Rick

We are planning our first trip to Colorado late June/early July. We have never been to Colorado and are planning to fly into Denver and rent an SUV. Any suggestions on spectacular places to visit? We have a 9 year old and would like to see some great sites and the old west! Thanks!

Paul Rabe

Suggestions:
Rocky Mountain Nat Park (good for two days). Denver Museum of Natural History (your nine year old will love the dinosaur bones). Pike's Peak, or any of the mountain roads around Colorado Springs. Garden of the Gods.

MMS

Depending on how much time you have - I would head to the southwest corner of Colorado and enjoy the sites along the way. A terrific loop would start from Denver to Colorado Springs - see the Garden of the Gods and take the Cog Railway to the top of Pikes Peak. Get your tickets early and enjoy the ride - I really don't like the drive up Pikes Peak - too long and boring, but the Rail way is terrific! Colorado Springs will take one day. The next morning head southwest to the Great Sand Dunes and on to Pagosa Springs. The sand dunes are awsome and fun to hike on for a couple of hours or so. Pagosa has a terrific hot springs pool and is a great place to spend the night. Then on to Durango - There is so much to do in Durango its hard to say what is best. The San Jaun Mountains near Durango are the most beautiful in Colorado. You will need one day to see Mesa Verde National Park and at least one more to either raft down the Rio Grande or take the train to Silverton. If you take the train - Only do it one way and take the bus back. Then head north over the million dollar highway to the beautiful village of Ouray (more Hot Springs) or Telluride (beautiful). Then pick your route on the map - try to come back through some of these towns: Red Stone or Leadville (lots of History), Aspen (Maroon Bells), Glenwood Springs (Best Hot Springs in Colorado), Breckenridge (charm and history,)Georgetown (history - Check into the narrow gage train). This loop brings you back to Denver - and if you still have time - I would head to Rocky Mountain National Park for a day or so. RMNP is wonderful - but if I had the chance I would take the southwest corner of CO over RMNP any day.

Skip - Seven Falls in Colorado Springs, The Royal Gorge in Canyon City and downtown Estes Park - All are tourist traps.

Have fun!

Bob Brown

There are three scenic drives you can take on paved roads in Colorado.
I like Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park, the drive from Leadville to south of Buena Vista along the Saguache Range which contains the Collegiate Peaks and Mounts Massive and Elbert. (Some eager bunch called the Mount Massive Fan Club ascended the hill once and began piling up rocks to make Massive higher than Elbert.)
The third drive is the road from Ouray to Durango. It traverses some high country with great views, but IF it is raining, you will not see much.
If you want to venture off the paved roads, I can suggest a few ideas there, too. Email me if you want to continue the description of dirt road adventures. I don't know them all by any measure, but I can suggest a few trips that would be fun.

Dave

As a side trip from the Leadville-Buena Vista drive that Bob mentioned, consider branching off at Twin Lakes and driving up across Independence Pass. Then you can either return or continue on to Aspen. This is a well-paved road with some great scenery, right into the heart of the mountains.

Bob Brown

I forgot about Independence Pass.
The last time I drove over it, I went all the way to Aspen. Unless something has happened since then, I do not like the west side of the pass because the road is narrow. Going down hill on the west side is not too bad because you are on the "inside" with respect to the side of the mountain. Coming back from Aspen, uphill that is, you are exposed to the dropoff with few guard rails. I had a few anxious moments because tour buses seemed to take their half out of the middle. The ascent from the Leadville side is tame enough as mountain roads go. On top, you will see these huge snow barriers that are used to trap the snow. The wind is so strong that it drives the snow into the barriers and the pressure compacts the snow to ice which melts slowly over the summer and releases the water gradually.

Jan

We visited Colorado last year and can honestly say it was one of the best vacations we have ever had. We followed a route simular to the one recommended by MMS. Loved Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs and the trip to the top of Pikes Peak by the cog railway.Would have liked longer here as there was so much to see and do. Durango is worth at least two days, book the Durango-Silverton train before you go, (they have a web site), and I agree take the train to Silverton and the bus back. A tip someone told me on this forum was to ask for tickets on the righthand side of the train going to Silverton as you get the best views from that side. The Black Canyon of Gunnison is also worth a visit, we did that after Durango and then continued on to Crested Butte, great scenery and hiking though I am not sure there would be too much to interest a 9 year old. In Glenwood Springs as well as visiting the hot springs you can hire bikes and cycle along the bike path next to the river, I wouldn't bother with a visit to the Fairy Caves though we didn't feel it was worth the time or money.We liked Estes Park though we did visit in September, perhaps we would have a different opinion at the height of the tourist season. We stayed at a condo on Falls River Road which was fairly quiet and only a short drive to RMNP, we had three days there which was just right, gave us time to do a couple of hikes and have a good look round the park.Have a great time.

MMS

Jan's recommendation for visiting the Black Canyon of the Gunnison, as well as Dave's and Bob's ideas for traveling over Independence Pass and visiting Twin Lakes and the Collegiate Peaks near Buena Vista are terrific. Check out your maps and make a circle route that would take you through as many of these wonderful sites as possible. You probably will get to do only two of the following routes: Sand Dunes/Pagosa Springs; the Black Canyon/Gunnison; Glenwood/Aspen/I-70 - If so I would probably choose to not miss the Black Canyon - It is incredible. You will want to avoid I-70 west on Saturday mornings and east on Sunday evenings during the summer - It is almost always a nasty, slow parking lot. If you can't avoid these times - I would choose the sand dunes/Pagasa Springs route one way and the GUnnison/Black Canyon route on the way back.

Have Fun!

Colleen

Have been to Colorado several times and
think a 9 year old may enjoy a couple
ghost towns! I believe there is one
on 82 between Independence Pass and Aspen and a better one kind of behind
Aspen Mountain. I recommend Maroon Bells near Aspen and think a 9 year old
would enjoy the hike. Or, take the other road (to the left of the Maroon
Bells road, by Aspen Valley Hospital and
go to Ashcroft Ghost Town. Enjoy!!

gb

All of the above are great suggestions. But, for the most part, you don't need the expense of a SUV for the above sites. The last time I checked -a 4WD could cost $75 to $100 a day for rental unless you have a special price. And I wouldn't suggest you venture on 4WD roads without getting specific information about current road conditions, and the level of 4WD experience you should have before driving certain roads. Serious accidents do occur.
If you are in the Black Canyon region, you might like to try the road to the Alpine Tunnel for 4WD thrill, but accessible by a 2WD vehicles. Another area that is especially scenic near the Black Canyon is to drive on the north side of Curecanti Rec Area, and Morrow Point Resevoir, stopping at the viewpoints for some stunning views. Another fun thing for a 9 year old is a boat trip through the narrow canyon of Morrow Point Reservoir. Go to Visitor Center at Curecanti for info.

Rick

Thank you all for the great information! I have such a better idea how we are going to spend our time. Most likely will do "the circle route" to Durango and then head back up to RMNP, even though it's touristy, 9 year old boys will be boys! They need that commercialism. You have all shared some great knowledge and pointers. When we return, I'll post some apre-vacation thoughts and adventures! Rocky Mt. High...Yeeha

Bruce

Just a note--we're planning the same thing in mid-August, and you asked just what we wanted! I was wondering about that kind of route, but thought would have to land in one place. You've all shown we may be able to hit it all! Thx, and how the June/July trip goes well!