Parks and Recreation Areas

The blushing red-rock cliffs of the Colorado National Monument are easily accessible by winding roads that open to miles of hiking trails. Dinosaur National Monument holds a stunning cache of fossils as well as spectacular scenery aboveground for family-friendly hiking.

Browns Park Wildlife Refuge. A bird-watcher's destination with species from ducks to bald eagles, the remote Browns Park Wildlife Refuge northwest of Maybell can be navigated by car or horseback, or on foot. www.fws.gov/brownspark.

Flat Tops Wilderness. This alpine mesa has good stream and lake fishing and excellent deer and elk hunting. It's southwest of Steamboat Springs. www.fs.fed.us/r2/whiteriver.

Grand Mesa National Forest. This forest shimmers with peaceful alpine lakes and great fishing and hiking in summer, along with trails for snowmobiling in winter. www.fs.usda.gov/gmug.

Medicine Bow/Routt National Forests. Steamboat Springs is surrounded by the Medicine Bow/Routt National Forests, which stretch across northern Colorado and into southern Wyoming, embracing more than half a dozen mountain ranges, including the Gore, Flat Tops, Park, Medicine Bow, Sierra Madre, and Laramie. www.fs.usda.gov/mbr.