2025

January 14, 2025

Sunset Vista Natural Area

Sunset Vista Natural Area

Managed by City of Loveland

Since 2025

In Colorado, US

LOV102

This chronolog combines 3 photos from 2 contributors. Learn more


About this site

Sunset Vista Natural Area contains a variety of habitats and offers 1.75 miles of paved and soft-surface trails to explore.  Past agricultural use included cultivated farmland and a family homestead site, marked by a historic stone structure remaining on the west side of the property.  Dryland wheat farming continues on the north section of the property, and the remaining upland and wetland areas have been undergoing restoration efforts since 2016. Photos from visitors help document the changes to natural conditions at Sunset Vista over time by using chronolog, an online photo monitoring tool. 

The 87-acre Sunset Vista property was purchased in 2014, as part of the 3,500-acre community separator between Loveland and Fort Collins. Numerous restoration projects have improved the natural habitat of the site, including volunteer planting projects, city weed management and native seeding efforts, and Colorado Native Plant Society pollinator habitat improvement projects. Cottonwood trees lining waterways provide habitat for songbirds, raptors, and small mammals, wetlands meandering through the property harbor species such as the state amphibian tiger salamander, and restored short-grass prairie offers food, cover and nesting habitat for upland mammals, reptiles, and invertebrates. A section of the Loveland Loop Trail crosses Sunset Vista and continues around the city for a 21-mile paved community trail amenity. The regional Long View Trail connects at Sunset Vista to provide a trail corridor north to Fort Collins for alternative transportation and recreation opportunities. Sunset Vista is a hub of activity for both human visitors and native species coexisting on the site. 

Sunset Vista Natural Area 

About City of Loveland

The City of Loveland Open Lands & Trails program has conserved over 5,000 acres of open space in and around Loveland.  In 1995, the citizens of Larimer County approved the 1/4-cent Help Preserve Open Space sales tax to protect open space, natural areas, wildlife habitat, regional parks and trails. In 2014, voters overwhelmingly supported the extension of the tax until 2043. Eighteen natural areas and open lands are open to the public, with more than 50 miles of paved and natural-surface trails throughout the community. 

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Chronolog is a monitoring tool for parks, nature centers, wildlife organizations, schools, and museums worldwide. With over 100,000 contributors across 300 organizations, Chronolog is on a mission to engage communities with nature while recording important natural changes.

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