• Menu
  • Skip to right header navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Uncover Colorado Logo

  • Blog
  • Activities
    • Year-round
      • Brewery Tours
      • Casinos & Gaming
      • Caves
      • Colorado Brands
      • Escape Rooms
      • Federal Lands
      • Food & Dining
      • Ghost Towns
      • Gondola & Chairlifts
      • Hot Springs
      • Lakes
      • Landmarks
      • Mine Tours
      • Mountains
      • Museums
      • Paintball
      • Performing Arts
      • Public Parks
      • Rivers
      • Scenic Drives
      • Sightseeing Tours
      • Shopping
      • Sports Teams
      • State Parks
      • Train Rides
      • Transportation
      • Winery Tours
      • Wildlife
      • Zip Lines & Aerial Parks
    • Spring, Summer & Fall
      • Amusement Parks
      • ATV Rentals
      • Biking
      • Boating
      • Camping
      • Drive-In Theaters
      • Fishing
      • Golf Courses
      • Hiking
      • Horseback Riding
      • Jeep Rentals
      • Rock Climbing
      • Tubing & Paddling
      • Waterfalls
      • Whitewater Rafting
    • Winter
      • Cross Country Skiing
      • Dog Sledding
      • Ice Climbing
      • Ice Fishing
      • Ice Skating
      • Skiing & Snowboarding
      • Sleigh Rides
      • Snow Tubing
      • Snowbiking
      • Snowmobiling
      • Snowshoeing
  • Events
    • January
    • February
    • March
    • April
    • May
    • June
    • July
    • August
    • September
    • October
    • November
    • December
  • Lodging
    • Budget Hotels
    • Historic Hotels
    • Luxury Hotels
    • Bed & Breakfasts
    • Boutique Hotels
    • Cabins & Glamping
    • Casinos w/ Lodging
    • Hot Spring w/ Lodging
    • Wineries w/ Lodging
    • Best Hotels
    • Dude Ranches
    • Campgrounds
  • Towns
  • Trip Planner
  • Search
  • Blog
  • Activities
  • Events
  • Lodging
  • Towns
  • Trip Planner
Rifle Mountain Park, CO
Rifle Mountain Park, CO. Photo: rifleco.org

Rifle Mountain Park – Rifle

FacebookTwitter

Little is remembered about President Warren Harding’s administration aside from the Teapot Dome scandal a few hundred miles north of the Colorado border in Wyoming. However, one of the acts the Harding administration is remembered for in Colorado came on October 21, 1921, when Rifle Mountain Park was created.

The town of Rifle, on the western slope of the Rockies, stepped up and took the initiative to get a section of a nearby canyon set aside for posterity with this legislation. Denver used the same act to create the Red Rocks Amphitheater.

Rifle Mountain Park, CO
Rifle Mountain Park, CO. Photo: rifleco.org

Activities

Rifle Mountain is a haven for rock climbers, featuring some of the best free and technical climbing available in the United States.

Camping – Primitive campsites are available on a first-come, first-serve basis. They can be reserved at 202 Railroad Ave in Rifle.

Rifle Mountain Park, CO
Rifle Mountain Park, CO. Photo: rifleco.org

Hiking – There are hiking trails winding through the park. However, it’s a very popular area with rock climbers, so the hiking is minimal.

Rock Climbing – When the park opened climbers were free to attach their own pitons, but over the years the excess amount of steel pitons driven into the climbing faces of the canyon created problems. Now, 250 routes are offered in the park with permanently bolted pitons in place for technical climbers to attach their equipment to.

Routes aren’t limited to just the existing ones and new routes can be created through a permitting process in conjunction with the Rifle Climbers Coalition. The limestone canyon, with its high cliffs and vertical faces, has been a favorite venue for climbers for generations and was once one of the best-kept secrets among rock-climbing enthusiasts.

Ice Climbing – In the frigid months of high country winter, Rifle Mountain has grown in popularity with the adrenalin rush of ice climbing. Small waterfalls and seeps are common in the canyon throughout the summer months. When the temperature dips below zero, the water freezes, creating cascading ice flows that cling to the canyon walls. Intrepid climbers ascend these frozen structures throughout the winter.

Ice Cave Rifle Mountain Park Colorado
Ice cave at Rifle Mountain Park. Photo by: Bryce Bradford

A community house is available for family reunions, gatherings, and other social events and has become a favorite wedding spot for many couples.

4×4 – A challenging four-wheel drive-only road leaves the base of the canyon for the top of the mountain and added excitement. However, no ATVs are permitted to use within the park limits.

The park is open from 6 am to 10 pm daily and day passes and camping fees can be purchased at the entrance.

Rifle Mountain Park, CO
Rifle Mountain Park, CO. Photo: rifleco.org

Getting There

To reach the park travel on Interstate 70 to Rifle. Take Highway 13 north and then turn right on Highway 325. As you head north you’ll cross the Rifle Gap Dam and eventually find the Rifle Fish Hatchery. Now on a gravel road, drive another half-mile and you’ll be at the park entrance.

Rifle Mountain Park, CO
Rifle Mountain Park, CO. Photo: rifleco.org
Rifle Mountain Park, CO
Rifle Mountain Park, CO. Photo: rifleco.org
Rifle Mountain Park, CO
Rifle Mountain Park, CO. Photo: rifleco.org

Details

Address: 13885 Co Rd 217, Rifle, CO 81650

Phone: 970-665-6570

Season: Year-round

Website: rifleco.org/91/Rifle-Mountain-Park

Latest in Rifle Mountain Park

Ice Caves Colorado Rifle Mountain Park

Discover these Ice Caves in Colorado

If you live in Colorado or visit the state regularly, you already know it’s a state…

Discover these Ice Caves in ColoradoRead More

View more Rifle Mountain Park articles

Primary Sidebar

Join our Colorado travel community

Enter your email below and grab our free locals' guide and monthly what's up designed to help you live your Colorado life and uncover fun things to do. —and never miss out again.

Recent Posts

  • Things to do in June in Colorado
  • Things to do in May in Colorado
  • Top Beer Festivals in Colorado in 2023
  • Colorado’s Top Wine Festivals in 2023
  • 8 Great Springtime Colorado Festivals

Footer

Get In Touch

  • Home
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Resources
  • Disclaimer
Facebook Instagram Pinterest Twitter

Disclosure: Uncover Colorado is a participant in the Amazon Services LLC Associates Program, an affiliate advertising program designed to provide a means for sites to earn advertising fees by advertising and linking to Amazon.com.

Things To Do

  • Travel Blog
  • Colorado Activities
  • Colorado Events
  • Colorado Towns
  • Colorado Hotels
  • Colorado Restaurants
  • Colorado Transportation
  • Made in Colorado

Cheers! Mile High Happy Hour shares showcases Denver neighborhoods' restaurant happy hours.

Spring Activities

  • Amusement Parks
  • Federal Lands
  • Ghost Towns
  • Hot Springs
  • Ski Resorts
  • State Parks
  • Train Rides
  • Waterfalls

Copyright © 2023 · Uncover Colorado | Sitemap | Advertise