Lake Pueblo State Park leads all others in 2021 attendance
PUEBLO, Colo. (KRDO) -- Lake Pueblo State Park once again welcomed more visitors in 2021 than any other state park, and contributed largely to a new statewide attendance record for Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
It was also the most popular state park in 2019 and 2020.
Lake Pueblo saw 4,687,369 visitors in 2021, according to CPW records provided to KRDO.
That number far exceeds the second and third place parks.
Cherry Creek State Park in southeast Denver welcomed 2,305,187 visitors in 2021.
Chatfield State Park to the southwest of Denver welcomed 1,879,314.
All three of the busiest parks include large reservoirs where multiple forms of boating are allowed, including water skiing and jet skis, which are banned at many other state parks.
Overall, Colorado Parks and Wildlife welcomed 19,758,333 people through its gates in 2021.
That total is 1.5% higher than the 2020 total, but 32.7% higher than 2019.
The pandemic is credited for getting more people outdoors, where social distancing comes much more easily than indoor venues, eliminating much of the anxiety about catching the Covid-19 virus.
Here are the totals for several other parks in the Colorado Springs area:
11 Mile State Park - 339,155
Cheyenne Mountain State Park - 235,505
Mueller State Park - 103,955
Some of the other most popular state parks statewide are Golden Gate Canyon, Arkansas Headwaters, Boyd Lake, Ridgway, and Steamboat Lake, with visits ranging from 400,000 to just over 1,000,000.
