For immediate release:
3:00 p.m. March 22, 2023
People who are not from the area may not realize Walsenburg is home to a hidden gem. Lathrop State Park, located just outside of Walsenburg, is Colorado’s only state park that has a golf course. This spring, another treasure is coming to the area: The Walsenburg Golf Course is opening a new, 10-site RV park.
The golf course is literally hidden right now. It shares an entrance with Lathrop State Park, which also is not very visible from the highway or the city. They’ve both been there since the early 1960s, but there are only a few signs in Walsenburg and along the highway letting people know they both exist.
Lathrop State Park itself is a hidden gem in southern Colorado. It’s nestled in the shadow of the Spanish Peaks and features RV and tent campsites; two lakes for boating, fishing, and water recreation; a horse trail; and a free archery range.
The 9-hole golf course has a restaurant, mini-golf, and a driving range. The course is open to the public and does not require a state parks pass or membership to play a round or visit. Guests of the new RV campground who want to visit the state park will need to purchase a pass to access Lathrop State Park.
“It’s kind of unbelievable, that our state park is the only one that features a golf course.” Walsenburg Golf Association President Gary Vezzani said. And that’s not the only thing that sets this new RV park apart from others. “We may be the only, or one of a few RV campgrounds in the state that features a golf course,” he said.
The new RV campground is situated about 100 yards from the golf course clubhouse with beautiful views of the Spanish Peaks and Martin Lake. In addition to having easy access to the golf course and state park, other campground amenities include access to the clubhouse and restaurant, and golf cart rental.
The new RV campground will be open for extended and nightly stays. Each pull-thru gravel site will be equipped with 50-, 30- and 20-amp electric service, free high-speed Wi-Fi and its own picnic table. Leashed pets are also welcome.
Rates are set at $36 per day for electric campsites. The association is working to put together packages that bundle the RV park fee, green fees, cart rental, mini-golf, driving-range access and perhaps even some state park access. It is anticipated that campsite reservations will open next month.
Right now, the big hold up is the cold. Once it’s warm enough, an underground electric line will be installed to electrify the pedestals at each site. Another final step? Giving the new RV campground an official name. Various stakeholders may explore cobranding the state park, golf course, RV campground and restaurant to increase marketing potential for these unique area attractions.
“It’d be great if we get booked up right away, but we just have to see how it goes,” Vezzani said. He also noted that there’s enough space to expand the golf course RV park by 30 or 40 additional campsites in the future if there is enough demand.
The Walsenburg Golf Association was formed in 1965, the same year the golf course was built. The association’s sole purpose was to operate and maintain the golf course for the good of the community. Huerfano County has subsidized the course since 2015, donating about $15,000 a year to help with fertilizer costs and sprinkler equipment, among other items.
“The course is run mostly by volunteers. Without them and the county, this course wouldn’t exist. As our volunteers are getting older, we have less and less help. We need the course to be able to sustain itself now more than ever before,” Vezzani said. Lathrop State Park suggested the association add camp sites to add an additional revenue stream and to meet an increasing need in the community, which the state park could not fulfill.
The new campground was made possible by several significant donations and contributions:
- Huerfano County donated the gravel and as $75,000 in cash in the last two years
- Walsenburg Sand & Gravel donated their operators and equipment to install the gravel.
- San Isabel Electric and Basin Electric Power Cooperative donated $5,000 to help cover the cost of the electric transformer.
- Two local electricians, Don Sage and Mike Zanolini, donated 100% of the labor to install the electric pedestals.
- The five members of the golf association have spent countless hours on the project, including Randy Bryan, a former SIEA Staking Engineer.
Vezzani expects it will take a few years for people to discover the campground and for the association to build a clientele of folks who come back every year to camp, golf and enjoy the surrounding amenities.
It’s a wonderful dream, but right now he’s focused on the tasks at hand — finishing construction. And even more importantly, he’s focused on making sure the RV campground creates enough business to support itself and the golf course.
Vezzani hopes the park will attract families and retirees who love golf, who love being on the water and who want to stay weeks or months at a time.
This exciting addition to the Walsenburg Golf Course is predicted to have economic benefits for the area. Developers look forward to serving local patrons as well as attracting golfers, campers, and outdoor enthusiasts from across Colorado and beyond.
Good to Know
Keep the Keep Colorado Wild State Park Pass fee on your vehicle registration so you can access Lathrop State Park when you stay at the new RV campground. Each Colorado vehicle registration and renewal now has a State Parks Pass automatically added to the renewal fee. The $29 price point is more than half off the $84 price tag of the 2022 annual state parks pass. Plus, the pass will give you access to all 43 state parks and boost funding for natural resources in our great state.
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