Poudre River

Purchase only one tour per vehicle, not per person. Everyone listens together! Take an unforgettable drive through Rocky Mountain National Park with this self-guided audio tour! These beautiful peaks are loaded with hiking trails and astonishing vistas, and this comprehensive tour will introduce you to all of them. Visit stunning lakes and mountain passes, hear the history of the remarkable women who helped create the park, and learn about the Ute tribe and their legends. And, of course, don’t forget to snap a few photos along the way! After booking, check your email to download the separate Audio Tour Guide App by Action, enter your unique password, and access your tour. These steps require good internet/Wi-Fi access. From there, follow the audio instructions and the route. Buy once, use for one year! Ideal for extended visits and return trips over the next 12 months. This isn't an entrance ticket. Check opening hours before your visit.

Winding their way across the Great Plains like so many ribbons, rivers and streams were vital to survival for all lifeforms that inhabited the parched expanse. For humans, watercourses also served as directional aids, tracks for travel corridors, and convenient boundaries. The Cache la Poudre was such a river. Its verdant valley was referred to as the jáaianahâw by the Arapaho people and first appear on a map of the region as a result of Major Stephen H. Long’s expedition of 1820. By 1835, it was being called the Cache la Poudre, or “hide the powder.” Significant at various times, in various ways, the Poudre River has many tales to tell. From the 1820s to the 1870s this “downstream” segment factored prominently in river lore. This tour takes you around the circumference of Rigden Reservoir while stopping at several sites during the walk to relate stories of the people and events that added to its colorful history.

To fully understand the vastness that encompassed the land of the Louisiana Purchase, the government of the United States organized expeditions and sent them out to probe its reaches. Beginning with the Corps of Discovery in 1804, columns of soldiers and scientists ventured into the unknown western country. In 1820 the first of these explorations passed into the Cache la Poudre River drainage led by a major in the U. S. Army’s topographical engineers named Stephen H. Long. On the heels of Long’s party came additional expeditions. The junction of the Poudre River and Boxelder Creek in Running Deer Natural Area (managed by the City of Fort Collins) was singularly significant for its role as a crossing site for early exploring parties. These columns then marched along the north bank of the Poudre until they reached the foothills to the west. This tour allows you to literally walk in the footsteps of these early explorers that passed through the area two hundred years ago.

A Wanderlust Adventure rafting trips are on Colorado's only Wild and Scenic River floating through the gorgeous Cache la Poudre Canyon. Due to this the forest Service Regulates the number of Commercial Rafting Operators with designated put in times and also regulates the number of guests during these times. These restrictions allow for a more intimate experience with the natural surroundings as you float through Roosevelt National Forest.

Our rafting trips are on Colorado's only Wild and Scenic River floating through the gorgeous Cache la Poudre Canyon. Due to this the forest Service Regulates the number of Commercial Rafting Operators with designated put in times and also regulates the number of guests during these times. These restrictions allow for a more intimate experience with the natural surroundings as you float through Roosevelt National Forest.

For each tour, owner and principal historical interpreter, Mark Serour, imparts the intriguing history of Fort Collins and the surrounding region in an engaging, detailed, and fun fashion. To enhance the customer experience, he also dresses in period clothing and shares a variety of relevant visual aids from the Traces of the Past company collections and archives. We are the only History tours business in greater Fort Collins that provides such a service. Customers will enjoy a guided van tour coupled with some light walking around the greater Fort Collins area. Our tours present the fascinating stories of personalities and events that pertain not only to the immediate Cache la Poudre River valley, but also to southeastern WY and western NE. Thorough history is not the story of one locality, but an all-encompassing impartial study that involves many peoples spread over a broad geographic area. Traces of the Past History Tours strives to do just that.

For each tour, owner and principal historical interpreter, Mark Serour, imparts the intriguing history of Fort Collins and the surrounding region in an engaging, detailed, and fun fashion. To enhance the customer experience, Mark dresses in period clothing and shares a variety of relevant visual aids from the Traces of the Past company collections and archives. We are the only History tours business in greater Fort Collins that provides such a service. Customers will enjoy a guided van tour coupled with some light walking around the greater Fort Collins area. Our tours present the fascinating stories of personalities and events that pertain not only to the immediate Cache la Poudre River valley, but also to southeastern WY and western NE. Thorough history is not the story of one locality, but an all-encompassing impartial study that involves many peoples spread over a broad geographic area. Traces of the Past History Tours strives to do just that.