Now, being that I only grew up a state away from Colorado, I have actually been there and seen a few things. BUT, they have always been on family vacations, and none since I was in highschool. You know how you are in highschool on a family vacation. You don't want to do what your parents want to do. Also, I don't remember a lot of it. I kinda remember where we went, but not a lot about it, so I'm pretending I haven't seen any of it at all. haha SO, my CO list is as follows: (so far)
Colorado National Monument
Echo Lake
Colorado Railroad Museum
US Mint
Kit Carson County Carousel
Wonder Tower
Garden of the Gods
Monument Valley Park
Seven Falls
Royal Gorge
Mesa Verde
I know there is more to see. I'm also thinking about removing the Carousel and Tower from my route as they are both out of the way and only slighty peaked my interest. Anyways, any more suggestions?
www.cobeautiful.com
If you're going to visit Garden of the Gods and Seven Falls, I would also recommend the Manitou & Pikes Peak Railway, which goes to the top of Pikes Peak a few times each day. The view from the top inspired "America The Beautiful." It's a few hours, but not the whole day, so it could be paired with Garden of the Gods very easily.
ReplyDeleteGarden of the Gods has horseback rides and mountain climber training (ropes and pitons) in addition to the basic "walking and gawking."
The Royal Gorge Bridge is certainly a fun experience, and there are a lot of activities in the "theme park" that surrounds the bridge. Alternatively, Canon City has a train that travels through the bottom of the Royal Gorge.
Speaking of trains (I run a blog called Colorado Railroads). There's also a scenic train that runs over La Veta Pass into Alamosa, where Great Sand Dunes National Park is located. South of Alamosa is Antonito, where the Cumbres & Toltec Scenic railroad, a 63 mile narrow gauge train, the longest of its kind runs daily in the summer. It's more friendly and informal than the touristy Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad.
Pagosa Springs (in between the last two railroads) is a nice place to soothe your travel aches. Both Pagosa Springs and Glenwood Springs have large outdoor pools for soaking in the mineralized waters. Glenwood is an hour west on I-70 from Vail.
I could go on, but if you care to give me/us more details on what you like to do, I/we would be able to give more specific advice.
Steve Walden
Freelance writer
Colorado Railroads
I forgot to include the url for the La Veta Pass train. It's www.RioGrandeScenicRailroad.com/.
ReplyDeleteHi Steve, I appreciate the tips! I do know about the train to Pike's Peak. I just wasn't sure if I wanted to take the extra time to make it up there. I want to do as much as possible on this adventure, but something that takes so long - and is a round trip - is being put on the back burner until I get a better idea of how long/expensive this trip will be. As for what I'm interested in: mostly historical things, landmarks, quirky off the beaten path type of things. I want to learn more about our history and I want to discover little-known spots that must not be missed. I know thats broad, but I'm basically looking for anyone's opinion on what they have liked and not liked about where they've been.
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