Austin Bluffs Open Space

Colorado Springs


This beautiful reserve overlooking Colorado Springs and the Rockies beyond is strewn with distinctive rock formations dating to the Eocene period. Walking and hiking trails crisscross the park and adjacent Pulpit Rock Park.


Lonely Planet's must-see attractions

Nearby Colorado Springs attractions

1. Pulpit Rock Park

1.63 MILES

This attractive open space is connected to the Austin Bluffs Open Space and features a 4.4-mile loop trail that is suitable for adults and kids of good…

2. Cornerstone Arts Center

3.87 MILES

Colorado College’s striking, $30-million LEED–certified arts complex sits across the street from the Fine Arts Center. You’ll see sculpture on the front…

3. Money Museum

3.88 MILES

Yes, museums dedicated to coin collecting do exist. This museum, operated by the American Numismatic Association, has gold coins from the early 19th…

5. Garden of the Gods

4.34 MILES

This gorgeous vein of red sandstone (about 290 million years old) appears elsewhere along Colorado's Front Range, but the exquisitely thin cathedral…

6. Acacia Park

4.36 MILES

Home to the much loved Uncle Wilbur’s Fountain, a lifeguard-monitored pop jet fountain with over 200 water jets, 52 of which are part of a play area where…

7. Rock Ledge Ranch

4.47 MILES

This living history museum near the Garden of the Gods park entrance is worth a visit for those interested in the lives of Native Americans and 19th…

8. Memorial Park

4.65 MILES

Set just off downtown, with Prospect Lake surrounded by wide green lawns and ball fields, and Pikes Peak and the rest of the southern front range looming…