Gates of Lodore Trail Stop 2

Brown's Park has been a changing landscape since the 1870s

NPS Photo/Conrad Provan

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Scenic View/Photo Spot

Browns Park is an isolated area, but it is not immune to change. Beginning in the 1870s, early settlers altered the landscape to suit their needs. Great cattle herds once roamed the range. Unlike native animals, cattle grazed on native grasses faster than they could reproduce and new invasive plants took their place. Cheat grass is one of the most common of these species. Originally introduced in grain shipments from the Mediterranean, it spread rapidly across the American west. Not only does it provide poor forage for native animals, but its seeds have the ability to hitchhike to new destinations by catching in fur or your socks.