COLORADO Palisade Nestled beneath the Grand Mesa, the world’s largest flat-top mountain, is charming Palisade. Known for succulent stone fruits and for being the crown jewel of Colorado wine country, the town celebrates its agricultural heritage at festivals throughout the year. Join in at August’s Palisade Peach Festival, which comes alive with a parade, peach-eating contests, a barbecue throwdown, live music and, of course, plenty of dishes starring sweet Palisade peaches. Learn more about the area’s agricultural roots at the Palisade History Museum , a tiny log cabin jam-packed with Palisade’s past. Travel further back at the 3.3-mile Palisade Rim Trail , a steep climb that pays off with scenes of stunningly well-preserved petroglyphs depicting bowhunters and deer. Palisade Pueblo Pueblo’s industrial heritage was forged in 1881 when its steel mill opened, attracting Italian, Greek, Slovenian, Polish, Irish and German immigrants and Black Americans. See how their cultures enrich the city to this day at locally loved restaurants Franks Meat Market , Paleteria Y Neveria Durango , Tortilleria Delicias or Giodone’s Italian Bar and Grill . Also inspired by Pueblo’s steel industry is Fuel & Iron Food Hall ; housed in a former historical hardware shop, the food hall’s locally owned eateries dish up ramen, bison specialties and tacos among other fare. Browse the past — and purchase a piece of it to take home with you — at numerous antique shops dotting Union Avenue. See more of the city’s culture in the Pueblo Creative Corridor; among other creative delights are exhibits at the Sangre de Cristo Arts Center and Neon Alley — an alleyway awash in the vibrant colors of vintage neon signs. And it’s fair to say that the Pueblo green chile is a Colorado cultural icon. Mildly fiery and slightly sweet, the beloved pepper is celebrated annually at the Chile & Frijoles Festival — three days of spicy magic with a chihuahua parade, hot-air balloons, a farmers’ market and food demos. FROM TOP: MILES PARTNERSHIP/MATTHEW INDEN; JOHN WARK Pueblo Chile & Frijoles Festival COLORADO . COM 135
Colorado Official State Vacation Guide 2024: Page 135
