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Home > Who We Are > Trail History
History of The Colorado Trail
| 1973 | Bill Lucas, Regional Forester, Rocky Mountain Region, and Merrill Hastings of Colorado Magazine conceived the idea of a "Rocky Mountain Trail" between Denver and Durango. The Project was conceived as a Bi-Centennial project to be completed in 1976. |
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| 1973 | Gudy Gaskill attended the first planning meeting and asked to be on the advisory board. | |||
| 1974 | When Gudy Gaskill was chairing the Colorado Mountain Club's Huts and Trails Committee, she was asked to help organize the Colorado Trail. | |||
| 1976 | Cooperative Agreement signed with the U.S. Forest Service and the Colorado Mountain Trails Foundation, a "unique partnership" for building The Colorado Trail. |
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| 1980 | U.S. Forest Service released "Environmental Assessment and Route Directive regarding the "Colorado Trail" Concept. | |||
| 1984 | Gudy Gaskill received "Great Outdoor Colorado" service award. | |||
| 1984 | "Trail to Nowhere" written by Ed Quillen appeared in the Denver Post's Empire Magazine. Click here to read the entire article and view photos of early trail crews. | |||
| 1987 | The Colorado Trail Foundation, a nonprofit 51(c)(3) organization, is established to complete The Colorado Trail. | |||
| 1987 | September 4 the "Golden Spike" ceremonies were held at Molas Pass, Camp Hale and Mt. Princeton to commemorate the linking of The Colorado Trail from Denver to Durango. | |||
| 1987 | President Ronald Reagan presented Gudy Gaskill with "Take Pride in America" award. | |||
| 1988 | Adopt-A-Trail program established to maintain The Colorado Trail. | |||
| 1988 | The Colorado Trail Foundation and the U.S. Forest Service signed a Master Agreement recognizing their partnership in maintaining The Colorado Trail. |  |
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| 1988 | Trail-A-Bration — a dedicated group of crew members joining Gudy Gaskill on the first supported trek along the new Colorado Trail — ended at the Durango dedication. | |||
| 1988 | The Colorado Trail officially dedicated on July 23 at Waterton Canyon and Durango. | |||
| 1989 | The Educational Program for The Colorado Tail Foundation was established. | |||
| 1990 | President George H. Bush presented Gudy Gaskill with "One Thousand Points of Light" award. | |||
| 1994 | 20th Anniversary of The Colorado Trail celebrated at the Governor's Mansion. | |||
| 1996 | A cabin above Lake City was purchased for use as an outdoor education facility. |
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| 1998 | Gudy Gaskill retired as the first President of The Colorado Trail Foundation. | |||
| 1998 | The Colorado Trail Foundation and the U.S. Forest Service renewed their partnership agreement with the signing of the Master Plan for The Colorado Trail. | |||
| 1998 | The Colorado Trail Foundation established the Gudy Gaskill Endowment Fund to assure The Colorado Trail will be maintained in perpetuity. | |||
| 1999 | South Platte River bridge dedicated as Gudy Gaskill Bridge. This was built with the help of contributions from Friends of The Colorado Trail, Great Outdoors Colorado, and the U.S. Forest Service. | |||
| 1999 | 25th Anniversary of The Colorado Trail celebrated at the Mt. Vernon Country Club. | |||
| 2002 | Gudy Gaskill inducted into the Colorado Women's Hall of Fame. | |||
| 2004 | 30th Anniversary of The Colorado Trail celebrated in Buena Vista. |  |
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| 2005 | The Colorado Trail Foundation Board of Directors re-affirms its commitment to maintaining The Colorado Trail in perpetuity. | |||
| 2005 | The Colorado Trail Foundation and the U.S. Forest Service sign a Memorandum of Understanding as basis for continued cooperation in maintaining The Colorado Trail. | |||
| 2006 | William H. (Bill) Manning becomes the first Managing Director of The Colorado Trail Foundation. |
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