What If Spruce Mountain Had Become a Resort?

Forty years ago, Spruce Mountain could have become something entirely different.

Developers proposed transforming more than 2,000 acres into a destination resort with golf courses, restaurants, fitness facilities, residential neighborhoods, commercial development, and other amenities. The plans envisioned decades of construction, dramatically changing one of the most iconic landscapes in southern Douglas County.

 

Fortunately, that vision never became reality.

 

Today, visitors can experience the beauty of Spruce Mountain Open Space, a 1,390-acre open space in Larkspur that offers more than 8.5 miles of scenic trails for hiking, horseback riding, mountain biking, and, in winter, snowshoeing. Along the way, hikers enjoy sweeping views from the mesa, wander through towering ponderosa pine forests, discover colorful wildflowers, and may spot mule deer, elk, wild turkeys, and a wide variety of birds. The open space is also part of an important wildlife corridor connecting Pike National Forest, Greenland Open Space, and Greenland Ranch, allowing wildlife to continue moving freely across the landscape.

 

It’s easy to assume places like Spruce Mountain have always looked this way, but conservation doesn’t happen by accident. Every protected landscape represents people who looked beyond the present and chose to preserve something extraordinary for future generations.

 

That’s exactly what happened here.

 

Today, more than 2,000 acres of the original landscape remain conserved, including the 1,390-acre Spruce Mountain Open Space, which is protected through a Douglas Land Conservancy conservation easement. Through those conservation efforts, residents and visitors alike can enjoy quiet trails, expansive views, healthy wildlife habitat, and a place where nature, not development, defines the experience.

 

Imagine if the original plans had moved forward. Instead of hearing birdsong from the trail, you might be listening to traffic. Instead of watching elk move across open hillsides, you’d see rooftops and parking lots. Rather than hiking beneath towering pines, you might be navigating streets lined with commercial buildings and neighborhoods.

 

 

For nearly 40 years, Douglas Land Conservancy has worked alongside landowners, partners, and supporters to protect the ranches, forests, wildlife habitat, and scenic landscapes that define our community. Every conservation easement helps preserve not only the land itself, but also the opportunity for future generations to experience Colorado’s outdoors much as we do today.

 

The conservation of Spruce Mountain reminds us that thoughtful planning creates lasting impact. The people who helped protect this landscape understood that some gifts are meant to benefit generations they would never meet.

 

If protecting the landscapes, wildlife, and natural heritage of our part of Colorado reflects the legacy you’d like to leave, we invite you to learn more about Douglas Land Conservancy’s Legacy Circle. Whether through a simple gift in your will or by naming Douglas Land Conservancy as one of the beneficiaries of your retirement account or life insurance policy, you can ensure that places like Spruce Mountain remain wild, beautiful, and accessible for generations to come.