16 WAYS TO LOVE SUMMER Warm Days & Cool Nights Lure You Outside Colorado’s beauty stirs a thirst to get out and enjoy every moment. Come to life hiking in Colorado’s dense backcountry, paddling canyon-carving rivers, grinning next to a wildflower-lined waterfall or wrangling a feisty rainbow trout. 1 2 1 HIKING Let your legs move you through Colorado’s hidden gems, protected wilderness areas, red rocks and high-mountain desert landscapes. A Few Favorite Spots: Any Colorado State Park or National Park or Monument (page 40) Wildflowers: Yankee Boy Basin near Ouray, Shrine Pass near Vail, Lake Isabel near Colorado City Waterfalls: Bridal Veil Falls in Telluride, Helen Hunt Falls in Colorado Springs, Fish Creek Falls in Steam-boat Springs, Zapata Falls near Alamosa Ancient sites: Canyon Pintado near Rangely, Picketwire Canyon near La Junta, Ute Petroglyph Trail near Palisade Wildlife: Mount Evans Wilderness Area near Idaho Springs, Left Hand Trail in Boulder, Comanche National Grassland near Springfield More: COLORADO.com/ Hiking RAFTING & BOATING Landlocked Colorado will surprise you with its rushing rivers, mountain basins and deep blue reservoirs. A Few Favorite Lakes: Grand Lake Lake Dillon Boulder Reservoir Lake Granby Horse-tooth Reservoir near Fort Collins Lake San Cristobol near Lake City Vallecito Lake near Durango McPhee Lake near Cortez Blue Mesa Reservoir near Montrose and Gunnison Grand Mesa Lakes (more than 300 of them) near Grand Junction, Paonia, Delta, Cedaredge and Hotchkiss Many Colorado State Parks, including: Cherry Creek, Staunton, Barr Lake, Boyd Lake, St. Vrain, Elkhead, Harvey Gap, Highline, Pearl Lake, Rifle Gap, Stagecoach, Sylvan Lake, Vega, John Martin, Lake Pueblo, Lathrop, Trinidad Lake, Crawford, Mancos, Navajo, Paonia, Ridgway, Sweitzer Lake, Eleven Mile, San Luis and Spinney Mountain See page 54 for the full whitewater rundown. More: COLORADO.com/ Boating 3 A Few Favorite Sites With: No amenities (backcountry): West Fork Campground in the Weminuche Wilderness near Pagosa Springs, Trappers Lake in the Flat Tops Wilderness near Meeker, Ansel Watrous Campground in Roosevelt National Forest west of Fort Collins Lakeside sites: Elk Creek Camp-ground in Grand Lake, Cherry Creek State Park in Aurora, Wupperman RV Campground near Lake City Epic views: Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, Silver Bar Campground near Aspen, Mueller State Park in Divide More: COLORADO.com/ Camping 3 BACKPACKING & 2 CAMPING Colorado makes it easy to get lost (intentionally, of course) in its voluptuous sand dunes, craggy peaks, rugged mining sites and forested resort-town outskirts. Grab a backpack, a tent and your favorite people and set up camp in one of Colorado’s 41 State Parks, 30-plus Wilderness Areas, 22 million acres of Nation-al Forests and expansive public lands. 5 FISHING River, lake, stocked pond or on ice, Colorado’s large-mouth bass, bluegill, channel catfish and famous rainbow trout await just below the surface. See the lakes above and page 44 for a lineup of cast-worthy locales. 4 WILDLIFE WATCHING & BIRDING Few other places in North America offer such a bounty of wildlife-watching oppor-tunities as Colorado. Who in your group will win the 32 / COLORADO.COM
Colorado Official State Vacation Guide 2018: Page 32
