Volunteers Sought for Scenic Byway

CORTEZ – The Colorado Department of Transportation is seeking volunteers to serve on the governing committee for the Trail of the Ancients Scenic and Historic Byway – a route through the southwestern part of the state that also encompasses segments in New Mexico, Arizona and Utah.

Volunteers would be part of a team promoting and managing a byway that offers travelers an opportunity to experience centuries-old archaeological sites through a sunbaked landscape of sandstone, pinon, juniper and sagebrush.  Duties would include:

• Maintaining a regular meeting schedule, including a minimum of two meetings per year, with one being an in-person meeting.
• Holding at least one public workshop, community event, or presentation to local elected officials or another group.
• Participating in at least four CDOT, Colorado Byways, National Scenic Byway Foundation or other public meetings, trainings, webinars and conference calls per year.
• Completing an annual survey to 1) track the accomplishments of the program and the byway goals, 2) check that reasons for corridor designation are still relevant, and 3) see that progress is being made toward preservation of the corridor.

The Trail of the Ancients Scenic and Historic Byway was designated as a National Scenic Byway in 2005.  Colorado’s 114-mile segment of the byway accesses sites such as: 

• Canyons of the Ancients National Monument (as distinct from Trail of the Ancients Scenic and Historic Byway). 176,000 acres of the highest-known density of archaeological sites in the U.S.
• Canyons of the Ancients Visitor Center & Museum in Dolores is headquarters for the national monument.
• Crow Canyon Archaeological Center has programs to actively engage participants in real archaeological research in the field and/or the laboratory.
• Mesa Verde National Park, a World Heritage site.
• Ute Mountain Tribal Park, featuring an abundance of petroglyphs and pictographs.
• Yucca House, a great example of public/private stewardship of our cultural resources.
• Hovenweep.  Explore multi-story towers built on canyon rims and boulders. 
• Lowry Pueblo features a great kiva, nearly 50 feet in diameter. 
• Historic McElmo Flume is the only remaining one out of 104 wooden flumes constructed by early water companies to irrigate the Montezuma Valley.  Visitors can access the site with a highway pullout and overlook.

Interested individuals should contact Colorado Byways Program Manager Lenore Bates at 303.757.9786 or [email protected].

ABOUT CDOT

CDOT has approximately 3,000 employees located at its Denver headquarters and in regional offices throughout Colorado, and manages more than 23,000 lane miles of highway and 3,429 bridges. CDOT also manages grant partnerships with a range of other agencies, including metropolitan planning organizations, local governments and airports. It also administers Bustang, the state-owned and operated interregional express service. Governor Polis has charged CDOT to further build on the state’s intermodal mobility options.