Out where Colorado meets Wyoming, two sandstone towers guard empty prairie

Colorado’s wild, wide-open other side

Most people think of Colorado and picture ski towns and mountain passes. The Pawnee Buttes are something else entirely.

Two sandstone towers rise about 300 feet above a flat, open stretch of prairie in the state’s far northeast corner, roughly 13 miles from Wyoming.

You won’t find crowds here, or coffee shops, or much cell service.

What you will find is a quieter Colorado, one shaped by deep time, wide skies, and country that hasn’t changed much in a very long while.

Two towers rising out of nowhere

You spot them from miles away before you even reach the trailhead.

The Pawnee Buttes stand like sentinels above the surrounding plains, and the flat land around them makes them look even taller than they are.

The west butte sits on public land; the east butte is on private property.

Both are part of the Pawnee National Grassland, a stretch of short-grass prairie in Weld County that most Colorado visitors never make it to.

This is the edge of the state, and it looks nothing like the rest of it.

Millions of years carved this place

The buttes didn’t push up from the ground. They stayed put while everything around them wore away.

The softer clay-rich rock eroded over millions of years, but a hard sandstone cap on top protected each tower and kept it standing. Wind and rain did the rest.

The wider landscape is a badlands, with creeks cutting gullies and channels through the soft soil.

Scientists have studied this land for more than 150 years, and the layers of rock still hold answers about what North America looked like long before people arrived.

The trail winds through gullies to the west butte

The hike from the parking area to the first butte runs about 1.5 to 2 miles.

It’s mostly flat, winding through gullies and open grassland before delivering you to the base of the west butte. Don’t plan on climbing it.

The rock crumbles; it’s unsafe, and it’s not allowed. The trail stays open year-round, though parts of the surrounding area close seasonally.

You can come on horseback if you prefer, but mountain bikes aren’t permitted on this trail.

Nearly 300 bird species call this grassland home

Birders drive hours to get here, and the numbers explain why. Close to 300 species have been recorded in the area over the decades.

The cliff faces draw hawks, eagles, and falcons that use the rock ledges for nesting. A self-guided bird tour loops through about 21 miles of different habitats.

Spring and early summer bring the most activity, with migrating and nesting birds filling the grassland. Pack binoculars.

The buttes are a long way off, and so are most of the birds perched on them.

The cliffs close every spring to protect nesting raptors

From March 1 through June 30, sections of the area near the cliff faces close to visitors. The closure gives hawks, eagles, and falcons room to nest and raise young without disturbance.

The main trail stays open during this period, but you need to stay on it. Late summer and fall open up the full area again, and by then the young birds are flying.

The seasonal rules exist for a reason, and following them is part of why the raptors keep returning year after year.

Ancient bones buried in these layers of rock

Paleontologists have worked this ground since the 1800s.

The rock layers have yielded bones of ancient horses, camels, and other mammals that lived here millions of years ago, when the land looked completely different from what you see now.

Each layer holds a different chapter of North America’s past. If you spot a fossil, an arrowhead, or any artifact, leave it where it is.

Collecting vertebrate fossils is restricted, and removing anything takes away from the scientific record this land has preserved for a very long time.

Pronghorn, prairie dogs and a few surprises

Wildlife on the grassland moves early and late. Pronghorn graze in loose groups across the open range, and prairie dog towns pop up along the roadsides. Mule deer and coyotes work the land morning and evening.

If you’re lucky, a swift fox or a golden eagle shows up. This is also rattlesnake country, so watch where you step and keep your dog on a leash.

The animals here aren’t hiding.

Most of them are easy to spot if you slow down and give your eyes time to adjust to the open distance.

After dark, the sky takes over

Light pollution is nearly zero out here. The flat land gives you a full horizon in every direction, and on a clear night the sky fills edge to edge.

Fall is the best season for it, with longer, darker nights that start earlier in the evening. Cell service is spotty in much of the grassland, so bring a printed star chart instead of counting on an app.

You don’t need a telescope.

The naked-eye views on a dark night in the eastern Colorado plains are reason enough to stay past sundown.

Camp under cottonwoods at Crow Valley

Near the town of Briggsdale, Crow Valley Recreation Area runs campsites shaded by cottonwood and elm trees. The sites come with picnic tables and fire grates, and the area can handle groups.

On permitted National Forest System lands within the grassland, dispersed camping may be an option, but check the Motor Vehicle Use Map first and stay off private land, trailheads, and restricted zones.

From camp, you can watch the sun drop behind the prairie to the west and then come up again to the east with the buttes sitting on the horizon.

Drive 128 miles through the region’s deep past

The Pawnee Pioneer Trails Scenic and Historic Byway covers about 128 miles through the surrounding region. You can drive the whole thing in roughly three hours.

The route passes through old railroad towns, some of them nearly empty now, and crosses the same prairie that Native peoples and pioneers traveled long before paved roads existed.

Sections of the drive run on unpaved county roads, and after rain or snow, flying dirt and loose gravel make it worth slowing down. The drive is part of the experience, not just a way to get somewhere.

Come ready for real open country

The grassland covers 193,060 acres, and the land is a checkerboard of public and private property. A good map keeps you on the right parcels.

Summer heat can push past 100 degrees, and there’s no drinking water at the trailhead, so carry more than you think you need. There’s almost no shade on the trail, so a hat and sunscreen aren’t optional.

The dirt roads get slick fast after rain.

Spring and fall bring the most manageable weather, and the light in those seasons hits the buttes in a way that summer’s harsh noon sun never quite does.

Visit the Pawnee Buttes in Colorado

To reach the Pawnee Buttes trailhead, head to Weld County Road 104 off Weld County Road 390, northeast of Briggsdale in Weld County. The trailhead sits about two hours northeast of Denver.

The hike to the West Butte runs roughly 1.5 to 2 miles one way on an easy, mostly flat trail. There’s no fee to hike.

Remember that sections near the cliffs close from March 1 through June 30 for raptor nesting. Check current conditions and maps through the official website for the Pawnee National Grassland before you go.

This article was created with AI assistance and human editing.

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