After Gilly's and Harvest Day at CALF's Lowell Ranch, I rolled out to Larkspur for the Douglas County Fall Festival at Sandstone Ranch. I showed up late, per usual, and there were still a bunch of people out there.
It was Saturday, September 26, from 10am to 3pm. Free, all ages, no registration. The county hosts it on the guided side of the ranch, which is a separate entrance from the trailhead most people use to hike it.
If you've never been out there, Sandstone Ranch is beautiful, and it really goes all the way back. It's 2,038 acres of red rock formations and hay meadows, and it shares 3.5 miles of boundary with Pike National Forest. The county approved buying it on December 27, 2017, and calls it the crown jewel of all its Open Space properties. Some of the ranch buildings date back to its original owners in the 1870s.
What's out there at the festival
The helicopter and the fire engines. The county's firefighting helicopter was parked right out in the field, with wildland firefighters, Sheriff's deputies, search and rescue and fire engines all set up next to it.
The German shepherd rescue. Front Range German Shepherd Rescue had a pen of pups, and I hung out with them for a while.
The painted pumpkins. A whole spread of them laid out in the grass.
Everything else. Inflatable axe throwing, people walking and riding horses around the grounds, food trucks, live music, and a bunch of tables from Douglas Land Conservancy and the county. I kept seeing tractors hauling people way back into the property. Those were the hay rides, which the county describes as going through the ranch's historic and scenic areas, and there were guided hikes with Open Space Rangers too.
How to get out to Sandstone Ranch the rest of the year
The festival's a once-a-year thing, but the ranch isn't. The public trailhead at 9605 S. Perry Park Road in Larkspur is open from one hour before sunrise to one hour after sunset, with 12 miles of trail in the eastern part of the ranch. Hikers, horseback riders, mountain bikers, cross-country skiers and snowshoers are all welcome, and dogs are fine on a leash. No motorized anything.
The guided side, where the festival was, opens up for programs. Douglas Land Conservancy has Sandstone Ranch Geology Tours on Saturday, October 17, with a second session that afternoon.
If you go
Sandstone Ranch Open Space, public trailhead at 9605 S. Perry Park Road, Larkspur, CO 80118.
Hours: one hour before sunrise to one hour after sunset.
Trails: 12 miles, non-motorized, leashed dogs OK.
Festival entrance: events on the guided side use 8309 S. Perry Park Road, a different gate from the trailhead.
Full details, photos and map: Sandstone Ranch Open Space on the DougCo Directory. This year's event: Douglas County Fall Festival at Sandstone Ranch.
Make a day of it
That was my whole Saturday: Gilly's Pumpkin Patch first thing, coffee at Oo•de•Lally, CALF's Harvest Day, then out to Larkspur for this one.
More for the season: the rest of fall in our Fall Festivals guide, every patch compared in the Pumpkin Patches guide, and year-round ideas in Things to Do With Kids.
Sources
- Our visit, Saturday, September 26, 2026, in the afternoon: the helicopter, fire engines, search and rescue, the German shepherd rescue, painted pumpkins, axe throwing, horses, live music, the tractors, and every photo on this page (DougCo Social).
- Douglas County: festival date, hours, cost, activity list and parking. douglasco.gov, Douglas County Fall Festival
- Douglas County: the festival's special events entrance at 8309 S. Perry Park Road. douglasco.gov, festival event page
- Douglas County: 2,038 acres, 3.5 miles bordering Pike National Forest, the December 27, 2017 approval and the 1870s buildings. douglasco.gov, Sandstone Ranch
- Douglas County: trailhead address, hours, 12 miles of trail and allowed uses. douglasco.gov, Sandstone Ranch Trail
- Front Range German Shepherd Rescue: their own post announcing they'd be at the festival. FRGSR on Facebook