Nonprofits in Great Outdoors

Blackpackers

Blackpackers aims to alleviate the financial pressures associated with outdoor education and adventure by offering free or subsidized outdoor activities to vulnerable communities. With Blackpackers, people of color and all others who are statistically underrepresented are able to enjoy outdoor experiences in multi-generational groups with little to no cost. Notably, our leadership reflects the community we serve.

Friends of Monument Valley Park

Our all-volunteer group protects and preserves our city's "Central Park" for you. We repair the park's unique, historic stone entries, overlooks, walls & bridges. We care for its vegetation, carrying on Gen. Palmer's vision of a natural park for people to enjoy. We organize free musical concerts, guided bird, tree & wildflower walks and park clean-ups that provide beneficial and educational activities in our park.

Friends of the Equestrian Skills Course

Horses play a key role in our region’s history and heritage. We help make our busy trails safer by educating all trail users on proper trail etiquette and providing a one-of-a-kind free training area for all levels of horses and riders: from families with kids to our wounded veterans and everyone in between. It is the only course in the U.S. in a public park with natural obstacles and three levels of difficulty.

Medicine Wheel Trail Advocates

TRAIL LOVE! We advocate for, build and maintain trails throughout the Pikes Peak Region. If you ride mountain bikes or horses, hike or run on trails in parks in this region you have likely enjoyed our work first hand. We also promote positive trail etiquette for all users - our trail system capacity is greater when we share our trails. We build partnerships with land managers, businesses, organizations and individuals.

Palmer Land Conservancy

Since 1977, Palmer Land Conservancy has worked with individuals, private and public partners, and various communities to protect land forever including 20 of your favorite public parks and open spaces, important working farms and ranches, and iconic scenic views. We passionately promote the conservation and enjoyment of our region’s most important natural assets that define why we love Colorado.

Pikes Peak Outdoor Recreation Alliance

PPORA champions the outdoors, strengthens and unites the outdoor community, and collaboratively plans for the future. We are the big tent convener! We bring outdoor entities together to solve problems and ensure that you continue to have enjoyable, plentiful, diverse outdoor experiences in the Pikes Peak region. PPORA also advocates for good policy, educates on outdoor ethics, supports stewardship efforts, and more!

Rocky Mountain Field Institute (RMFI)

We are the nonprofit stewards of public land in Southern Colorado. Each year we complete 500+ workdays, actively engage over 2,000 community volunteers, oversee nearly 100 youth conservation corps members, and employ our own professional stewardship crews to complete highly impactful trail and restoration projects in public parks, open spaces, national forests, and wilderness areas.

Trails and Open Space Coalition

Trails, parks and open space define our region. We are your eyes, ears and voice making sure your desire for more miles of trails, more acres of public open space and completed parks become a reality. Our tools are Advocacy and Stewardship. We support Friends Groups and champion the creation of new ones because cherished public assets must be maintained. Our Trail Ambassador program serves users and the resources.

Wild Connections

We save Central Colorado’s wild places by defending wildlands that provide refuge for wildlife and biodiversity as the climate changes. We influence decision-making about public lands bringing protection to hundreds of thousands of acres. We ensure that future generations can enjoy wildlife and natural wonders in our region. We lead hikes that teach about our public lands and how everyone can protect those lands.