Creating a center of Activity and Learning:

Turning the busy thoroughfare of Rifle's i-70 rest stop into a premier colorado river interpretive center

River Stop is an anchor feature in Rifle’s river corridor, acting as a destination that connects locals and visitors to the town and the greater watershed community. Over the past few years since opening, Middle Colorado Watershed Council (MCWC) has partnered with Colorado Parks and Wildlife (CPW) and Garfield County Outdoors to offer targeted programming such as field trips for students, skills workshops, and interactive educational opportunities. Because of River Stop’s immediate proximity to the Colorado River and adjacent ponds with inter-connecting walking trails, visitors have good access to hands-on learning opportunities related to riparian habitat, aquatic invertebrates, water-dependent wildlife, river morphology, and more.

For the couple of years after opening, the primary obstacle to programming and operations at River Stop was the impact of COVID-19. Working in coordination with CPW, MCWC decided not to not open the doors at River Stop while COVID-19 was a threat to MCWC and CPW staff and other volunteers. However, we were able to host meaningful programming designed for smaller groups.

CPW did an excellent job designing these smaller-group activities, and maintained a full-time presence at River Stop from June through November 2020. From 2021 through 2024, MCWC staff partnered with CPW, the local school district, Girl Scout and Boy Scout troops, a youth group, and a city recreation department to hold more than 40 scheduled small group events. These sessions provided fun activities with an educational focus on Colorado River ecosystems and river issues such as aquatic invertebrates, water-dependent wildlife, and native and invasive species.

Between scheduled events and roving interpretation programs, CPW staff provided educational programming and tours from November 2019 to September 2020. Funding cuts in 2022 reduced their availability to have staff at River Stop, but the partnership is still going strong and MCWC continues to coordinate programming with CPW. However, MCWC has been able to secure funding to place staff at River Stop part time each year through 2025.

The Past

In 2017, the City of Rifle donated the unused I-70 Rifle rest stop building for our use. Part of it serves as our office, in the heart of the region where we do our work. The other section once occupied with brochures and other informational material about the area now lies quite dormant, waiting to be turned into something new and refreshing for the dozens of individuals who pass through on longer trips or who swing by to take a relaxing walk around the oxbow lake each day. 

The Process

MCWC engaged local community members work in the fields of science and education: science teachers, wildlife ecologists, environmental educators, park rangers. We wanted their input regarding the content of this interpretive center to ensure that the content is relevant, that it tells a story, and that it is impactful. Interpretive designers were utilized to aesthetically design and build the material and displays.

The Middle Colorado Watershed Council has created a modern, timeless interpretive center to intentionally bring the community further into the world of water education, and to catch the wary traveler by surprise with an educational break from their trip.

Designs

• Cottonwood Tree Design

• Riparian Design

• River Intro Design

FUNDING

This project was made possible by grant funding, private and corporate donors, and in-kind contributions. Funding sources for this project included the Colorado Water Conservation Board ($47,400); Colorado Healthy Rivers Foundation grant ($20,000); CPW ($6,750); Chevron ($5,000), Colorado Department of Public Health and Environment ($5,000); private foundation ($3,800); Colorado Basin Roundtable ($3,000); private donors ($1,200); and in-kind donations ($20,000+). MCWC appreciates the in-kind contributions from CPW (for staff), the City of Rifle (for use of the rest area building and staff time), and numerous individual subject matter experts who contributed to content and signage development.

Funding from the MAKI Foundation, a Colorado Basin Roundtable PEPO grant, and Western Colorado Community Foundation allowed MCWC to purchase a stream table that will be installed in and activated in the spring of 2024.