It’s incredible that I have traveled all over the world realizing my dream, living the outdoor adventure life I have always wanted, scaling Mount Everest and the highest points on every continent. What’s equally amazing is that if I had never left Colorado, I would still have all one could want: 75 percent of the 14,000-foot peaks in the continental U.S., more than 13 million acres of national forests and among the most thrilling canyon river runs in the world. Within a day’s drive from my home in Eagle County, I can ski at world-class resorts, hike on any level of trail, or kayak a river. Outdoor recreation is king in Colorado.
Those of us who live here, and the many recreationists and visitors who come to experience our state’s incredible landscapes and waterways, know exactly what I mean. It’s a beautiful compensation that as we are having the time of our lives, our love for the Colorado outdoors powers a huge economic engine for the state. The Colorado outdoor recreation economy generates $31.2 billion in revenue on a yearly basis, $994 million through taxes to our federal and state governments, and 125,000 Colorado jobs, according to the Outdoor Industry Association. People and companies come to Colorado because they want a lifestyle that includes this unique layout of natural wonder.
At the core of our economic bounty lies a healthy river system, which allows for fishing, kayaking, healthy forests and lands, and is essential to daily life on farms, ranches, and in municipalities across the West. In Colorado alone, river-related activities account for $6.3 billion in direct consumer spending on recreation and sustain 80,000 recreation jobs. In total, according to a study commissioned by Protect the Flows, a group of Colorado River businesses, the Colorado River system is responsible for $26 billion in revenue from river-related activities across the seven basin states in the West, and supports 240,000 sustainable jobs.
Beyond the recreational activities supported by the river, more than 33 million people in Arizona, California, Colorado, New Mexico, Nevada, Utah, Wyoming and Mexico all depend on the Colorado River for their water supply. Today, more than 1.8 million acres of land are irrigated with water from the Colorado River, producing about 15 percent of the nation’s crops and about 13 percent of its livestock generating about $1.5 billion a year in agricultural benefits.
These figures illuminate the importance of the Colorado River to our quality of life and our state’s prosperity. It’s easy to understand why we celebrate Colorado River Day on July 25 each year, the day the Colorado River was officially renamed from the Grand to the Colorado in 1921.
In my job as the first director of Colorado’s new Office of Outdoor Recreation Industry, I want nothing more than to help keep people coming here to enjoy places like the Colorado River and to make Colorado’s outdoor industry thrive. To do this we must accomplish a number of things, one being to enhance the Colorado tourism experience. Millions take advantage of our world-class skiing and fantastic river rafting, but we have so many other opportunities to offer, like stand-up paddle boarding or fly fishing. We want people to enjoy the full spectrum of outdoor opportunities here and keep coming back for more.
Clearly, the bottom-line objective is to protect Colorado’s great outdoors while respecting the other important demands placed on the river. We must have that or there would be no outdoor industry to speak of. To that end, Colorado’s Water Plan calls for more than $1 million for healthy rivers annually — support for municipal water conservation and efficiency. We have to take care of the product that allows us to have viable businesses, agriculture and lands and water for recreation.
The effect of protecting Colorado’s outdoors goes way beyond a healthy outdoor industry. Residents and tourists who hike and bike our trails, climb our mountains and paddle our rivers also spend money at our hotels and eat at our restaurants. Recreationists who find everything from excitement to solitude in our pristine lands and waters are an important economic source for so many local communities and businesses of all kinds.
Over the years, I’ve come to know my favorite Colorado outdoor experiences: climbing in a valley high in the Gore Range above Vail where the alpine lakes are clear and cold, and there is nothing but space; or mountain biking the Boneyard near my home in Eagle. As Colorado River Day approaches, I think of my favorite spot on the river, paddling the challenging section from Pumphouse to Two Bridges on the upper Colorado through Gore Canyon as it drops about 200 feet in 3 miles.
I invite you to join me in enjoying the best of outdoor Colorado. Perhaps one day we will meet in this magnificent outdoor playground and swap stories of new and old favorite adventures. Until then, keep challenging yourself to try new activities and all that the outdoor industry has to offer, and above all help to protect the precious Colorado outdoor spaces that make this wondrous lifestyle possible.
Luis Benitez is director of the Colorado Office of Outdoor Recreation.
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