Antero-Salt Creek



Location: Park County
Size: 8520 acres
Designated: 2010 
Landowner: State Land Board

The Antero-Salt Creek Natural Area is home to several rare habitat types in Colorado: extreme rich fen, alkaline marshes and salt springs. Together these habitats house several state and globally imperiled plant species, and provide seasonal homes for rare birds and butterflies. The following is an excellent description of the property provided by the Colorado Natural Heritage Program:  
    "This area was given the name 'bayou salado' by French explorers due the presence of salts. The plants and plant communities that dominate the alkaline flats are salt-tolerant species...The surrounding uplands are dominated by montane grasslands."

The Natural Area encompasses portions of multiple named and un-named creeks that flow off the eastern flanks of the Buffalo Peaks and Trout Creek Pass into the Antero Reservoir. The property has good connectivity with forested and riparian systems located on Pike National Forest to the west.