The State of Colorado's Watersheds Report 2005

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it FRWNDI,44LP0UPRE The Friends of the Poudre (FOP) is a volunteer organization founded in 1986 for the purpose of protecting the Cache la Poudre River and to enhance its recreational, historic and educational values. Celebrating the River To further these aims, FOP hosted the 18th Annual Poudre River Fest July 9th, 2005 at Picnic Rock as a way to highlight the need to keep the popular lower Poudre Canyon day picnic area open to the public. Picnic Rock is approximately two acres in size, flanked on one side by the river on the other by Colorado Highway 14, and is the most highly used day site along the river. Picnic Rock offers easy access to picnic tables and wide stretches of smoothly flowing river. People use the site for fishing, swimming and wading, picnicking, wildlife watching, and taking out canoes, kayaks and rafts from their river journeys. Managing Public Access On any summer weekend, the site might be visited from 100 to 500 people, and when it was closed to the public three summers ago, it did not stop people from using the site. Without access to Picnic Rock's parking lot, people parked their vehicles on the narrow highway shoulders, often along a sharp curve immediately east of the site, and walked into the picnic area. This roadside parking created dangerous situations on the highway. Picnic Rock has a rich history and is the longest used public site in the Poudre Canyon, but is threatened with closure due to a lack of funds from its owners, the Colorado Division of Wildlife and the City of Fort Collins. During the last two years, Picnic Rock would have been closed except that FOP stepped in and managed the site under an agreement with the city. Management included picking up trash, paying for the pumping and cleaning of outhouses, and performing other tasks so the site remained in good condition. Poudre Park resident Bill Sears, current FOP board member and past president, spearheaded the project and oversaw the area's upkeep over the two years, local watershed reports frequently spending part of his day picking up trash on a volunteer basis at the site. This summer the city of Fort Collins resumed management. "There is no guarantee that city finances will be available to keep Picnic Rock open after this summer," Sears said. "So we're acquainting people with the value of the area and asking them to become supporters." FOP's effort to keep Picnic Rock open to the public has included raising funds and donations of work hours from local businesses and organizations, including the four commercial rafting companies that use the site as a take- out for thousands of clients. Last year, FOP raised $1,500 to cover Picnic Rock FOP's RiverFest at the Picnic Rock Area management expenses and intends to make a donation this year to help out the city's management effort. Part of the festival proceeds will be included in the donation.