About Us
The US Army established our name sake in June of 1858, they started construction back in July of 1857. Before it was Fort Garland it was Fort Massachussets and it was built on the side of our local Mount Blanca. If you ever drive part way up Mt. Blanca to visit Zapata Falls, you'll see why they moved it down to the valley floor. The old fort still sits in town today offering tours and occasional special events. We are the first town after the La Veta Pass when travelling West. By the time you get up here, your elevation will be 7,936ft (or 2,419 meters for you fancy types.) Be sure to stop at our visitor center right at the intersection of U.S Highway 160 and Colorado's Hwy 159. We have clean restrooms!
A little advice for the uninitiated. We are a lot higher than Denver. Please get some canned oxygen and inhale it. Don't forget to drink plenty of water. An ounce of prevention, can save your whole trip or vacation. Altitude sickness will ruin your good time. And whatever you do, don't mess with the La Veta Pass when the weather is bad. It is steep, curvy, and dangerous. Sometimes up here, roadside assistance isn't as reliable as you are used to. This is the Wild West, listen to the Boy Scouts, and be prepared.
Attractions
- Fort Garland Old US Army Fort
- Tours and Events
- Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve Sand Boarding and Hiking
- Colorado Gators Reptile Park Touch an alligator
- Mountain Home Reservoir Rustic camping, fishing, and boating
Local Places
Data
- We are located at 37°25′41″N 105°26′06″W
- We have 464 people as of 2020's census.
- Our area code is 719 and the zip is 81133
- We are in the Sangre de Cristo Range
- Named after General John Garland
- We have bears, lions, coyotes, and crazy mountain men
Pictures from the neighborhood.
Great Sand Dunes
Sand Dunes tips: Stop and rent a sandboard from Amy at Spindrift Sandboards in Blanca. Take water, wear closed shoes, you will regret sandals. The sand can burn the top of your feet. You need sunglasses, on windy days, Spindrift can provide you with goggles. If you are a couch potato from lower elevations, please breathe some canned air before braving the sand dunes. You car pass is good for a week ($25.00), so go twice. Make sure you get video of your buddy successfully surfing down the dune, not just the ones where he crashes.
Mt. Blanca
From the beautiful peaks to this lake, Fort Garland has natural beauty that people travel to see. And why not, we don't have a single skyscraper, we don't have a red light. You can see the Milky Way from here.
Succulent
Flowers may not be the first thing that comes to mind when thinking of a desert. But, we have them everywhere. Our dirt roads are lined with flowers. Only once so far for me, but you can catch an entire road swarmed by butterflies when conditions are right.
Old Wood
Our trees are old, some of them were around before the Bible. Seriously, our trees can live for thousands of years. So be sure that tree is your before you cut it, you do not want to learn about tree law the hard way.
Art & Nature
This steel sculpture was made in Alabama, but found its home in the shadow of Mt. Blanca.
Lush Desert
The sunflowers are everywhere this summer. They seem to line every road and driveway. Wonder if these little guys have good seeds?
More of Fort Garland
Monsoon Season
July - August
This year (2024) feels like it has rained everyday for months. There have been many late afternoon thunderstorms, some with hail. This leads to an explosion of flowers. Sometimes you can forget this is a desert. Well, until you try to drive too soon after a good rain. Sand and rain do not make for great road conditions.
Mountain Home Reservoir
Boating, Fishing, Camping
With exceptional views of Mt. Blanca and a relaxed set of rules, the reservoir is a great place. Free and open all the time, you can camp overnight. Not sure if I would walk on it when frozen, but you can be the champion of skipping rocks when it does.
Visitor Center
Welcome!
We have one of those cutouts you can take your picture in, free parking, maps galore, and just about every travel brochure you could need. One of our all time favorite attractions is, clean restrooms! Come in, get some info, make a donation, have a free of piece of candy!
Intersection of HWY 160 and HWY 159
You've come to the crossroads
Where will you go? How long will you stay? For a minute, for a night, or will you be forever trapped by desolate charm? Either way, thanks for coming by, be sure to tell us all about your insights on politics and religion, we love that!
Yearly inches of snow
We get several really good snowstorms each winter. Accumulations stick around because of how cold it is. It might only snow 3" to 10" at a time, but the pile in my backyard is often 10' deep.
Inches of rain per year
Pretty sure we will exceed that rainfall this year. Here in the valley it tends to rain in the late afternoon, and not for more than an hour usually. When it rains like crazy, watch out for our greasy roads.
Feet of elevation
We are high. I mean way up. Come on up and play. But take heed, beathe that canned air and drink plenty of water, it will save your trip.
Miles per hour
Bring your own flux capacitor. Our hardware store has a large selection, but they do not cater to time travelers. You can find some hippees around here that do, but you gotta get them to put down the peace pipe first.