Location: Park County
Size: 373 acres
Designated: 2013
Landowner: US Forest Service
Hoosier Ridge consists of a broad alpine ridge that is an east-west oriented portion of the Continental Divide. The western half of the area is underlain by upper Cretaceous and lower Tertiary rocks while the eastern portion is underlain by Minturn Formation of the Pennsylvanian age. The east-west orientation of the ridge and the uncommon geology of the area have combined to produce a habitat that is one of the top botanical hotspots in Colorado. The USFS reports that at least seven vegetation communities in excellent condition are found within the Hoosier Ridge area, including dry and wet alpine tundra, grassland, krummholz forest and alpine fen.
The high quality vegetation communities and the unique set of environmental conditions found at Hoosier Ridge support an incredible number of rare plant species. Hoosier Ridge is home to at least 16 rare or imperiled plant species, including three species only found in Colorado, two USFS sensitive species and a federally-listed species. Particularly significant rare plant species include: Penland alpine fen mustard (
Eutrema penlandii):, Globe gilia (
Ipomopsis globularis), Gray’s Peak whitlow grass (
Draba grayana), and Sea pink (
Armeria scabra ssp. sibirica). Because of its remarkable botanic diversity, Hoosier Ridge has been included in the Mosquito Range Potential Conservation Area that is of the highest ranking of Biodiversity Significance (B1) in Colorado, as ranked by the Colorado Natural Heritage Program.