When businesses evaluate where to put down roots, outdoor recreation has moved from “nice to have” to a significant factor in attracting and keeping talent. Montrose delivers that – with 38 developed parks, more than 36 miles of concrete trails, 13 miles of singletrack, and a river corridor that flows through the heart of the city. And of course, seemingly endless national forest and wilderness areas await just outside the city.
At Colorado Outdoors, we built our campus here because of the incredible outdoor access. Getting outside is easy in Montrose, and it’s one of the most compelling reasons for businesses and their people to be here.
Enjoy the accessible Uncompahgre River Trail network
A common feature of many great outdoor cities is a river. In Montrose, it’s the Uncompahgre.
The Uncompahgre River flows directly through the city, and over the past decade, Montrose has invested significantly in restoring the river and transforming the river corridor into a connected, accessible trail network that links parks, neighborhoods, downtown, and the Colorado Outdoors campus. The result is a CPW Quality Waters designation for the river itself, as well as a continuous path that walkers, runners, cyclists, and anglers can follow from one end of the city to the other.
The GOCO Connect Trail — built through a $2 million grant from Great Outdoors Colorado in partnership with the Montrose Recreation District — extended the trail network by 2.25 miles of 10-foot-wide concrete path, connecting the Community Recreation Center all the way to the Colorado Outdoors campus along the river. Two new underpasses eliminated the need to cross major highways, making the route seamless for non-motorized users.
Colorado Outdoors played a direct role in building this corridor. In 2020, we donated 41 acres of river and riparian land to the City of Montrose — land that has since been transformed through a multi-phase restoration project that stabilized over 3,400 feet of riverbank, created new habitat for fish and wildlife, added the Flex Park public space, and extended ADA-accessible river access to a wider range of users.
The river trail and its surrounding open space is a significant asset to the local businesses right on the Colorado Outdoors campus, as well as the city as a whole.
“The Colorado Outdoors project has helped Montrose grow in such a positive way. It’s brought business and lifestyle, and it’s a perfect fit because you have the trail, but you also have food, shopping… it’s been a great asset to the Montrose community.”
Camila Zamora, Trattoria di Sofia
Running on the Connect Trail along the Uncompahgre River
Parks, trails, and open space
The Uncompahgre River corridor anchors a park system that spans 38 developed parks and 160 acres of open space across the city. The Clifford E. Baldridge Regional Park complex — encompassing Riverbottom Park, the Water Sports Park, a skate park, disc golf, and the Montrose Rotary Amphitheater — gives employees a destination-quality recreational hub within easy reach of the campus. An additional 49 combined miles concrete multi-use trail and singletrack for mountain biking and trail running round out the urban parks and trails system to serve a wide range of interests, ages, and fitness levels.
Enjoying water activities at Montrose Water Sports Park
Cycle, hike, or run on 36 miles of trail + 13 miles of singletrack
Montrose’s trail system is genuinely impressive for a city its size, maintaining 36 miles of concrete or paved multi-use trail – purpose-built recreational corridors that connect parks, neighborhoods, and the river.
For riders and runners who want something more technical, Montrose also maintains 13 miles of singletrack hiking and biking trails along with a dedicated bike park. The singletrack options give the trail system a different character — narrower, more rugged, more immersive — that appeals to mountain bikers and trail runners looking for something beyond the paved network.
Taken together, the trail system makes Montrose bikeable and accessible in a way that most small cities aren’t. Commuting by bike, running to a trailhead after work, or riding to the river are real daily options here.
“I love the idea of expanding production to be able to make more products, and have a great location on the river… I personally am very excited about living in Montrose, it’s a great town with great people.”
Jason Senior, Founding Partner, Shelter Distilling
Trail running on singletrack
Fly fishing right here in the city
One of the more remarkable things about outdoor recreation in Montrose is the fishing.
Thanks in part to the restoration work along the Uncompahgre by Colorado Outdoors and a network of partners, a two-mile stretch of the river from the West Main Bridge to LaSalle Road has been designated by Colorado Parks and Wildlife as artificial flies and lures only, with mandatory catch-and-release for all fish. This stretch represents the longest catch-and-release section of the Uncompahgre in Montrose, and the habitat improvements that came with river restoration have supported measurable increases in fish populations.
The long-term aspiration for this section of the Uncompahgre, shared by Colorado Parks and Wildlife, local advocates, and the Colorado Outdoors team, is a “gold medal” fishery designation, which would put Montrose on the map for serious fly anglers in a way few Western Slope cities can claim.
The fact that this fishing exists within city limits, accessible via trail without a vehicle, is not something most cities of Montrose’s size can say.
“In a facility that’s next to the river and in a small community, we can literally engineer and design everything here and walk 100 feet away and use the product, catch the fish, and test it. It really adds to the authenticity of who we are, that we’re not stuck in the middle of some big city somewhere and trying to get outside.”
Jeff Wagner, CEO, Mayfly Outdoors
Fly fishing the Uncompahgre River, right in town
Year-round recreation in a four-season climate
Montrose’s semi-arid climate — roughly 300 days of sunshine a year, mild four-season weather — extends the outdoor recreation window well beyond what’s possible in higher-elevation Colorado communities. Snow doesn’t shut things down here the way it does in mountain towns.
That means trail running and cycling stay viable through fall and into early winter. Spring comes earlier, and the periods when trails are icy or closed are shorter than many other Colorado towns close to the mountains.
For businesses recruiting talent from other parts of the country, or for remote workers evaluating where to put down roots, this matters. Outdoor recreation is truly accessible in some capacity for the large majority of the year.
This is what we’re building — and we want you in it
Colorado Outdoors is proud to be actively building a place where work and outdoor life are integrated for the businesses and people that live and work here. The GOCO Connect Trail links directly to our campus, the river runs alongside it, and the parks and fishing access are part of the daily experience of living here.
If you’re looking for a place that makes recruiting easier, keeps people engaged, and gives your brand a setting that actually reflects your values, we’d love to talk.
