Are there real forests within short driving distance from Denver or Boulder? (Colorado Springs: homes, living in)

[Usrname]

I heard different things from people who's been to Denver...some told me there're forests within an hour drive, others told me it's at least 2 hours. I want to find out if there're real forests that provide shade (versus sparse conifer trees and aspens--there's, say, a lot of vegetation like this on Nevada side of Tahoe, but I'm interested in forests with big trees that provide real shade), and if there're any within an hour drive, especially.

Also, interested to hear if Colorado sun is really bad...I am unable to tolerate exposure to direct sun, but, with a big sun hat, long sleeved shirts and gloves, I was able to manage summers in Sierra Nevada, including open parts around the end of timber line (though being pretty miserable before sun goes down). If it's not worse than high elevations of Sierra Nevada I can probably handle it.

I've only had a chance to pass through Denver on California Zephir train several times before, with 1 hour layover. For those who're familiar with Tahoe-Reno area: is Denver-Boulder area similar to it (in terms of nature settings, population)? The photos of Colorado I see on this forum really remind me of 8000+ feet elevation in Sierra Nevada, at the edge of the timber line, but CO is a very large state...

[lindylead]

The short answer is yes. There are a number of forests within an hour drive of Denver. There are few to none within an hour drive of the airport though.

Most of the forests are evergreens. They provide good shade found in mass.

As for size, the greater Denver Metro area is about 2.5 million people. It's very large and spread out, the Denver Metro area is over 8000 square miles.

I can't speak to the difference in sunshine, as I don't know Nevada.

[bluescreen73]

Originally Posted by lindylead

The short answer is yes. There are a number of forests within an hour drive of Denver. There are few to none within an hour drive of the airport though.

Most of the forests are evergreens. They provide good shade found in mass.

As for size, the greater Denver Metro area is about 2.5 million people. It's very large and spread out, the Denver Metro area is over 8000 square miles.

I can't speak to the difference in sunshine, as I don't know Nevada.

There are forests close to the western edges of the metro area, and parts of the Palmer Divide are fairly heavily forested. Castlewood Canyon has some dense forest packed into a small wedge of land. It's a nice getaway.

That 8,000 square mile figure is a bit misleading because half (or more) of the land included in the designation is rural. There's next to nothing in Park, eastern Adams, eastern Arapahoe, and eastern Elbert counties but they're part of the "metro area."

Fairplay and Lake George are technically part of the "Denver Metro Area."

[sunsprit]

huh? "Fairplay ... part of the Denver Metro Area"

It's at least 85 miles driving over a mountain pass and across another valley from the Front Range of Colorado where Denver sits.

For the OP: yes, forested areas are within 1 hour from Denver ... either West into the foothills, or south into the rolling hills there.

UV tends to be strong much of the time due to the generally low humidity. Even when there's a cloud cover, there can be strong UV. I hardly tan but burn easily, so I've learned many years ago to wear long sleeves, pants, and a hat when outdoors.

[xeric]

Well first of all, the conifers in mid-elevation forests in the Sierra Nevada are much taller then anything in Colorado. That said, the mountain forests in both states tend to be similarly open in character. From what I've seen, subalpine forests in CO tend to be denser then subalpine forests in CA, but you have to get above 9000 feet to get to the CO subalpine zone (and these trees are also shorter than most California conifers). In any case, you're looking at 2 hours (at a minimum) to get to these type of forests from Denver.

[bluescreen73]

Originally Posted by sunsprit

huh? "Fairplay ... part of the Denver Metro Area"

It's at least 85 miles driving over a mountain pass and across another valley from the Front Range of Colorado where Denver sits.

Yup, believe it or not, all of Park County is part of the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood MSA. That's where the 8,000sq mi figure comes from. In reality the urban portion of the MSA is less than 1/4 of that.

[woob]

Originally Posted by xeric

you have to get above 9000 feet to get to the CO subalpine zone (and these trees are also shorter than most California conifers). In any case, you're looking at 2 hours (at a minimum) to get to these type of forests from Denver.

You can get to subalpine (and alpine) zones in about an hour from denver. hell, you can be on top of loveland pass in an hour.

[StealthRabbit]

need forests and low light? Come to the PNW... Downtown Portland has a park within walking distance with 70 miles of trails Portland Forest Park, Hiking Trails, Mountain Biking, Running | The Forest Park Conservancy

https://www.google.com/search?q=fore...g&ved=0CF0QsAQ

and 285 overcast days / yr to enjoy it (as well as the 80 'nice' days / yr).

I had to leave Colorado in 1980 due to overcrowding and beetle kill 'ever-brown' forests. In the PNW, the forests are too dense to notice the crowds. No ticks on we_tside mtns. Only MONSTER slugs to squish underfoot!

Denver is really a Prairie town, ~45min - 1 hr to get you to a decent everbrown forest, Living in Boulder or Colorado Springs will save you 30 minutes off that trek.

I do miss the Colorado sun for wet-free-biking. But every location has it's price. My Colorado ranch homestead (Buckhorn Valley) was burnt out last yr in High Fire, and then what was left was washed away in this yrs floods. We had lots of floods and hail to live with as kids, 3 neighbor kid classmates were killed trying to save thier pigs. I lost many friends, co-workers, neighbors in 1976 Big T flood.

In PNW, it is just an occasional volcano or tremor (so far).

[Usrname]

Thanks for the replies! I see...so it's one and two hours, basically, depending on zone/elevation, and it's much shorter drives from Boulder. I was told that traffic was bad and to get out of town and to the forest what looks like an hour drive on google maps could easily result in a two-hour drive. (I will be paying an extended visit to Denver, eventually, as I'm considering relocation in the future...)

By the way, the reason I tried to compare to Reno-Tahoe is (while I realize Reno is much smaller than Denver): Reno is a desert city, really, all brown and open space/mountain views, but in 20-40 minute drive you're in nice conifer forests. I used to live right by the tree line...I don't want to live in a big city and Boulder seems to be about a half of size of Reno, NV, pretty good size.

StealthRabbit: I've been in PNW many times...this rainy climate would not be right for me, definitely, and as to Portland, I don't like low elevation or Portland area vegetation (too many deciduous trees). It gets better in Washington or parts of Oregon where it's all conifers. Of all places, I'd pick Bend there, but there's no work in Bend...I'm sorry your homestead suffered all this.
Colorado has tick probs..really? And overcrowding? I didn't realize Colorado parks were crowded.

[sunsprit]

Originally Posted by bluescreen73

Yup, believe it or not, all of Park County is part of the Denver-Aurora-Lakewood MSA. That's where the 8,000sq mi figure comes from. In reality the urban portion of the MSA is less than 1/4 of that.

I think there's a huge difference in playing word games around the definition of an MSA conurbation ...

"A conurbation can be confused with a metropolitan area. As the term is used in North America, a metropolitan area can be defined by the Census Bureau or it may consist of a central city and its suburbs, while a conurbation consists of adjacent metropolitan areas that are connected with one another by urbanization."

the "metropolitan area" is what the OP was asking about. There's a pretty clear distinction when the OP was asking about specific towns/cities of the Front Range (Denver, Boulder, etc) as opposed to asking about the multiple counties.

Entirely different purposes here. Within the conurbation of the Denver named area counties, one is within much of the forested area that is accessed by significant distances (and travel time in hours) from Denver metro area.