About Us

Mission

To create a place of serenity that celebrates and conserves the plants, trees and birds of the Yampa River Valley and similar ecosystems worldwide.

The Botanic Park is free and open to the public from the beginning of May through the end of October.

It is a place to enjoy the flowers and the trees, a place to revel in nature, and a hideaway from the stress of modern life. It is a place for summer music festivals, weddings, and yoga, and a resource to see native plants. The Botanic Park sits at 6,800 feet above sea level, but through the use of designed microclimates it supports both alpine plants and desert plants found in the Yampa Valley.

Bob and Audrey Enever, Botanic Park Founders

Bob and Audrey Enever, Emeritus, Co-Founders

On September 9, 2012 the City of Steamboat Springs awarded the Enevers its City’s Heritage Award, which is awarded every two years to people who have made a large contribution to the Community. Watch the event here.

On January 25, 2024 the Enevers were recognized by the Yampa Valley Sustainability Council with a Lifetime Achievement Award. Read Bob Enever’s speech here.


The Board

Kathy Connell, President
Sally Hertzog, Vice President
Madison Keeffe, Secretary
Evelyn Cole, Treasurer
Russ Atha
Wendy Baumann
Karen Bomberg
Angela Cosby
Sonia Franzel
Cales Givens
Georgianne Nelson
Emily Seaver

Staff

Jennifer MacNeil,
Executive Director
Emma Friedland,
Lead Horticulturist
Sandi Molen,
Membership & Visitor Services Coordinator
Tatiana Achcar-Szyba, Gardener
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Susan Globe, Gardener
Max Kornbluth, Facilities Team Member
Janelle Lincks, Gardener
Jeff Morehead, Facilities Team Member
Mary O’Brien, Gardener

Madeline Perigaut, Assistant Horticulturist

Maribeth Pruett, Gardener

Mark Sauthoff, Gardener

Ames Williford, Gardener

HISTORY

Botanic Park History

Beginning in 1995 the Yampa River Botanic Park sprang from a flat horse pasture to a six acre gem of ponds, berms, and 63 gardens. It is one of the jewels of Northwest Colorado and one of a handful of botanic gardens in the State. 

The Botanic Park is an innovative, perhaps unique, experiment in private/public development and maintenance of a public botanical garden. The six acre Botanic Park sits on land donated to the City of Steamboat Springs by the founders. The Botanic Park is maintained and governed by an Association, a volunteer organization that was delegated by the City to manage the Park, raise funds, hire staff, and design, create and maintain the gardens.  The organization receives no tax dollars and is supported by the generosity of members, donors, and private foundations.

COMMUNITY PARTNERS

The Botanic Park works with community partners to bring programming and events to life in the gardens.  With these partnerships, activities for children and adults are offered throughout the season at no cost. 

Bud Werner Memorial Library
City of Steamboat Springs
Community Cultivation
Piknik Theatre
Plant Select
Rocky Mountain Youth Corps
Routt County CSU Extension, Master Gardeners and Junior Master Gardeners
SOROCO FFA
Steamboat Creates
Steamboat Springs Chamber
Strings Music Festival
Tread of Pioneers Museum
Yampatika

RESOURCES

Yampascaping Guidebook

Creating landscapes that celebrate and sustain our Native Yampa Valley ecosystems.

Steamboat’s Botanic Park – a new book by Co-Founder, Bob Enever

Bob Enever, Co-Founder of YRBP, has written his third book, “Steamboat’s Botanic Park: Flower Gardens at 6,800 feet in the Rocky Mountains.” The book is a photo tour of the Park and its gardens and tells the story of the Park’s inception and how it is managed.
We encourage you to shop locally – the book is available at Off The Beaten Path, Lyon’s Corner Drug & Soda Fountain, and Steamboat Art Museum. The book is also available on Amazon.

OUR IMPACT

The Botanic Park welcomes more than 35,000 visitors annually.  A visit through the gardens is free; there is no admission. The Park is one of the top local summer attractions in Steamboat Springs.  Locals and tourists alike have the opportunity to learn about ecology and plants that thrive in the challenging environment. Landscaping companies bring their clients to select in person what plants they would like to see in their home landscape.  Most plants are labeled with both scientific and common names. Many gardens and plant selections promote water wise and environmentally friendly landscaping.

The Park impacts the lives of thousands of people.  Community partners utilize the facilities at no charge for hosting programs and events like storytime, live theatre, concerts, and yoga.  The Park is a popular venue for weddings, schools conduct classes here, and summer camps regularly visit. Artists visit for plein air painting and photography.  The Park has raised beds that support therapeutic horticulture programs for those with special needs. Staff and volunteers support our aging visitors by providing rides into the Park in our golf cart and by opening the gates early for a bus to bring in the residents of Casey’s Pond early to Music on the Green.

Globally the Botanic Park is assisting in trialing plants from Patagonia.  In a friendly partnership with Denver Botanic Gardens, the Park receives plants that are grown from plant material collected on plant expeditions by DBG staff.  We are growing and evaluating them for success as landscape plants.