Full Title: FT26CN417. Denver's Urban Riverscapes: Improving Resilience, Improving Connections.
Price: US$105 for non-members; US$90 for professional members; US$55 for student members; US$75 for early career professional members
Leader(s): Anne MacDonald; David Skuodas
Endorser(s): GSA Quaternary Geology and Geomorphology Division, GSA Environmental and Engineering Geology Division, GSA Geoscience Education Division
Industry Track(s): Engineering Geology, Hydrogeology and Environmental Geology
CEUs: 1.20
Date(s): Thu., 15 Oct. 2026
Departing Location: Colorado Convention Center, Denver, Colorado, USA
Start Time: 8 a.m.
End Time: 6 p.m.
Description: Urban settings are characterized by significant hydrologic and geomorphic modification resulting from land use changes, dams, and diversions. Increasingly, however, urban streams are also recognized as important providers of ecosystem services. As the Denver metro area has grown over the past 30 years, interest has likewise increased in strategies that enhance the resilience of urban stream corridors.
Nature-based design in urban environments must account for both physical and social context, balancing hydrologic and geomorphic conditions—which are often highly dynamic and differ markedly from predevelopment systems—with neighborhood-scale community values and spatial constraints. Applying this contextual understanding allows urban streams to function more effectively as refuges for both people and ecological communities.
This field trip will highlight a range of these strategies in the Denver metro area, including approaches to managing changes in runoff volume associated with development, reducing erosion and flood hazards, enhancing ecosystem services through improvements to aquatic and floodplain habitats (including beaver reintroduction), and expanding recreational opportunities within urban corridors.
We will visit small creeks, range-front streams, and the South Platte River in central Denver, where a kayak course installed in the mid-1980s provided insights that contributed to trout stream rehabilitation efforts. If time allows, the final stop will be near a local brewpub for a closing discussion (refreshments at participants’ own expense).
Considerations: Participants should be prepared for variable weather and light physical exertion at approximately 5,200 ft above sea level. Travel time between stops will be limited to less than 1 hour. Expect short walks of up to 30 minutes each on trails and potentially uneven terrain within a metropolitan setting.
Restroom access will be readily available, with scheduled stops in the mid-morning and mid-afternoon. Catered box lunches will be provided, along with mid-morning and afternoon snack breaks. Bottled water will be available for participants (one bottle per person), along with 5–10 gallon refill containers.
Cost includes ground transportation, lunch, snacks, and water.
By purchasing this item, you are buying a seat for an in-person geological field trip. This field trip is in conjunction with GSA Connects 2026. Learn more here.
For member type discounts please contact fieldtrip@geosociety.org.
Students and Early Career Professionals can apply for funding here.
Field Trips offer Continuing Education Units (CEUs). One CEU equals 10 hours of participation in an organized continuing education experience under responsible sponsorship, capable direction, and qualified instruction.
Please review these Field Safety Documents. You will be contacted to provide your consent to these forms after purchasing a field trip.
For additional information, please contact fieldtrip@geosociety.org.
Product Code: FT26CN417
Product Category: FTRIP
- Choosing a selection results in a full page refresh.
- Opens in a new window.