Hartsel

History

Founded in 1880, Hartsel is close to the geographic center of the state, and is often referred to as "The Heart of Colorado". The namesake of the community is Samuel Hartsel, a local farmer and cattle rancher who came to Park County in 1860 and left in 1908. He developed the Hartsel hot springs and built a sawmill, blacksmith shop, and a trading post to lay the groundwork for the town.

Geography

The Hartsel CDP has an area of , including of water. Summers are warm with chilly nights in the 30s and 40s (°F) and some thunderstorm activity during the months of July and August. Winters are cold and dry with lows below zero. A climate writeup consisting of interpolated data is below. According to the A. W. Kuchler U.S. Potential natural vegetation Types, Hartsel would have a wheatgrass / needlegrass (66) vegetation type and a north mixed grass prairie (7) vegetation form.

Most-observed species

• Horned Lark

  Eremophila alpestris (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  1,258
• Common Raven

  Corvus corax Linnaeus, 1758 · Aves
  1,058
• Canada Goose (canadensis Group)

  Branta canadensis (Linnaeus, 1758) · Aves
  867
• American White Pelican

  Pelecanus erythrorhynchos Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
  802
• California Gull

  Larus californicus Lawrence, 1854 · Aves
  712
• Mountain Bluebird

  Sialia currucoides (Bechstein, 1798) · Aves
  600
• Double-crested Cormorant

  Phalacrocorax auritus (Lesson, 1831) · Aves
  589
• American Avocet

  Recurvirostra americana J.F.Gmelin, 1789 · Aves
  583

Most recent

• M 3 — 2025-10-17
  11 km NNE of Black Forest, Colorado
• M 2.5 — 2021-06-26
  19 km WNW of Cañon City, Colorado
• M 2.8 — 2021-04-11
  9 km E of Woody Creek, Colorado
• M 2.5 — 2020-10-24
  2 km ESE of Georgetown, Colorado
• M 3.6 — 2017-11-30
  4 km NNW of Coaldale, Colorado
• M 2.8 — 2015-04-12
  5 km NE of Aspen, Colorado