Colorado will always be a favorite. I have spent a couple seasons living in, and bouncing around this wonderful state. It is hard not to have a good time. Denver is nice and centrally located, for all you city-goers. Boulder hosts a nice downtown space for all your tourism needs. And, of course, the whole state is jam-packed with outdoor experiences and mountain towns, for your weekend getaways and slope trips.
But there really is so much more to Colorado than its increasing-in-popularity cities. And, upon first visits, unless you really get out there and take a trip down some unbeaten paths, it will all remain hidden (or at least, “out of reach”).
“But I like the cities in Colorado..”
Yah, me too. But I promise you, there is SO much more to Colorado than Denver (including the surrounding areas), and the wealthy mountain towns.
Que in: Colorado National Parks
Rocky Mountain National Park
Starting off with the most well-known of the Colorado National Parks, the Rockies are an absolute crowd pleaser. I’ve spent more time than I could count, hiking and driving through this park. It seems as though no matter how much you think you know about this place, one small turn will undoubtedly open up a whole new world, just waiting for exploration.
I could probably talk about the Rocky Mountains longer than anyone would care to listen, so I will just lay out some favorites, and spare you from the novel. Simply put – They just aren’t like any other mountains.
There are endless numbers of hikes to take in the Rocky Mountain National Park, and to say I hit a significant amount of what is available, would be a bold-faced lie. But, I did do my fair share of hikes, that is without a doubt.
Here’s a little hiking story that left me with a once in a lifetime experience.
I was setting off to hike in the Rockies. I stepped out the door, bags packed, boots tied, and the intentions to make it over to the free shuttle service that takes you throughout the park and stops at multiple different trailheads along the way. From there, I was going to hit the trail and hike up to the epic Sky Pond.
What could go wrong?
Well, just my luck. I wait at the shuttle stop for about an hour and come to find out, the shuttles are not running that day. So I had two options, waste my day off and head back to where I started and partake in local activities, or, hike the 6.5 miles from where I was, to the trail head, on pavement.
Obviously I chose the latter.
Off I went (Did I mention that these 6.5 miles were on pavement? Yeah, it sucked.). Walking a significant distance just to do an eight mile hike that features an 1,800 foot elevation gain, not including the 850 foot elevation gain I ended up hiking just to get to the trailhead.
Finally, I made it to the trail head (a little disappointed that not a single car stopped to my raised thumb, and offered this friendly face a ride), and began my journey to Sky Pond.
SO worth it. The hike was pretty intense. A significant elevation gain to a scramble up a cascade, but Sky Pond is something I will never forget. The experience I had (including the ‘bad’) will forever be a memory. And to think, this was just the start of my journey into the Colorado National Parks..
“But I am not huge into serious hikes, Adam”
Have no fear, Trail Ridge Road exists. During my time spent here, my parents decided to make the trip out, and pay me a visit. Not only was it wonderful to see them, but we also got to experience things together that sometimes seem like only a fantasy.
One of those things being Trail Ridge Road.
This 48 mile long road travels across the ridgeline (hence, trail ridge road) of the Rockies, above the tree line and offers spectacular views that you may think are only available on TV or in a magazine. Near the highest point of the road sits Alpine Visitor Center.
This visitor center is the highest visitor center in the entire National Park system, sitting at 11,796 feet above sea level! Needless to say, the views were mind blowing. Imagine Bob Ross meets Planet Earth.
Did I mention that this road is high enough to have snow pretty much year-round? Oh yeah, that too. This trip took place sometime in July, and there was still at least 10 feet of snow in some places!
But along the way, you reach the elevation of 12,183 feet above sea level, and have plenty of opportunities to pull off and take in the unimaginable (not all just walls of snow). It went from what we thought would be a relatively short drive to take in the views, to being almost a full day excursion as we stopped at nearly every vantage point to get out and look around.
An absolutely magnificent excursion, and a memory with my parents I can keep forever.
Anyhow, my parents went back home to beautiful Ohio. But me? Well, I decided to check out the rest of the Colorado National Parks.
I finally made my way to Southwest Colorado!
This is the area that made me feel like I was now seeing the real Colorado. More of a western-style setting, placed at the base, or in the valleys of massive mountain ranges. Such an interesting vibe going on here. Everything from cowboys to ski bums walk through these parts of Colorado.
And there I was, hawaiian shirt and hiking boots, driving up on the next of Colorado’s National Parks
Great Sand Dunes National Park
Unlike anything I have EVER seen before!
As you drive towards the park, you start to realize that you are no longer looking at rolling hills that lead into the mountain-scape that you I have become so used to seeing in Colorado; and in fact, you are staring at a dunefield that is roughly thirty square miles big!
I felt like a kid when I got the chance to wander through these dunes.
These are the tallest sand dunes in North America, and no doubt, a sight worth seeing. But, let me warn you, if the wind is blowing, you will absolutely want to wear some long sleeves and possibly a buff for your face; Because the sand pelting your skin feels like a million needles.
I left my sunglasses on the hood of my car back in Colorado Springs, and believe it or not, giving your eyeballs a sand-bath is not as pleasant as it sounds…
After days spent in the dunes, camping in the area, and being surrounded by the San Juan Mountains, I packed back up – ready to take on the next of Colorado’s National Parks…
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
This is by far one of the coolest places I have visited. For whatever reason, this park reminded me so much of Jurassic Park; Looking down into the canyon, and seeing birds flying around below you, but knowing that they are hundreds of feet above the canyon floor (and probably have a wingspan longer than I am tall), gives you a sense of how small you actually are.
Without getting too in-depth, I took a hike into the canyon (down a hundred feet or so), to get a look at the inner walls. Let me tell you, it was incredible. When I say Jurassic Park, I don’t say that lightly. You look at hundreds of years of rock layers that form the canyon walls and the zero impact of humans, and you’d think that if places like this exist, then what else in the world is there to see?!
Oh, another tid bit: Being that you are so far out from civilization, the stargazing is absolutely extraordinary. The few nights I spent here, on BLM land, I was mesmerized by the abundance of stars. Even with a full moon on the way, the amount of stars and constellations you can see is remarkable.
How is that for a taste of what lies beyond populated Colorado? To think that I just barely scratched the surface of these National Parks is absolutely wild. Of course, I will still visit Colorado’s cities and towns, but never discount what lies beyond.
As always my friends…
Cheers!
There is a ridiculous amount of exploration opportunities here for people of all capabilities. Please feel free to reach out to me through my contact page, or a comment for some suggestions on how to spend a weekend here!