Hidden Gem of Northern Colorado
Last fall, my family and I took a trip to Northern Colorado for one of my daughter's softball games in Ft. Collins. After the game we took a quick drive through Ft. Collins and then had lunch. Still having a few hours left in the day to do something, we remembered seeing signs near the Loveland exit for some outlet malls. After a hot day at the softball game, we thought the cool air conditioning the mall shops might be a nice choice to wrap up the day so we decided to head south 20 minutes to the Loveland exit at higway 34.
Once we arrived at the Loveland exit we decided to head toward the Promenade Shops at Centerra off of Hwy. 34 and Centerra Parkway. As we drove we noticed some signs for a sculpture park and when we parked at the Macy's parking lot we saw another sign for the sculpture park so we decided to walk to the somewhat hidden path near the far corner of the lot. After a short walk down the path through some trees and bushes, it opened up to a large park area filled with trees, green grass, small ponds and sculptures.
It turns out, the park is called "Chapungu Sculpture Park". I had never heard of this park and as we began walking in, there were many groups taking pictures for home coming and family pictures, which lead me to believe that this wasn't just some run of the mill, ordinary park. And that's because it's not! Chapungu Sculpture Park, is the only permanent exhibit of its' kind located in the United States.
This public park features 82 stone sculptures carved by artists from Zimbabwe.The park is on 26 acres and has 1.5 miles of hiking trails that wind through the sculptures, trees and small ponds.
There are some beautiful sculptures throughout this outdoor art exhibit and they are placed in a very peaceful setting which all can enjoy. As I mentioned earlier, many use this park as a setting for photo shoots, and it is also used for weddings and other types of events. The park contains a large permanent tent structure with hookups for electric and audio equipment and a large grass seating area.
If you are lucky you may see some wildlife in the park. There are definitely lots of flowers and insects to see and we even saw lots of turtles, frogs and tadpoles in the ponds. The park also includes this large hilltop which is not only interesting but fun for kids to climb and roll down.
Once atop the hill, there is a terrific view. I particularly enjoyed this view and photo of the restored railroad bridge which crosses Centerra Parkway.
We thoroughly enjoyed this little sculpture park which we happened upon by chance. We would have never even known it was there if we had not been driving through the area. Whether or not it is worth a specific trip to see it may depend on how far of a drive it is for you, but if you are in the area it is definitely worth your time to stop and see it. Take a couple hours to relax and unwind in this hidden gem of Northern Colorado.
You can find more information on this park at :
http://www.chapungusculpturepark.com/
http://www.centerra.com/contentPages/display/56
http://www.colorado.com/art-museums/chapungu-sculpture-park-centerra
Once we arrived at the Loveland exit we decided to head toward the Promenade Shops at Centerra off of Hwy. 34 and Centerra Parkway. As we drove we noticed some signs for a sculpture park and when we parked at the Macy's parking lot we saw another sign for the sculpture park so we decided to walk to the somewhat hidden path near the far corner of the lot. After a short walk down the path through some trees and bushes, it opened up to a large park area filled with trees, green grass, small ponds and sculptures.
It turns out, the park is called "Chapungu Sculpture Park". I had never heard of this park and as we began walking in, there were many groups taking pictures for home coming and family pictures, which lead me to believe that this wasn't just some run of the mill, ordinary park. And that's because it's not! Chapungu Sculpture Park, is the only permanent exhibit of its' kind located in the United States.
This public park features 82 stone sculptures carved by artists from Zimbabwe.The park is on 26 acres and has 1.5 miles of hiking trails that wind through the sculptures, trees and small ponds.
There are some beautiful sculptures throughout this outdoor art exhibit and they are placed in a very peaceful setting which all can enjoy. As I mentioned earlier, many use this park as a setting for photo shoots, and it is also used for weddings and other types of events. The park contains a large permanent tent structure with hookups for electric and audio equipment and a large grass seating area.
If you are lucky you may see some wildlife in the park. There are definitely lots of flowers and insects to see and we even saw lots of turtles, frogs and tadpoles in the ponds. The park also includes this large hilltop which is not only interesting but fun for kids to climb and roll down.
Once atop the hill, there is a terrific view. I particularly enjoyed this view and photo of the restored railroad bridge which crosses Centerra Parkway.
We thoroughly enjoyed this little sculpture park which we happened upon by chance. We would have never even known it was there if we had not been driving through the area. Whether or not it is worth a specific trip to see it may depend on how far of a drive it is for you, but if you are in the area it is definitely worth your time to stop and see it. Take a couple hours to relax and unwind in this hidden gem of Northern Colorado.
You can find more information on this park at :
http://www.chapungusculpturepark.com/
http://www.centerra.com/contentPages/display/56
http://www.colorado.com/art-museums/chapungu-sculpture-park-centerra
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