Field areas

The campus of the Mountain Research Station is located at 9,500 feet (2,900 m) in the Front Range of Colorado's southern Rocky Mountains, about 26 miles (40 km) west of Boulder. It lies within the University of Colorado's Columbine Springs Reserve and, in turn, is surrounded by the Roosevelt National Forest. Most research takes place within the reserve and on nearby Niwot Ridge, much of which lies above treeline and is protected as the U.S. Forest Service-managed Niwot Ridge Special Research Area. Abutting the ridge to the north and west is the Indian Peaks Wilderness. Some research projects are based within the City of Boulder Watershed (Silver Lakes portion), where research is permitted by special authorization. Because the watershed protects Boulder’s drinking water supply in a fragile alpine environment, it is closed to public access.

 

Land acknowledgement

We recognize our responsibility to the original caretakers of this land, water, and air: the Núu-agha-tʉvʉ-pʉ̱ (Ute), Hinono’ei (Arapaho), Tséstho’e (Cheyenne), and Paleoindian peoples and all of their ancestors and descendants, past, present, and future. We acknowledge the mixed relationship Indigenous communities have experienced with western science in the past and we strive to improve these relationships.

Overview images

Drone photo showing a mountain research station tucked along gravel roads amongst a conifer forest with jagged peaks and blue skies above

The Mountain Research Station campus looking west toward the Indian Peaks (photo: Gabe Allen).

Click any image to zoom
Aerial photo of the Mountain Research Station, looking north and showing station buildings, forest, and a snowy Niwot Ridge
Aerial photo of the Mountain Research Station, looking north and showing station buildings, forest, and a snowy Niwot Ridge
A 3D satellite view from Google Maps looking to the west and showing the Mountain Research Station near the bottom and the Indian Peaks near the top. The location of the Tundra Lab is labelled.
A 3D satellite view from Google Maps showing the Mountain Research Station and Niwot Ridge to the north

Map of field areas

 esearch at the station is conducted in three main areas: the Columbine Springs Reserve (190 acres), the Niwot Ridge Special Research Area (1775 acres), and the City of Boulder's Silver Lake Watershed (6500 acres). Within a 4 mile (6 km) radius of campus, researchers have access to a multitude of vegetation types, including ponderosa pine, lodgepole pine, aspen, and spruce-fir forests, montane and subalpine meadows, alpine tundra, streams, lakes, small ponds, and riparian corridors. Geomorphic features, both glacial and periglacial, are abundant in the upper elevations. The southernmost glacier in the Rocky Mountains, Arapaho Glacier, is located in the City of Boulder watershed.

Map of the research areas around the Mountain Research Station, Colorado

Map of the three main research areas for the Mountain Research Station. For scale, the distance from the station campus to the Tundra Lab on Niwot Ridge is about 4.4 miles (7 km) by road and trail to the northwest.

See a higher resolution version of this map (PNG)
See another version of this map with fewer labels (PDF)

Columbine Springs Reserve

  

190 acres 

(77 hectares)
~150 football fields

 

~9,250 - 9,900 ft

(~2820 - 3020 m)
elevation range

 

CU Boulder

ownership
& management

Whitewater on a small mountain creek with conifers and Aspen trees along its banks

A very full Como Creek in the early summer (Photo: Scott Taylor).

The Columbine Springs Reserve is the university's protected landscape surrounding the campus of the Mountain Research Station. The reserve, in turn, is bordered by the Roosevelt National Forest, and consists of lodgepole pine and aspen stands, grassy meadows, and the riparian zones of Como Creek and smaller drainages. Visitors are welcome to experience portions of this remarkable landscape through self-guided interpretive trails and naturalist-led excursions while helping preserve the natural conditions that make it such a valuable living laboratory.

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Aspen forest
A researcher kneels in an alpine meadow sailing bumble bees
Bumble bee on a whitish flower
Rustic dining hall, lodge, and cabin in a Colorado forest
A moose cow stands in front of her calf (Photo: W. Bowman)
Hikers walk through a Colorado subalpine forest with tree shadows and very little understory
Sara Padula works on a chickadee nesting box while wearing snowshoes
Aquatic insects found in Como Creek
A half dozen small kids in colorful winter clothing and snowshoes gather around a researcher holding tube of water at a snow school for k-12 kids
Raccoon (Photo courtesy of Sharyn Sather)
Students closely examine a coniferous tree in the subalpine while an instructor works on some soil samples
Students walking through a lush subalpine forest with butterfly nets
Students stand in a brown alpine forest taking measurements of trees
A small puffed up chickadee sits on a finger
Moths in a red bucket
Glass display sign showing pictures of mountain mammals, and casts of their footprints and scat (poop)
Understory plants in aspen forest
Como Creek in the early summer

Niwot Ridge Special Research Area

 

  

1,775 acres 

(718 hectares)
~3 square miles

 

~9,750 - 12,400 ft

(~2970 - 3780 m)
elevation range

 

USFS

management

A line of 9 researchers hike on a rocky trail on the alpine tundra, with jagged peaks behind them

A team of researchers hike up Niwot Ridge, with the Indian Peaks behind them (Photo: Niwot Ridge LTER)

The Niwot Ridge Special Research Area, managed by the U.S. Forest Service (USFS), is dominated by the east-west trending Niwot Ridge but also includes part of the lower lying Como Creek valley. The ridge itself starts about 1000 ft below Navajo Peak (13,409 ft / 4087 m) off the Continental Divide and extends above the treeline well to the east. Manipulative research is allowed in the area with the approval of the USFS and MRS, a process facilitated by a management plan negotiated in 1998. 

Within the area, you’ll find many of the alpine and montane ecosystems available in the southern Rocky Mountains, including alpine tundra, subalpine coniferous forests, glacial moraines, talus slopes, patterned ground, and permafrost. 

Key sites on Niwot Ridge

Map of key sites on Niwot Ridge, near the Mountain Research Station

For scale, the distance from the Marr Lab on the station campus to the Tundra Lab on Niwot Ridge is about 4.4 miles (7 km) by road and trail to the northwest.

 

Niwot Ridge profile D1 Saddle C1 w alpha.png
D1

Elevation: 12,267 ft (3739 m)

D1 is an alpine tundra site located 1.6 miles (2.6 km) east of the Continental Divide. This is the highest continuously operating weather station in North America. Topographic setting: ridge-top. Climate data completeness is good from 1953 to the present. Climate parameters measured include air temperature, relative humidity, solar radiation, barometric pressure, wind speed, wind direction, precipitation, soil moisture, and soil temperature.

Saddle

Elevation: 11,575 ft (3528 m)

The Niwot Ridge saddle is located 3.5 miles (5.6 km) east of the Continental Divide. The area is located along a ridge-top, but in a shallow saddle between the east and west knolls. There is a 10,000 sq ft tundra laboratory on the south side of the saddle, which serves as a staging area for research in all weather conditions. A full complement of climate parameters are measured at Saddle.

C1

Elevation: 9915 ft (3022 m)

The C1 climate station is located on a ridge-top in a subalpine forest 6 miles (9.7 km) east of the Continental Divide. Climate data exist from the C1 station for 1953 to the present, and include air temperature, relative humidity, solar radiation, barometric pressure, wind speed, wind direction, precipitation, soil moisture, soil temperature, and snow depth.

Click any image to zoom
Closeup of two bright yellow alpine flowers on the tundra, with mountain peaks and snowfields behind
An American pika forages avens on Niwot Ridge. Photo by Craig Stevenson.
Windy winter weather scene in the subalpine of Colorado. Drifting snowbanks lie at the foot of krumholtz crippled trees with snowy mountains in the background (Photo: Bill Bowman)
A dramatic sunset of orange and purple clouds over mountains, conifer forest, and meadow
Three scientists in dark hooded parkas service climate station equipment at high altitude on a windy winter day in the Rocky Mountains. Behind them are jagged snowy peaks.
The Indian Peaks in fall. Blue skies with clouds and beautiful yellow grass
a metal tower rising up out of the forest into a blue sky
Collecting flask samples on Niwot Ridge for NOAA greenhouse gas monitoring
Researchers dig a deep pit in the snow. One researcher is standing in the pit and the other is sitting on the edge of it.
A yellow and white flower with red stems growing through rocks
A several story high metal tower, covered with environmental sensors, sits on alpine tundra with mountains behind
Seven elk stand on a tundra slope with mountains and clouds in the background
A researcher poses for a selfie in front of the tundra lab wearing ski goggles
A man stands next to a climate monitoring station in the mountains
Rocky tundra and melting snowfields high on Niwot Ridge, Colorado. Above are mountain peaks along the Continental Divide and blue skies. (Photo: J. Henn)
Field Technician Sammy Yevak takes a snow depth reading above the Tundra Lab. Photo by Gabriel De La Rosa.
researchers in outdoor clothing kneel in quadrats on snow-speckled alpine tundra near a weather stations with rocky peaks in the background
Snowshoe hare
Researchers sit an alpine meadow amid field equipment
A researcher sits on a metal structure high up to sample a conifer
Red snow cat and several researchers on Niwot Ridge, CO on cloudy day
Students walking on Niwot Ridge amongst various climate instrumentation, with peaks and glaciers in the background
Students crouch on Niwot Ridge placing small flags near yellow wild flowers
Two people work at head height on an elevated steel track holding a movable environmental sensor that moves through a high altitude Colorado forest

City of Boulder Watershed

CLOSED TO PUBLIC ACCESS

Trespassers will be fined

  

~ 6,500 acres 

(2630 hectares)
~10 square miles

 

~9,800 - 13,500 ft

(~2990 - 4115 m)
elevation range

 

City of Boulder

ownership
& management

A high alpine lake surrounded by jagged peaks dusted in snow

Green Lake 4 (Photo: Kelly Loria)

In 1929 the U.S. Congress deeded most of the land in the Silver Lake Watershed to the City of Boulder specifically for water supply purposes. The watershed contains 13 reservoirs and natural lakes that are fed by snowmelt and the melting of the Arapaho and Arikaree glaciers. This high-quality water supply was sufficient to meet all of Boulder’s water needs until the 1950s. Today, about 40% of the city’s water supply is derived from the Boulder watershed basin. In the 1930s, the University of Colorado began sensitive ecological and climate research in the Green Lakes Valley within the watershed. To protect water quality and to preserve the fragile alpine environment, the City of Boulder Watershed is closed to public access.

The Mountain Research Station assists the City of Boulder in regulating research access to the watershed. Among other restrictions, researchers applying to do research in the watershed must demonstrate why the research cannot be done elsewhere.

Reminders from Eric Johnson, Watershed Manager (City of Boulder):

Access is limited to permit holders

  • If you do not have a Watershed research permit you are not allowed in the City of Boulder Watershed. 
  • Violators will be issued a trespass summons under City Code 11-1-11; the maximum fine is $1000.00. 
  • Trespassing damages our relationship with the City of Boulder Watershed and this violation may restrict future access. 
  • The Watershed boundary is marked with a fence in some areas and in other areas is marked with signs. It is your responsibility to know if you have crossed over the boundary somewhere. Please pay attention to your location when on the Ridge.

Behavior within the Watershed 

  • You must carry a photo ID with you at all times in the Watershed. 
  • You may not bring anyone into the Watershed who is not on your permit. 
  • You may not conduct research in the Watershed on Weekends or Holidays. 
  • You may only travel to the area of your permitted research. 
  • Drive Slow! Use 4WD at all times to maintain roads. 

More research regulations for the Boulder Watershed (2-page PDF)

 

Within the watershed, you'll find all of the alpine and montane ecosystems available in the southern Rocky Mountains. In addition to those listed above for the Niwot Ridge Special Research Area, there are also several small cirque glaciers and a string of alpine lakes, many dammed by glacial moraines.

Key features in the Boulder Watershed

Arikaree Glacier

Mean Elevation: 12,434 ft (3790 m)

The 22-acre (9-ha) Arikaree glacier sits at the head of the valley and is the source of North Boulder Creek. The outflow of the Arikaree glacier drains into Green Lakes 5. Air temperature and solar radiation near Arikaree Glacier were logged from 1986 to 2006.

Green lakes valley

Mean Elevation: 12,287 ft (3745 m)

The continental, high mountain climate of the Green Lakes Valley (GLV) has been recorded continuously at the nearby D1 meteorological station on Niwot Ridge for over 60 years and for shorter periods on the valley floor. South-facing slopes are warmer than north-facing slopes, which are underlain by discontinuous permafrost. Almost 80% of the approximately 1000 mm of recorded annual precipitation falls as snow.

Albion

Mean Elevation: 10,663 ft (3250 m)

The Albion site is located below treeline, on the valley floor at the eastern end of the Green Lakes Valley. Albion is a former mining townsite.

Closed to the public

The City of Boulder watershed is a protected water supply area closed to public access. The below images were captured under permitted research only; visitors should not attempt to enter. Any trespassing violations are subject to fines.

Click any image to zoom
2 researchers in baseball caps sit above the Green Lakes Valley. Beautiful green grass and mountains with glaciers in the background.
A partially dry alpine lake near timberline with rocky mountains and snowfields
Frozen Green Lake 4 with peaks in the background
Barren alpine landscape with gray rocky talus and occasional green tundra patches
5 researchers stand at the water's edge of one of the Green Lakes with the Indian Peaks in the background
2 researchers dig a whole in the ice in front of the glaciers at Arapaho and Arikaree Peaks
A researcher gives two thumbs up in front of a glacial lake and a glacier on a sunny day
A stream running through a green field in green lakes valley
A researcher walks down a skree field towards a lake and a glacier
Fall colors of tundra, reds and oranges mixed with greens
A scientist sits at the edge of a high alpine lake while collecting water samples
A jar of alpine lake water holds reddish-colored zooplankton
Researchers stand on a glacier with mountain peaks in the background.
fern-like plants next to a blue glacial lake
An alpine lake flows through a narrow outlet stream, with jagged peaks and snowfields behind
Niwot LTER ecologists carry a heavy load of plant transplant tubes with a stretcher across the tundra
A string of alpine lakes in a rocky glaciated valley with high walls and jagged peaks at the valley head
A high alpine lake surrounded by jagged peaks dusted in snow

 

Niwot Ridge LTER
Yep, the LTER works in the Boulder Watershed too

Topographic maps

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