One of my favorite destinations close to Denver is White Ranch Park, northwest of Golden. Draped across Belcher Hill and its adjacent ridges, this 3040 acre refuge, a former cattle ranch, includes all of the habitats that characterize the Front Range foothills: ponderosa parklands, spruce-fir forest, foothill meadows and rocky shrublands. The Park is a member of Jefferson County's fabulous Open Space system and is reached via Golden Gate Canyon (just north of Golden, off Colorado 93) and Crawford Gulch Road.
White Ranch, accessed by a fine network of trails, is renowned for its splendid views and for its diverse wildlife population; elevations range from 7000 to 7880 feet. Resident mammals include ground squirrels, Colorado chipmunks, Abert's squirrels, porcupine, fox, bobcats, coyotes, mule deer, black bear and mountain lions; elk also winter at the refuge. Bird life includes golden eagles, wild turkey, blue grouse, Cooper's hawks, Steller's jays, Townsend's solitaires, pygmy nuthatches and both mountain and western bluebirds; winter visitors, such as pine grosbeaks, red crossbills and northern goshawks add to the diversity.
My visit today was greeted by warm, sunny weather and, unfortunately, the infamous foothill winds. As every birder knows, high winds are one of the least favorable conditions for bird watching; but, by heading for the lee side of the ridges, I did manage to see a fair variety of wildlife. Mule deer were common on the brushy slopes and a small herd of elk rested near the edge of a meadow. Several pair of mountain bluebirds had returned from a winter on the southern plains and a lone golden eagle circled above the park. Predictably, mountain chickadees, pygmy nuthatches, pine siskins, Steller's jays and common ravens dominated the bird population.
