Hunting Season, Holiday Lights, and a New Hangout in Merino

November on the Eastern Plains is a quiet month, and that is the whole appeal. The harvest is in, the fields are cut, and the geese are moving down the South Platte in long, noisy lines. Pheasant season opens. A new gathering spot opens in Merino with a name that goes back to 1881. The day after Thanksgiving, Sterling flips the switch on the holiday season, and a week later the Parade of Lights rolls through downtown. Here is how to spend November and early December in Sterling and Logan County.

Geese over the water at sundown, the soundtrack of a Logan County November.

November 14: Opening Day on the Eastern Plains

If you hunt, you already know this date. Colorado’s pheasant season opens Saturday, November 14, and the ducks and geese have been working the South Platte River for weeks.

Logan County is one of the easiest places on the Eastern Plains to build a hunting trip, and you do not need to know a landowner to get started. The Sterling Prairie State Trust Land east of town covers about 44,733 acres with seasonal public access. Duck Creek State Wildlife Area near Crook has 1,121 acres of pheasant, deer, dove, and waterfowl ground. Colorado’s Walk-In Access Program opens enrolled private land across the county, and North Sterling State Park has designated hunting areas, with more shoreline open after November 1.

Here is the part that turns a long day into a real trip. Sterling sits right on I-76, about two hours from Denver. Hunt the morning, come back to a hot shower and a real bed, eat dinner at a local spot where somebody will absolutely ask how you did, and do it all again tomorrow.

Public land maps, the 2026 Walk-In Access Atlas, and license links are all on the Explore Sterling hunting page. Review current rules with Colorado Parks and Wildlife before you go, and book your room early for opening weekend.

A rooster in the tall grass. Opening day is Saturday, November 14. Photo by June Gathercole on Unsplash.

New in Merino: The Black Sheep and Station 1881

Sixteen miles southwest of Sterling, right off I-76, the town of Merino has a story most people drive past without hearing. It started out as Buffalo. In 1881 the first train station arrived, and the town took a new name, Merino, after the sheep that grazed the land around it.

That year is on a sign again. The Black Sheep, a commissary kitchen at 109 Colorado Avenue, has opened Station 1881, a bar and gathering spot inside the building. The owners picked the name on purpose. The old station brought people into town. This one is meant to bring neighbors back together.

The Black Sheep is a launchpad for food trucks, caterers, bakers, and pop-ups, so the food changes with whoever is cooking that week. Station 1881 pours coffee in the morning and serves lunch and dinner. And yes, there is a real black sheep. It has made at least one appearance in the dining room.

Mark Saturday, November 7, at 6:30 PM. The Black Sheep is hosting a Cajun Boil Night with guest chef Donna Frankenfeld of Jambalicious Dishes, the cook behind Jambalaya’s, a restaurant longtime locals still talk about. Tickets are $45 and include your own portion of the boil, salad, rolls, and dessert. Tickets are sold at The Black Sheep through November 1, so call 970.571.2697 to check what is left.

Check The Black Sheep and Station 1881 on Facebook for current hours.

The Black Sheep at 109 Colorado Avenue in Merino, home of Station 1881. Photo courtesy of The Black Sheep.

Ride It or Drive It: The Merino Wool Route

Our favorite November day trip starts and ends in that same town. The Merino Wool route in the Gravel Adventure Field Guide is a 50 to 75 mile loop through the farmland around Merino, and it reads like a history lesson on two wheels. Merino began in the 1860s as a stage stop on the Overland Trail near a post called Fort Wicked. Sheep gave the town its name. When the North Sterling Irrigation District changed how water moved across the county, many sheep families switched to sugar beets, corn, and alfalfa. You can still read that story in the fields.

November is the wild card month. Some days are sunny, mild, and dead calm, and those days are a gift. Bring the bike, start late morning once it warms up, and pack a layer for the ride home. Other days the wind comes out of the north and nobody wants to be on a bicycle. Take the car instead. Drive the loop slow, heater on, coffee in the cupholder, and pull over whenever the light hits the stubble fields just right.

Either way, finish at Station 1881 for something warm. Routes, GPS files, and hand-illustrated maps are in the field guide. Pick up a copy at the Logan County Visitor Center or start planning on the Explore Sterling gravel cycling page.

County Road 58, a big sky, and nobody else. Photo courtesy of Logan County Tourism.

Sky Ranch: Golf Outside When You Can, TrackMan When You Can’t

Sky Ranch Golf Club opened in 1916 as the Sterling Country Club. It is the oldest course in northeastern Colorado and one of the first five in the state, and on a calm November afternoon you might have most of it to yourself. The pro shop is open daily, weather permitting, so call 970.522.2836 before you load the clubs.

When the weather turns, take your swing inside. Sky Ranch runs a TrackMan golf simulator, Sterling’s home for indoor golf. Play 18 holes on famous courses in about an hour, or turn it into a game night with friends. A one-hour session is $45 on weekdays and $55 on weekends for up to six people, and 30-minute solo sessions start at $20. Book a tee time online, and plan on dinner at the clubhouse after.

Sky Ranch from above, with the plains running out to the horizon. Photo courtesy of Sky Ranch Golf Club.

When the Wind Picks Up: Bowling, Pioneer History, and Paint Night

Every November has a few days when the plains remind you who is in charge. This is our cold-day plan, and it works just as well for the cousins in town over Thanksgiving.

Bowl a few frames at Ice Lanes. The family-run center at 208 N. 10th Avenue has been Sterling’s bowling spot since 1996, with 18 lanes, a snack counter, a bar, and a pool table. It is closed Monday and Tuesday, so call 970.522.3331 for open bowling times.

Spend an afternoon at the Overland Trail Museum. Built by the Works Progress Administration and opened in 1936, it has grown into a 14-building village with a one-room schoolhouse, a country church, a general store, and a blacksmith shop. Winter hours start November 1: Tuesday through Saturday, 10 AM to 4 PM. Call 970.522.3895 for admission.

Paint something at Sterling Creatives. The downtown artist co-op at 129 N. 3rd Street hosts Emerge Paints nights with step-by-step instruction, and your canvas goes home with you. On Friday, November 6, Sterling Creatives hosts a free open house featuring artist Denise Sunderman from 11:30 AM to 6 PM. Watch the Sterling Creatives Facebook page for the next paint night.

Eighteen lanes and a warm room at Ice Lanes. Photo courtesy of Logan County Tourism.

November 27: The Courthouse Lighting

The day after Thanksgiving, Sterling turns the lights on.

On Friday, November 27, at 5:30 PM, a children’s choir sings carols on the Historic Logan County Courthouse Square at 315 Main Street. Then a county commissioner and Santa flip the switch, and the courthouse and the square light up together. It is the official start of Hometown Holidays in Sterling, and it is the moment the whole crowd waits for.

Bring the family, a thermos of cocoa, and real gloves. Stay afterward to walk the square and look at the decorated windows downtown. Through the season, the courthouse rotunda holds a two-story Christmas tree decorated with handmade ornaments from local organizations. Details are on the Courthouse Lighting event page.

The Historic Logan County Courthouse, fully lit. Photo courtesy of Logan County Tourism.

Save the Date: December 3, the Parade of Lights

One week later, the glow moves to the street. The Parade of Lights rolls through downtown Sterling on Thursday, December 3, at 6 PM, hosted by the Logan County Chamber of Commerce. Picture fire engines wrapped in lights, Santa waving from the front seat, and the whole town lined up along the curb.

Get there early for a good spot. Bring a blanket for the kids and a camp chair for yourself, and grab dinner downtown before or after. Block out that Thursday night right now.

A lit-up fire engine and a very busy Santa at a past Parade of Lights. Photo courtesy of Logan County Tourism.

Also on the November Calendar

A few more reasons to be in Sterling this month, from the Logan County Chamber calendar:

November 2: The Sterling Concert Series presents Six Appeal, 7 to 9 PM at the Corsberg Theater at Northeastern Junior College.
November 6: First Fridays at First Presbyterian, 12:05 to 12:35 PM at 130 S. 4th Street.
November 13 and 14: The Elks Winter Craft Fair at 321 Ash Street. A good head start on holiday shopping.
November 20 and 21: Bloom and Co. Christmas on Main at 201 Main Street.
December 5: Blue Santa visits the Overland Trail Museum at noon.

Make November in Logan County Your Own

From opening day in the fields to a Cajun boil in Merino to the first lights on the courthouse, November is a good month to slow down out here. Browse the full calendar on the Explore Sterling events page, find a place to stay on the lodging page, or call the Tourist Information Center at 970.522.8962. Sterling sits about two hours northeast of Denver on I-76, which makes any November weekend an easy drive.