Anyone stayed in Crested Butte
 

I am trying to plan a trip to Colorado in July and was thinking about staying a few days in Crested Butte. Is that a good place to stay? I know we want to go to Black Canyon and over to Aspen one day. What would be the best road to take to Aspen. How is easy is Keebler Pass in a car?

We stayed in Gunnison which is South of CB & a little closer to BC. Nice town with alot of motels & restaurants. White water rafting too.

We stayed at the Sheraton in Crested Butte, which was fine. They were having a LOT of problems checking people in when we were there - many room had not been cleaned. I understand these things happen, but I would also expect a more pleasant treatment from their employees about being made to come 2x and still not have a room ready. Oh well.

We drove the road north of Crested Butte, through Gothic. A bit past Gothic, the road was closed b/c it was still covered with SNOW in July!

Crested Butte is one of my favorite Colorado Towns. You many be in town during their Wildflower Festival - I think it's usually in mid-July.

I'm not sure you can drive to Aspen from Crested Butte, even in the summer. On the map, the two towns look close, but that's 'as the crow flies' not by car. Keebler Pass may be four-wheeling only. Ask a rental car company in Crested Butte or their chamber of commerce-- they would know whether or not passenger cars can be be driven over Keebler.

Otherwise, Crested Butte is a very nice little town and the Black Canyon is beautiful. Gunnison, which is a less expensive place to stay, is more a college-oriented Old West kind of town. It would give you easy access to Crested Butte and the Black Canyon from there, but not as attractive in general as staying in CB.

If you are planning to do the south rim loop of Black Canyon, the entrance is actually closer to Montrose - about 10 minutes to the turn off. You could spend a couple of days in Montrose, which would also give you access to the Million Dollar Highway - immensely more beautiful and interesting than any ski town, in my opinion.

Kebbler pass is doable in a car. But Aspen as a day trip from Crested Butte is not. It's a 3 or four hour drive, I think. You could hike to Aspen which is about 7 or 8 hours and is a beautiful hike from just past Gothic to the Maroon Bells park in Aspen. There's a plane that will fly people back for the 15 minute flight for something like $75 a person. They'll even land right in Crested Butte not in Gunnison.

Crested Butte is a funky great little town. It is not just a "ski" town. In fact, my family likes it much better in the summer than the winter. There should be lots of concerts and activities in July and do check out the wildflower festival. They often have hikes and lectures and other things to do. Also going on during the summer is Tour De Forks I'm not sure what group it benefits, but local home owners and chefs and others team up to prepare meals as a benefit.

I've only flown into Montrose and wasn't impressed. It certainly wouldn't be a place I would want to spend a few days. I've been on the million dollar highway as well, and all it did was make those of us in the backseat carsick. I know nothing about going to the Black Canyon so I can't offer you any advice there. As to Gunnison, I would definitely stay in Crested Butte over Gunnison. The shopping and the restaurants plus the atmosphere are all so much better in Crested Butte

Hope to see you in CB this summer!

Hi again Janell. I second William's post. We didn't spend any time in Montrose, but did drive through it, and I can't say it was a place that made me want to stay there the next time around.

Crested Butte is not a ski place in the same way that Telluride is not a ski place. You cant' begin to compare them to say, Winter Park or Keystone. Yes, they have skiing, but the towns are historic and interesting and the scenery around Telluride, I believe, rivals the Million Dollar Highway.

Also, we had a good book on 4wd roads in Colorado, and from what I recall, you do not want to drive the "road" from Crested Butte up to Aspen unless you are a very experienced 4-wheel driver.

Thanks for the great advise. I just cant decide where we want to go this year. Have been to Durango-Ouray and want to take a day to drive that highway again but cant decide where to go after that.