Volunteer Toolbox

DFO Dinosaur Ridge Hawk Watch is a project of the Denver Field Ornithologists (DFO). A current DFO liability waiver must be on file for all Dinosaur Ridge Hawk Watch volunteers.

If you are a NEW volunteer and do not have a DFO account, please create a free account here. Please return to this site and go to MENU and choose LOGIN to use your new credentials. Once you have logged in on this site, you may complete your waiver here: ACCOUNT SETTINGS .

If you are an EXISTING DFO volunteer/member, please login to this site using your DFO credentials. Go to the MENU and select LOGIN. (If you are missing a waiver, you may complete it in ACCOUNT SETTINGS.)

Training	Videos
Tips for Volunteers	Contacts

Training

Virtual - Hawks in Flight: Raptor Identification Skills Emma Riley, Lead Counter and Project Lead

Wednesday, February 25, 2026 7:00 PM-8:30 PM

Hawks in Flight: Raptor Identification Skills Presented by Emma Riley, Lead Counter and Project Lead Dinosaur Ridge Hawk Watch

Register
In Person - Morning Site and Volunteer Orientation

Saturday, February 28, 2026 10:00 AM-12:00 PM
Dinosaur Ridge Hawk watch site
Morning Site and Volunteer Orientation on site at the Dinosaur Ridge Hawk watch site. Park at the Stegosaurus Park and Ride off I-70 near Red Rocks and meet us in the parking lot.
The capacity for this training is 15. Once that number has been reached, you will be put on the waiting list. There are currently 14 registered.
Register
In Person - Afternoon Site and Volunteer Orientation

Saturday, February 28, 2026 1:00 PM-3:00 PM
Dinosaur Ridge Hawk watch site
Afternoon Site and Volunteer Orientations on site at the Dinosaur Ridge Hawk watch site. Park at the Stegosaurus Park and Ride off I-70 near Red Rocks and meet us in the parking lot.
The capacity for this training is 15. Once that number has been reached, you will be put on the waiting list. There are currently 14 registered.
Register

About Us

Named for its world-renowned fossil beds, Dinosaur Ridge is also a window into the seasonal movement of birds of prey such as hawks, eagles, falcons and more, over Colorado's Front Range. These raptors migrate in the spring along the eastern mountainous edge of the Rockies in part because mountain updrafts enable them to soar and conserve energy during their long journeys north to their breeding grounds.

Full Story
Access to Dinosaur Ridge Hawk Watch begins at the Stegosaurus parking lot off Interstate 70 and Jefferson County Road 93. The lot is at the southeast corner of Exit 259 from the freeway. Take the trail leading upslope from the southeast corner of the parking lot, (trail markers are located along the trail) then proceed south along Dinosaur Ridge to the ridge top.The trail is approximately 0.6 miles long.