Del Craig has lived at Thompson Corner in River Valley Ranch for over 20 years. His back patio faces the Crystal River. Across the river, he sees activity at Riverfront Park.
Until recently, Riverfront Park was somewhat secret. One of several park spaces acquired by the Town of Carbondale when River Valley Ranch was approved in 1994, Riverfront was the focus of restoration efforts in 2023 that involved revegetation and deepening of the river’s channel where one of the Town’s historic ditch diversions had gradually widened the banks making fish passage at times impossible. The work also created easier access for fishermen and an outdoor classroom visible from Crystal Bridge Drive. A winding wheelchair ramp was installed beside steep stairs to the park’s entrance.
Along with these improvements, Craig has witnessed an uptick in park visitation and some disregard for the posted rules. The half-mile, out-and-back trail is closed every winter for bald eagle nesting, and dogs and bikes are always excluded. Users are asked to stick to the trail and keep group sizes to less than four people at a time. These measures help keep the habitat tranquil for birds and other wildlife.
Parks and Recreation Director Eric Brendlinger noted that temporary irrigation will remain in place for at least one more season while native plants get established. Then, fencing and sprinklers will be removed. Just outside the park, removal of the irrigation system will create a space for designated bike parking and possibly more signage.
In 2025, the restoration project was awarded the Colorado Open Space Alliance’s Blue Grama Award for Outstanding Achievement in Ecological Restoration. According to a press release, “This recognition celebrates the project’s success in restoring ecological integrity, improving water infrastructure and enhancing community access along the Crystal River.” In addition to improving instream flow and aquatic habitat, the project replaced the Weaver Ditch headgate employing new technology to automatically adjust water intake in response to river levels.
The project resulted from more than a decade of planning and was executed by River Restoration and DHM Design in collaboration with Roaring Fork Conservancy, Pitkin County Healthy Rivers and Streams, Aspen Valley Land Trust, Great Outdoors Colorado, Colorado Watershed Assembly, Redoubt Restoration, the Bureau of Reclamation, Colorado River District, Colorado Water Conservation Board, Colorado Parks and Wildlife and Trout Unlimited. Together these partners contributed funding, technical expertise and outreach, raising over $1 million to pull it off.
True to the educational intent of the park, a Roaring Fork High School ecology class has been granted access to conduct water sampling just beyond the entrance to the park. Otherwise, Riverfront remains closed to the public through March 15. The local birding community requests that visitors be especially sensitive to the presence of nesting birds through the spring and early summer.