Colorado Sports Ranch and Refuge

10/30/2024

Our hood …

The San Luis Valley

Situated in south-central Colorado on the northern border of New Mexico, the San Luis Valley is a high-altitude alpine desert valley.

It is framed by three significant mountain ranges of the Colorado Rockies: Sangre de Cristos, Sawatch Range, and San Juan Mountains.

The San Juan’s are the western wall of the valley. The headwaters of the Rio Grande are in this range. The river flows west to east through the range and then turns south in the San Luis Valley before proceeding to New Mexico. The La Garita Mountains are a subrange of the San Juan’s within The Valley.

While not a significant portion of The Valley, The Sawatch Range is situated in the northern portion. Further north in the Sawatch Range are many of the highest peaks of the Rocky Mountains. Including the highest, Mount Elbert.

The eastern front is the Sangre de Cristo Mountains. The Sangre’s are a significant range in both Colorado and New Mexico. The southern end near Santa Fe, NM, is considered the southern terminus of the Rocky Mountains. Wheeler Peak is the highest mountain in the New Mexico Sangre’s, but not the highest in the overall range. That is Blanca Peak within the San Luis Valley. To the north of Blanca at the base of the mountains is The Great Sand Dunes National Park which contains the tallest sand dunes in North America. The Culebra Range is a significant subrange within The Valley.

The San Luis Valley is one of the most beautiful regions in the state, and one the coldest. It is a significant agricultural area with potatoes being one of the major crops. Outdoor recreation and mountaineering bring many people to the area.

08/10/2024

Two celebrities test their off-roading skills in the all-new Toyota Land Cruiser.

06/23/2024

Check out Colorado Sports Ranch’s video.

06/23/2024

Great Sand Dunes National Park, Colorado

01/25/2024

01/22/2024

Morning light touches Star Dune beneath the 14,000-foot Crestone Peaks on a winter morning at Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve. This dune is one of the tallest dunes in North America rising majestically into the Colorado sky.

Have a great Sunday!

Photo by Patrick Myers / NPS

01/18/2024

Great stuff!

Students across Colorado will learn about the Pueblo chile through a school program this semester. Here's what to know.

01/12/2024

Incredible shot

Cheyenne Mountain, Colorado

Update since there were several people asking if this was a wildfire:

This is a single long exposure photo taken of a cloud inversion in the middle of a winter night. The houses etc below the clouds are illuminating them.

01/11/2024

Happy 103rd birthday to Agnes Keleti, the world's oldest living Olympic champion! The Holocaust survivor from Hungary won a total of ten gymnastics medals, including five golds, at the 1952 Helsinki Games and the 1956 Melbourne Games. Keleti survived WWII thanks to working as a maid under a false identity but many of her family members were among the 550,000 Hungarian Jews killed during the Holocaust. Following the war, she was able to return to gymnastics training and won her Olympic medals at the ages of 31 and 35. Today, the energetic centenarian still prefers to look forward, asserting: "The past? Let’s talk about the future. That’s what should be beautiful. The past is past but there is still a future."

For children's books about more Olympic gymnastic champions, we recommend "Flying High: The Story of Gymnastics Champion Simone Biles" for ages 4 to 8 (https://www.amightygirl.com/flying-high), "Nadia: The Girl Who Couldn't Sit Still" for ages 5 to 8 (https://www.amightygirl.com/nadia-couldn-t-sit-still), "Trailblazers: Simone Biles" for ages 7 to 10 (https://www.amightygirl.com/trailblazers-simone-biles), and Simone Biles' memoir "Courage to Soar" for ages 12 and up (https://www.amightygirl.com/courage-to-soar)

For a fantastic t-shirt that speaks to the fact that strength has nothing to do with gender, check out the “I'm not strong for a girl. I'm just strong.” t-shirt for both kids and adults at https://www.amightygirl.com/strong-t-shirt

For books for children and teens about girls and women who lived during the Holocaust period, visit our blog post, "60 Mighty Girl Books About The Holocaust" at https://www.amightygirl.com/blog?p=11586

01/09/2024

Hello darkness my old friend ……

BRRRR! Chief Meteorologist Merry Matthews says overnight lows in the single digits tonight with windchill below 0° through 8am Tuesday

Temps improve through the afternoon with 20's and 30's expected and some sunshine