
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Leo B
Saint Joseph, MO23 contributions
Sep 2022
Even thought the water level was a little low the rafting trip was fun through the Brown's Canyon National Monument.
Written September 20, 2022
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
Carmen T
Colorado Springs, CO79 contributions
Aug 2020
We recently took a guided kayak trip through Upper Brown's Canyon with RMOC. It was super fun, refreshing, exciting and a beautiful area. Interesting rock formations, wildflowers, amd crystal clear river.
Written August 20, 2020
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
AMsays
Thornhill, Canada5,300 contributions
Oct 2018
This park, was designated a National Monument by Obama in 2015 to afford protection and as a new park, it is a little rough around the edges. Dirt road to get in from the Salida side after not much signage. Once in, I found it very quiet in September - which was unexpected.
Some trails lead from the parking lot. I took the Ruby Mountain Trailhead - 2.7 miles -. strenuous and again a little rough, following the dry creek bed of Cottonwood Creek to the Arkansas River.. The views of the landscape were amazing. But, I never got to the monument....
Browns Canyon is the most popular destination for whitewater rafting in the country, It is also renowned for its fishing, hiking and mountain biking.
Some trails lead from the parking lot. I took the Ruby Mountain Trailhead - 2.7 miles -. strenuous and again a little rough, following the dry creek bed of Cottonwood Creek to the Arkansas River.. The views of the landscape were amazing. But, I never got to the monument....
Browns Canyon is the most popular destination for whitewater rafting in the country, It is also renowned for its fishing, hiking and mountain biking.
Written September 29, 2019
This review is the subjective opinion of a Tripadvisor member and not of Tripadvisor LLC. Tripadvisor performs checks on reviews as part of our industry-leading trust & safety standards. Read our transparency report to learn more.
What campgrounds are recommended for this area?
Written May 28, 2019
cpbeegle
Denver, Colorado
Does this National Monument have a visitor center for park cancellations?
Written September 30, 2018
Where can I make reservations to camp at Browns Canyon National Monument? Is that even possible?
Written June 1, 2018
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