Last year my family and I took our first amazing trip to the SW - Bryce, Zion, Grand Canyon, Capitol Reef, Lake Powell. We loved it! I received amazing information and advice from fellow Fodorites (especially Utahtea!) This year, I'd like to return to the SW - but on a smaller scale. We have 7 days and I'd like to go somewhere that offers adventure - but not so much to do that we should spend 2+ weeks there. Our children are 18, 14 and 11 year old.

I'm considering using Durango, CO as our base for the trip. From my VERY preliminary research, it looks like we could hike in Mesa Verde, go white water rafting, drive the million dollar highway, and more.

I'd appreciate any thoughts on using Durango as a base, other places to visit from there, places to stay (we'd like a nice pool), etc.

Any assistance is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

From Durango, and within a week you could drive to Monticello for a hike in canyonland-the BW is not great but good for one night(ther is a swimming pool)and then to Moab for one or 2 days in
Arches/Canyonland/Dead Horse...
There are a lot of hotel/motel...
Then back to Durango for rest of the week...Mesa Verde is nice but for less crowd and perhaps lore intersting for your children is the Ute Mountain Tribal
Park : there are some nice ruins and you are # alone...
They have a web site.
Othe option is to stay the whole week in Durango with days out and days "in" : Mesa Verde, Mancos,The railway,... are options for the days
"out"...Ther is also a "rodeo" season in summer but I don't know the schedule right now.
As you dont't give when you are planning to go I've supposed it was in summer so beware of thunderstorms...not
every day but often heavy when they arrive.
Erik.

Head north to Silverton and Ouray--old mining towns. Ouray is famous for renting Jeeps to drive the old mining trails. Your age kids would love it. You can either drive it yourselves or hire a guide.

North of there is Black Canyon of the Gunnison (2 hours to see) then over to Telluride and back down to Durango.

A must do for the area is the Durango/Silverton train. It takes around three hours one way. Some of the way you are actually on the edge of a cliff!! Most people agree it is too much to do round trip and they take the bus back.

This is one of our favorite places in all the Rockies. Have fun!

You could easily stay busy for a week in Durango. I've only stayed at a couple of hotels in Durango. The Doubletree has a nice indoor pool, as do several other hotels.

Rafting the Animas should be good this year, because we have finally managed a winter with above average snowfall. Mild-to-Wild and Mountain Waters are both well-known rafting companies here. Late in the season, some people take inner tubes down the river.

The Durango-Silverton Narrow Gauge train is fun, but I'd recommend taking the bus back, instead of going both ways on the train. The ticket agent will tell you that both sides of the train are good, but you want to be on the RIGHT side for the best views of the Cascade Canyon gorge. I prefer outside cars near the end of the train.

The Million Dollar Highway is worth the drive. The is a recreational area near Silverton called the South Mineral Area. It has some great camping and challenging hiking. Silverton has an old gold mine and an ore mill that can be interesting to visit. Ouray and Telluride are gorgeous. Ouray has a hike into a box canyon that's interesting.

Hiking is great in several areas. You can stop by the Forest Service info center in Durango, or buy Paul Pixler's book about hikes in SW Colorado.

The Bar D Wranglers have a good cowboy show and chuckwagon-style dinner that we love. The Melodramas at the Diamond Circle Theater at the Strater Hotel are also a good bet.

Mesa Verde is excellent. Other places in the National Park system you might want to explore are Hovenweep and Aztec Ruins Natinal Monuments. If there is a full moon during your visit, I'd highly recommend the special program at Chimney Rock Archaeological Center, between Durango and Pagosa Springs.

If you have a 4WD car, you might like to drive up La Plata Canyon road into the mountains to a beautiful alpine cirque, filled with wildflowers. There is an incredible view, and a lot of level hiking from the parking area at the top. If you don't have a 4WD, you might want to rent one for a day, or take a jepp tour.

Pagosa Springs is to the east. You could make a day of a visit to the springs and a drive to the top of Wolf Creek Pass.

Monpetit mentioned the rodeo. It takes place twice a week during the summer, but I don't know what days.

Dependng on your family's interests and your budget, you could also try horseback riding and mountain biking. I think that Southwest Adventures has bikes, and Buck's Livery has a good reputation for horses.

The free chairlift at Durango Mountain Resort is nice to take some morning. By afternoon, it may be shut down because of thunderstorms. The alpine slide isn't free, but is one of my children's favorite activities.

Let me know if you have other questions.

Connie's right; don't miss the Black Canyon of the Gunnison! Detours to Colorado National Monument and the area around Moab could be done easily if you want to take about 3-4 days for the Million Dollar Highway and environs.

Consider doing a circle out of Durango visting in this order - Mesa Verde, Monument Valley, Arches/Canyonlands , Black Canyons, Million Dollar Highway, Durango. Easily done in 7 days. I did the above some years ago in 6 days. Not much hiking in Meas Verde but enough in Arches/Canyonlands. Can do white water in Moab

I love this area! Our favorite towns are Telluride and Ouray. Mesa Verde is fascinating. In Ouray, you can go on a Jeep tour high about the town to Yankee Boy Basin. The views are amazing and there is a profusion of wildflowers in July. In Ouray is a hot springs pool which a great way to end the day. In Ouray, don't miss their Historical Museum. It is small, and check the hours, b/c they close for a long lunch. But they pack a lot of really interesting stuff in there.
Have a great trip!

Thanks so much for all of the great info and advice!

Topping!

One more tip: the Durango - Silverton train is famous for being booked "months in advance". We were disheartened until finding a package trip from one of the (many) agents in Durango: to Silverton by van - a spectacular jeep trip to/from Silverton - then the train back. A full day but it worked great, no problem booking a couple of days in advance.