Colorado - North Park

State: Colorado

Region: North Park

Description: Sometimes called the Serengeti of Colorado, North Park is a high basin in the Rocky Mountains in north central Colorado. It is surrounded by mountain ranges that are the headwaters to the North Platte River and several other tributaries.

North Park still has some of the area’s most pristine waters and open space. Fishing in the North Platte and its web of tributaries - Grizzly Creek, the Michigan and Illinois Rivers and others - is known throughout the region for its excellence, making it a popular destination for guided fly fishing trips originating in Fort Collins and elsewhere. North Park is also home to sage grouse, elk, antelope and mule deer, and it is identified by DOW as critical winter range for deer.

North Park sits on the Niobrara Formation, from which oil is produced. Since 2007, approximately 50 drilling permits have been approved in Jackson County by the Colorado Oil and Gas Conservation Commission (COGCC). Recent reports show that drilling companies plan to drill 45 new wells this year (2011) Sportsmen and anglers’ groups are concerned that oil and gas development will have negative effects on the area’s wildlife habitat and water quality, threatening their sportsmen and tourism economy.

Groups in the area are trying to help protect these values. There is an ongoing effort urging energy companies and federal land managers to create a comprehensive regional drilling plan and ensure drilling occurs with as little environmental harm as possible.