Browns Canyon National Monument, National Monument in Chaffee County, Colorado, US

Browns Canyon National Monument is a 21,586-acre national monument in Chaffee County, Colorado, centered on the Arkansas River between Buena Vista and Salida. It is jointly managed by the Bureau of Land Management and the U.S. Forest Service: 11,836 acres lie in San Isabel National Forest and 9,750 acres are BLM land. The canyon's granite walls frame the river corridor.

Native Americans lived in the area for at least 10,000 years; 18 archaeological sites are documented within the monument, five of them prehistoric, reaching back 8,000 to 13,000 years to the early Archaic and possibly Paleoindian period. In 1976 the BLM proposed protection of Browns Canyon for primitive values, and in 1993 it designated 7,451 acres as a wilderness study area. President Barack Obama proclaimed the 21,586-acre national monument on February 19, 2015, after bills by Wayne Allard, Dan Schaefer, Joel Hefley, Ken Salazar, Mark Udall and Michael Bennet had failed in Congress.

Browns Canyon is the most popular whitewater rafting destination in the country, and the Arkansas River through it draws anglers and hikers as well. The monument is run jointly by the Bureau of Land Management and the United States Forest Service, and livestock grazing and water rights inside it continue under existing permits. Hunting, climbing, mountain biking and horseback riding are also allowed.

Visitors should be prepared for uneven terrain and shifts between wooded areas and open spaces. Access to main trailheads and recreation sites requires appropriate permits or passes, so check requirements before visiting.

Browns Canyon holds 18 recorded archaeological sites, five of them prehistoric, some reaching back 8,000 to 13,000 years to the early Archaic and possibly Paleoindian period. The monument's 21,586 acres are split between 11,836 acres of San Isabel National Forest and 9,750 acres of BLM land.