South Platte River Trail Scenic and Historic Byway

Colorado Scenic and Historic Byway

South Platte River Trail Scenic and Historic Byway
Route information
Maintained by CDOT
Length	19 mi^[1]^[2] (31 km)
Existed	1991–present
Major junctions
East end	US 138 / US 385 Julesburg
West end	US 138 Ovid

Location
Country	United States
State	Colorado
Counties	Sedgwick County

Highway system
Colorado State Highway System Interstate US State Scenic

The South Platte River Trail Scenic and Historic Byway is a 19-mile (31 km) Colorado Scenic and Historic Byway located in Sedgwick County, Colorado, USA. The byway follows the historic trails used during westward expansion. The route, which includes County Road 28 (CR 28) and U.S. Highway 138 (US 138), connects Ovid and Julesburg and encircles the South Platte River. It was designated a Colorado Scenic and Historic Byway in 1991.^[3]

Route

There is a trailhead for the byway at the Colorado Welcome Center at Julesburg. Informative placards are found throughout the route to provide additional insight into the area's storied history. Area historic sites, three of which are on the route, include the 19th century Fort Sedgwick, the state's only Pony Express home station, Telegraph Line, and Transcontinental railroad.^[3] Other historic sites include the Italian Caves, Devil's Dive, Upper California Crossing, a former Prisoner-of-war camp in Ovid, and the Julesburg Drag Racing Strip.^[3] Along the route, informative placards provide information about Fort Sedgwick, the Pony Express, and the Transcontinental Railroad.^[4]

Gallery

Notes

References

^ "South Platte River Trail". Colorado Department of Transportation. 2021. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
^ "South Platte River Trail". America's Scenic Byways. Retrieved April 8, 2022.
^ ^a ^b ^c "South Platte River Trail Byway: Location and Description". Colorado Department of Transportation. April 2012. p. 13-14.
^ "South Platte River Trail". Colorado.com. December 4, 2017. Retrieved June 8, 2018.

External links

South Platte River Trail Scenic and Historic Byway map
America's Scenic Byways: Colorado
Colorado Department of Transportation
- Colorado Scenic & Historic Byways Commission
  - Colorado Scenic & Historic Byways
- Colorado Travel Map
Colorado Tourism Office
History Colorado

State of Colorado

Denver (capital)

Society

Colorado portal

v t e Scenic highway systems in the United States
National systems	National Scenic Byways National Forest Scenic Byways Bureau of Land Management Back Country Byways National Parkways
State systems	Alabama Alaska Arizona Arkansas California Colorado Connecticut Delaware Florida Georgia Hawaii Idaho Illinois Indiana Iowa Kansas Kentucky Louisiana Maine Maryland Massachusetts Michigan Minnesota Mississippi Missouri Montana Nebraska Nevada New Hampshire New Jersey New Mexico New York North Carolina North Dakota Ohio Oklahoma Oregon Pennsylvania Rhode Island South Carolina South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah Vermont Virginia Washington West Virginia Wisconsin Wyoming
Indian tribal systems	Navajo Nation

Protected areas of Colorado

Federal

4 National Parks	Black Canyon of the Gunnison Great Sand Dunes Mesa Verde Rocky Mountain
9 National Monuments	Browns Canyon (BLM-USFS) Camp Hale-Continental Divide (USFS) Canyons of the Ancients (BLM) Chimney Rock (USFS) Colorado Dinosaur Florissant Fossil Beds Hovenweep Yucca House
3 National Historic Sites	Amache Bent's Old Fort Sand Creek Massacre
2 National Recreation Areas	Arapaho (USFS) Curecanti
1 Wild and Scenic River	Cache la Poudre River
4 National Historic Trails	California Trail Old Spanish Trail Pony Express Trail Santa Fe Trail
1 National Scenic Trail	Continental Divide Trail
11 National Forests	Arapaho Grand Mesa Gunnison Medicine Bow–Routt Pike Rio Grande Roosevelt San Isabel San Juan Uncompahgre White River
2 National Grasslands	Comanche Pawnee
44 National Wildernesses	Black Canyon of the Gunnison Black Ridge Canyons Buffalo Peaks Byers Peak Cache La Poudre Collegiate Peaks Comanche Peak Dominguez Canyon Eagles Nest Flat Tops Fossil Ridge Great Sand Dunes Greenhorn Mountain Gunnison Gorge Hermosa Creek Holy Cross Hunter–Fryingpan Indian Peaks James Peak La Garita Lizard Head Lost Creek Maroon Bells-Snowmass Mesa Verde Mount Evans Mount Massive Mount Sneffels Mount Zirkel Neota Never Summer Platte River Powderhorn Ptarmigan Peak Raggeds Rawah Rocky Mountain National Park Sangre de Cristo Sarvis Creek South San Juan Spanish Peaks Uncompahgre Vasquez Peak Weminuche West Elk
3 National Conservation Areas	Dominguez–Escalante Gunnison Gorge McInnis Canyons
8 National Wildlife Refuges	Alamosa Arapaho Baca Browns Park Monte Vista Rocky Flats Rocky Mountain Arsenal Two Ponds
3 National Heritage Areas	Cache la Poudre River Corridor Sangre de Cristo South Park
28 National Historic Landmarks	Beaver Meadows Visitor Center Bent's Old Fort Central City/Black Hawk Historic District Colorado Chautauqua Cripple Creek Historic District Cumbres and Toltec Scenic Railroad Denver Civic Center Durango and Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad Elitch Gardens Carousel Georgetown–Silver Plume Historic District Granada War Relocation Center Leadville Historic District Lindenmeier site Lowry Pueblo Ludlow Tent Colony Site Mesa Verde Administrative District Minnequa Steel Works Pikes Peak Pike's Stockade Raton Pass Red Rocks Park Shenandoah-Dives Mill Silverton Historic District Telluride Historic District Temple Aaron Trujillo Homesteads United States Air Force Academy, Cadet Area Winks Panorama
16 National Natural Landmarks	Big Spring Creek Garden of the Gods Garden Park Fossil Area Hanging Lake Indian Springs Trace Fossil Natural Area Lost Creek Scenic Area Morrison-Golden Fossil Areas Raton Mesa Roxborough Russell Lakes Sand Creek Slumgullion Earthflow Spanish Peaks Sulphur Cave and Spring Summit Lake West Bijou Site
National Register of Historic Places	National Register of Historic Places listings in Colorado

State

43 State Parks	Arkansas Headwaters Barr Lake Boyd Lake Castlewood Canyon Chatfield Cherry Creek Cheyenne Mountain Crawford Eldorado Canyon Eleven Mile Elkhead Fishers Peak Golden Gate Canyon Harvey Gap Highline Lake Jackson Lake James M. Robb - Colorado River John Martin Reservoir Lake Pueblo Lathrop Lone Mesa Lory Mancos Mueller Navajo North Sterling Paonia Pearl Lake Ridgway Rifle Falls Rifle Gap Roxborough Spinney Mountain St. Vrain Stagecoach State Forest Staunton Steamboat Lake Sweetwater Lake Sweitzer Lake Sylvan Lake Trinidad Lake Vega Yampa River
1 State Forest	State Forest
307 State Wildlife Areas	List of Colorado state wildlife areas
96 State Natural Areas	Aiken Canyon Antero-Salt Creek Arikaree River Badger Wash Blacks Gulch Blue Mountain-Little Thompson Fault Bonny Prairie Boulder Mountain Park Brush Creek Fen California Park Castlewood Canyon Chalk Bluffs Coal Creek Tallgrass Prairie Colorado Tallgrass Prairie Comanche Grassland Copeland Willow Carr Corral Bluffs Cross Mountain Canyon Dakota Hogback Deer Gulch Dome Rock Droney Gulch Duck Creek Dudley Bluffs East Lost Park East Sand Dunes Elephant Rocks Escalante Canyon Fairview Fourmile Creek Fruita Paleontological Garden Park Fossil Gateway Palisade Geneva Basin Iron Fens Gothic Gunnison Gravels Haviland Lake High Creek Fen High Mesa Grassland Hoosier Ridge Hurricane Canyon Indian Spring Indian Springs Trace Fossil Irish Canyon Jimmy Creek Ken-Caryl Ranch Kremmling Cretaceous Ammonite Limestone Ridge Lookout Mountain Lower Greasewood Creek McElmo Mexican Cut Mini-Wheeler Miramonte Reservoir Mishak Lakes Mount Callahan & Logan Wash Mine Mount Emmons Iron Bog Mount Goliath Narraguinnep Needle Rock North Park Phacelia Orient Mine Owl Canyon Pagosa Skyrocket Paradise Park Park Creek Hogback Pyramid Rock Rabbit Valley Rajadero Canyon Raven Ridge Redcloud Peak Rough Canyon Roxborough Ryan Gulch Saddle Mountain San Miguel River Sand Creek Shell Duck Creek Shell Rock Slumgullion Earthflow South Beaver Creek South Boulder Creek South Cathedral Bluffs Specimen Mountain Staunton Tamarack Ranch Treasurevault Mountain Trinidad K-T Boundary Two Buttes Unaweep Seep Wacker Ranch West Creek Wheeler Geologic White Rocks Yanks Gulch/Upper Greasewood Creek Natural Area Zapata Falls
26 Scenic and Historic Byways	Alpine Loop Cache la Poudre-North Park Collegiate Peaks Colorado River Headwaters Dinosaur Diamond Flat Tops Trail Frontier Pathways Gold Belt Tour Grand Mesa Guanella Pass Highway of Legends Lariat Loop Los Caminos Antiguos Mount Evans Pawnee Pioneer Trails Peak to Peak San Juan Skyway Santa Fe Trail Silver Thread South Platte River Trail Top of the Rockies Tracks Across Borders Trail of the Ancients Trail Ridge Road/Beaver Meadow Unaweep Tabeguache West Elk Loop