31 Jul Programs Programs Programs
Hello again and welcome back to Rocky. I have been keeping very busy this summer running and preparing programs throughout the park. With an expected 4 million visitors this year there needs to be something to do right? No need to worry I have got just the thing to keep you busy and to have a wonderful time
Every Wednesday we have Fly-Fishing programs also known as Junior Angler Programs. This program occurs at the famous Holzwarth Historic Site which is on the west side of the park and also lies just past the Colorado River. This program alone is 3 hours long and averages just over 100 visitors over the course of those 3 hours. This is easily one of the most popular programs here in Rocky Mountain National Park and it is not a surprise, fly-fishing in the Colorado River? Need I say more? Along with our weekly fly-fishing program where we teach beginners of all ages simple casting techniques and tricks we also host a Disabled Fly-Fishing prgram on Saturdays once a month. The park has a great relationship with the National Sports Center For the Disabled (NSCD). These events have been going amazingly well and the amount of weekly visitors only furthers my point.
So if Fly-Fishing is on Wednesdays do you have any other events on Thursdays? Yes, we do! Every Thursday is our Junior Ranger Event Day. Each week we have a Junior Ranger Event with different topics, anywhere from birds, mammals, fire ecology, and A Day in the Life of a Park Ranger. These events are always a blast and working with kids and helping them learn more about the park and being a Junior Ranger is always a unique experience. This program, along with the Fly-Fishing program, has great attendance in which we average anywhere from 75 to 100 Junior Rangers over a 4-hour period. Giving them books and badges and helping them have a great experience in the park is what it is all about and teaching the next generation is always very important.
When I am not running around teaching people how to fly-fish or giving kids Junior Ranger badges I have Bird Talks that I give! Just about every other Tuesday or Wednesday I give a talk about ‘Birds of the Valley’ and every Saturday I give a talk solely based on Brown Capped Rosy-Finches. My Birds of the Valley talk is located at Harbison Meadows where I introduce folks to Magpies, Ruby-Crown Kinglets, Gray-Headed Juncos, Stellar’s Jay, and Lincoln’s Sparrow. Although this is a formal program and talk it definitely has a casual vibe. My talk lasts around 15 minutes and afterward, we go birding so that visitors can actually see what I am talking about. My Rosy-Finch talk takes place at the Alpine Visitor Center which is the highest visitor center in all of the National Parks towering above at 11,700 feet. So why do it there? Becuase that’s where the Rosy-Finches are at! This unique bird only nest in the high alpine environment.
It may seem like I am doing a lot each week and these programs take a lot to prepare for but when you work in Rocky Mountain National Park it never really feels like you are working at all
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