Sustainable Travel Practices You Need To Know to Care for Colorado
Sweeping slopes of multicolored blossoms, a sky of glowing cobalt against white-capped fourteeners, and crisp air so fresh you wish you could drink it … Those might be some of the pictures one envisions when Colorado comes to mind. To keep this natural charm, every individual is responsible to care for Colorado.
Colorado tourism generates over $20 billion annually. In 2017, 86 million people visited the state. This economic impact also includes the natural resources of our fragile parks and forests.
Mild to Wild Rafting and Jeep Tours is a partner with the Colorado Tourism Office to promote sustainable tourism in Colorado. Whether you are a welcomed visitor or a proud local, everyone should follow these sustainable practices to preserve the natural goodness surrounding us.
Water is Finite
Tourism leads to greater usage of water and facilities. While Colorado boasts over 100,000 miles of rivers, the state endures droughts and wildfires every year. Here’s how you can help.
- Completely put out your cigarettes and never leave the butts behind.
- Put out campfires completely until you can handle the embers.
- Always check for campfire restrictions.
- Only use what you need for water. Stay hydrated, please! But, turn off faucets, moderate for washing dishes and clothing, and take shorter showers.
Care for Colorado and Leave it as You Found it
Humans tend to intentionally, and unintentionally, leave their mark wherever they go. Unsurprisingly, this can negatively affect the survival of trees, plants, and animals.
- Do not carve into trees and rocks. Please don’t vandalize and disfigure Mother Nature, she’s quite lovely all on her own.
- Do not snatch up a bouquet of wildflowers. Those pretty plants are a part of an ecosystem that should be left to its natural progression. It’s also illegal to pick them in state parks.
- Do not build structures on public lands nor reorganize the furniture of the great outdoors. Rocks, logs, and trees look great as they are, and could be an animal’s home.
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Take the Path Less Traveled, but Stay on the Path
Stick to the trails and explore the less popular ones. About 42 percent of Colorado is dedicated to natural lands, so spreading out is pretty easy!
- Going off trail disrupts and damages the environment we all want to admire. Stick to the well-kept and easy to navigate paths made specifically for our enjoyment.
- Approximately 20,000 search and rescue missions occur every year due to people getting lost.
- Colorado has 39,000 trails to venture. Exploring them all helps care for and not overwork the well-known spots.
You have more trash than you think
Keep your trash to yourself. Leaving no trace behind is the oldest sustainable practice in the book. It goes beyond packing in what you pack out and leaving the campsite better than you found it.
- Orange peels and apple cores don’t break down the way you might think they do. All food should be thrown away with the rest of your trash. Leaving food out attracts animals which put them at a substantial risk for harmful interactions with people.
- Bring a reusable water bottle to cut down your rubbish contributions; 91 percent of plastic doesn’t get recycled anyway.
- When washing in the outdoors, use biodegradable soap 200 ft away from streams and lakes. While biodegradable soap breaks down in soil, it introduces disruptive chemicals like nitrogen that negatively affects fish and algae.
The incredibly vast wilderness in Colorado is something to cherish. Preserving the beauty of it requires being mindful in every crevice and atop every peak. The Colorado Tourism Office has awesome resources to know before you go on your next awesome adventure. See you out there!