Sanctuary Park's Christmas Moved Up a Week, Onto Downtown Monument's Big Saturday

Christmas in the Park returns to Sanctuary Park on Saturday, Dec. 5, 2026, from 2 to 4 p.m. The last two were held on the second Saturday of December. This one falls on the first Saturday, which is also the day downtown Monument holds Small Town Christmas and the town's Annual Tree Lighting at Limbach Park. The neighborhood event and the town celebration now share an afternoon, so one Saturday can cover both.

The calendar shifted easily because Sanctuary Pointe's holiday traditions are still new. The park they center on opened in spring 2024, and this season brings only the third Turkey Trot and the third Christmas in the Park.

A park that opened in May 2024

Triview Metropolitan District runs Sanctuary Park at 631 Sanctuary Rim Drive. In its August 2025 newsletter, the district said the park officially opened in May 2024. It covers eight acres, with walking trails, a covered pergola and a five-acre artificial turf field designed for soccer, lacrosse and other field sports. Triview built it with Classic Homes and paid for it with parks and open space fees collected from building permits. It's the 11th park in the district.

Neighborhood events have been settling into that new space ever since. Here is how the two signature events have moved across three seasons, based on the listings on the Sanctuary Pointe events site:

The Turkey Trot has stayed in the same place and time slot each year. Christmas in the Park has moved more. In 2025 the listing was retitled "UPDATED INFO" and moved the event indoors to the Community Center @ The Home Place. That event had holiday music, hot drinks, treats, photos with Santa and a collection of coats, jackets, sweaters and warm shoes to be delivered to people experiencing homelessness on Christmas Eve. The listing also said no pets. The 2024 version was outdoors at the park. Its recap mentions live holiday music, hot drinks, Santa photos and bringing ornaments to hang on the pines nearby. The 2026 listing puts the event back at Sanctuary Park. For now it's only a save-the-date, with no program details yet.

The park's winter schedule starts Nov. 1

Before any of those dates, the park switches to its winter schedule. Triview's October 2026 newsletter says Sanctuary Park moves to seasonal hours of 7 a.m. to 10 p.m. starting Sunday, Nov. 1. The district calls this its standard seasonal pattern for parks and open space, and new signs will go up at the park.

Sundays have their own history at this park. The August 2025 newsletter said the park was closed to all organized sports and events on Sundays so people in the Sanctuary neighborhood could enjoy it peacefully. The district's 2026 field use permit lists field reservations for Monday through Saturday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. The same permit limits the field to practices, with no league games or tournaments. It also bars groups from clearing snow off the field without Triview's written permission. The pergola can't be reserved at all. It works on a first-come, first-served basis. So on a winter weekday afternoon the field may have a practice going, but the pergola is open to whoever gets there first.

Thanksgiving morning, and the November dates around it

The third Turkey Trot is set for Thanksgiving, Thursday, Nov. 26, from 9 to 11 a.m. at Sanctuary Park. The listing invites people to jog, walk or run and says details will come later. The 2025 version had marked 5K and 1-mile options. It welcomed strollers and leashed dogs and ended with refreshments. The 2026 page doesn't confirm those details yet, so check the listing again before you lace up.

A few other Tri-Lakes dates around it:

• Nov. 20 and 21: The Joys of the Season Holiday Home Tour runs 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. both days and covers five homes. Its Hospitality House is open 9:30 a.m. to 3:30 p.m.
• Nov. 26: The Sanctuary Pointe Turkey Trot at Sanctuary Park, 9 to 11 a.m.
• Nov. 28: The Town of Palmer Lake has announced its 91st Annual Palmer Lake Chili Supper & Star Lighting for the Saturday after Thanksgiving. The text of the town's announcement doesn't give a time or venue, so look at the town's page before you go.

Dec. 5, in two places

The first Saturday of December is when the neighborhood and downtown calendars meet. The Tri-Lakes Chamber of Commerce lists Small Town Christmas in downtown Monument on the first Saturday in December, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. In 2026 that's Dec. 5. The Chamber describes visits from Santa, Mrs. Claus and their reindeer, plus hay rides and crafts. The Chamber also lists Monument's Annual Tree Lighting for Saturday, Dec. 5, 2026, at Limbach Park. It describes live entertainment, food trucks and holiday activities before Santa arrives to light the trees, and it asks guests to bring nonperishable food for Tri-Lakes Cares.

Since Small Town Christmas runs all day and Christmas in the Park takes up two hours in the middle, you could do downtown in the morning or early afternoon and be back on Sanctuary Rim Drive by 2. The tree lighting's start time hasn't been posted yet. The Town of Monument's tree lighting page is the place to check as the date gets closer. If you plan to go to both the neighborhood event and the tree lighting, bring a coat to donate to the first and canned goods to the second, assuming this year's Christmas in the Park repeats the 2025 coat drive.

Longer walks once the restrooms close

Sanctuary Park's trails are good for a short loop. For longer winter walks, the nearest regional options switch to their off-season setups on the same day as the park's new hours.

Fox Run Regional Park, at 2110 Stella Drive, has four miles of trails and a dog park and is open 5 a.m. to 9 p.m. From Nov. 1 through March 31, the restrooms at Pine Meadows, Oak Meadows, the Fallen Timbers Trailhead and the Roller Coaster Road Trailhead are closed. The Wedding Gazebo restroom stays open all year.

The New Santa Fe Regional Trail is a 14-mile gravel route on a former railroad right-of-way, with a trailhead on Baptist Road. It's open dawn to dusk. El Paso County says the Baptist Road trailhead restroom is closed until further notice, and the Monument trailhead restroom closes Nov. 1 through March 31.

Black Forest Regional Park, at 4800 Shoup Road, covers 385 acres of hiking, riding and biking terrain and is open 5 a.m. to 9 p.m.

On the drive down Baptist Road

Getting downtown on Dec. 5 means taking Baptist Road past two projects that are scheduled but not yet built. El Paso County lists the Baptist Road, Hodgen Road and Roller Coaster Road intersection improvements as being in property acquisition, with no road closure. Its schedule shows construction in the third quarter of 2027, though the same entry lists a July 2027 end date. Closer to I-25, the Monument Independent reported that Target's building permit at Legacy at Jackson Landing, just south of the Home Depot, was issued Aug. 31, 2026. The project's opening estimate is October 2027. For this holiday season, the drive is the same one you already know.

Lauren Trent is based in Monument and follows this calendar closely. If you'd like a heads-up when the Turkey Trot details or the tree lighting time are posted, or you have questions about the neighborhood as the season goes on, Lauren Trent is glad to hear from you. Let's Connect.