Colorado, September 2025

We have been Vinny VanGoing in Colorado for the month of September  2025 enjoying only a fraction of the beauty and what is available to experience and see in the incredible state,  especially with the Aspens shimmering into the yellows and gold.  As we all travelled here in 2014, 2015 and 2022 I also included some of the attractions we saw at this time as well. Hope to return to enjoy more of the less well known areas next time. 

Rocky Mountain National Park

In 2014, we stopped at the Continental Divide in August as we were on our way to Fort Collins to take Jazmine to her Freshman Year at Colorado State – all her stuff and us in a Honda Fit ! Stepping out above the tree line, this seemingly beautiful day was freezing and snow gullies were still around as we explored quickly.

We would return to Rocky Mountain National Park in 2022 when we attended Beth and Addie’s Wedding in Lyons.   Here we would meet Justine’s wedding camp share friend, Alyss.  We didn’t have to deal with the timed entry since we had a campsite in the park at Aspen Glen Campground.  Luckily, we got into the popular Bear Lake Parking Area which has restrictions/passes and can be difficult. I have learned to do National Park checking because the more popular ones have some entry details/passes etc.

First stop at the incredibly clear Dream Lake where the trout came so close to the shore  that you could have scooped them up just like that. 

Julie took a cold plunge dive into the freezing water of Emerald Lake.  She has a habit of doing this craziness and also has a similar dive into a freezing lake in the Sierras. After drying off and warming up, she did it again receiving a clapping ovation from the crowd that had also made the hike to Emerald Lake. 

Lake Haiyaha was the next Lake on our trail and this one was the most green, I had ever seen a lake to be and required a bit of bouldering to get a clear view. 

Aspens reflecting on the lake, so peaceful.

The day was waning and we took the easy last little jaunt around Bear Lake for beautiful memory maker shots. 

Another night at the campground without a moose to be seen even though Alyssa said she has seen many in the area. Evidently it is a thing to see moose graze in a green park near Estis at certain times, but not this was the weekend

Hanging Lake Hike, near Glenwood Springs

This is a reservation required hike and two days prior only the 3, 4 and 5pm spots were available for $12 per person. (FYI: one of the reviews pointed out that Grizzley Creek Hike was just as beautiful but no cost or reservations required) In my mind a bit pricey, but it controlled the crowds and the bathroom facilities and water fill stations were excellent, not to mention the excellent condition of the rock stepped trail up through the canyon. I can only imagine the erosion would be really bad if they had not somehow constructed the flat square foot by 6-inch-high steps many being double wide up the canyon.   Would love to know how they build these steps. There was a particularly steep set up to the lake.  We were careful coming down because we had a downpour once we got to the lake. 

The Lake/waterfalls had an elaborate boardwalk all around it with nice bench seating. Luckily, I got in several photos/videos before the downpour came and we deployed our rain poncho which were still in the wraps but had the shiny insulation and John and I huddled under one together for the 15-minute downpour. 

The lake was 1.5 miles up 1000 feet with the last part having some nice steel handrails, and we had the sense of accomplishment upon reaching the gold pot of the gorgeous lake.   We eventually got out our rain jackets on for the return descent as it still was sputtering a bit and managed not to slip slide down the wet slicked rocks.  We hiked behind a delightful family of 6 with kids ranging from 10 to 20 years old and it was heartwarming to hear them interact with each other.

Gunnison Canyon

The Gunnison adventure started quite unexpectedly as we decided to take the scenic route to Montrose, and the hour-long trip turned to three hours.  A bit of the delay was due to 2 dozen cattle on the road, and some real cowboys and vehicles that rounded the herd down Route 92 and across the highway to their new grazing land.  Route 92 went past many wide-open ranches with large hills and then ended up following the Gunnison River Gorge that dropped 100’s of feet of sheer cliffs below.  This was the first time I peered over and felt a bit uneasy.

Pine Creek Trail in Curecanti National Forest would be a great trail as it goes along the Gunnison River with the towering cliffs above.  It is only 2¼ miles and elevation gain is 229 feet a next time event.  Finally, the Blue Mesa Dam provided a crossing point to the steep gorge so we could now continue to our destination of Montrose. 

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

Although many trees and bushes that line the top of this National Park were black from the fire that swept through a few months ago in July 2025, the “black” in this national park refers to  the walls of this canyon which are so deep and narrow that they lay shrouded in dark shadows most of the time.

The deepest part of the canyon is 2,722 feet at Warner Point  with the shortest rim to rim measurement being about half as it is deep.

The Gunnison River is way down there but still working.

The park consists of about a dozen overlooks into foreboding chasm. 

Many of the trails that traverse the top were closed from the fire, but otherwise the roads and pullout are among the best

Million Dollar Highway

This scenic drive from Ouray to Silverton is particularly beautiful and it includes a section called the Switzerland of America.  It is a relatively undeveloped roadway that closes down for snowy winter months. 

Not as nail biting as it was hyped up to be, and we saw plenty of over-length trailers traversing this highway.  We never made it to Durango as there were several hour closings on this stretch.

There is a tourist train that goes between Durango and Silverton, but after the summer it only leaves from Durango, so was not an option for us.  One can choose to go steam or diesel and a whole variety of classes.

Box Canyon, Ouray

The power of  water is on display here and a must see at this private tourist attraction in Ouray.  The power of water to carve through rocks for millions of years is an experience.

Well worth the entrance fee and not to be missed while visiting the area.

Maroon Bells

The Maroon Bells, a two rock mountain massive pyramid guard in charge of all those sleek aspens that are shimmering in the breeze with reflection off Maroon Lake. There are lots of other towering mountains that dominate the area and they are so up close.

The green is the most remarkable thing about the Maroon Bells area in comparison to the dry areas like Ouray and Crested Butte.  The trails are not littered with downed or dead trees like so many mountain hills are these days.  And the white bark of the aspens and the waving of their delicate leaves is such a treat when you are hiking. 

Our campsite at Silver Queen is surrounded by tall grass and aspens and lays right under a mountain that also is green except where the erosion has exposed the red rock.

And we even had a habitual visitor at our campsite.

Crater Lake Hike, Maroon Bells

The 3-mile roundtrip hike was perfect for us as we let those youngins carrying heavy backpacks go by. Crater Lake was not really too picture worthy as it was very low,   But the hike there was gorgeous.

It is possible to hike from Crested Butte to this Maroon Bells wilderness area. 

Sheep Crossing

Looking on the map, it is only about 40 miles as the crow flies from Crested Butte to Maroon Bells.   It took us 4 hours to drive though, as we went about 25 miles on dirt road over the Kebler Pass where this time, we had to stop for the herd of over 100 sheep that was crossing the road.  Luckily the cowboy and the dogs did their job and we too did our part because as he cleared the area in front of us, he motioned us to move forward until we could finally get through.  Luckily there was very little wash board and in general the road was fine and it cut down a bunch of miles. We went slow and I let most people pass us and there were plenty of safe sections to do this.  The drive was beautiful.

Maroon Creek Trail East #1982

This was a hike and horse trail.  Although we saw no one along this trail, there would have been several places it would have been quite difficult to let these large creatures pass.  It wasn’t too difficult to avoid the evidence that they had ridden here before, and the trail had a really nice variety of landscapes.  The Aspen forests, full bloom thistle fields, elephant leaves and low lying gtass, ridges of rock and dirt that ran along the fast-moving creek in lovely shade, and then even a small section of super large evergreens that were in good shape.  The lighting in the evening is best for John’s eye so we left around 4:30pm.  We need to remember that this is not Newfoundland and the sun sets at around 8pm and goes behind the mountains even sooner making it darker earlier.   We had wanted to make it to see the Bells again, but after seeing them in the distance, decided we had better turn back since we were burning daylight on this 6 mile, 900 ft elevation gain.   

Maroon Creek Trail West

We started at the main visitor’s area and went up to the adjoining Amphitheater and had the most stunning views of the Bells and adjoining landscape.  The brilliant green and maroon was vivid on this sunny day from the place a bit higher from the parking area – don’t miss it.  From there we found a sign that said “to hitching post” and thought this was the way to the Maroon West Trail since it was a horse and hike trail.  We didn’t come across any horses but two school groups.  The problem was we were hiking down, down,  down meaning we had to come up, up, up and we prefer the other way around.  In retrospect, it would be best to take a day of it and start at the Maroon West Creek Portal Area where you could hike a mile or so to the Amphitheater and then down to Maroon Scenic Lake which was easy. Taking the same trail back would be downhill then.

Maroon Bells on Two Wheels

We had the most incredible campsite surrounded by Aspens and even a path to the rushing Maroon Creek. With only 8 sites it is super quiet.  We were really settling in and have hooked up the solar panels and are keeping Vinny happily charged.   I decided to ride my bike up to the Maroon Bells Visitor area, which is certainly uphill, but I only had to get off and push for a half a dozen times because much of it is a 3-mile gradual incline from Silver Queen Camp Site.  Many E-Bikes and some serious road bikers whizzed by.  This road is closed off to traffic except for the shuttle buses and those very people who have secured a very limited parking pass, so it is very safe.  The Maroon Bells with the morning sun actually looked maroon in comparison when we did our evening hike in the area, and they are certainly not the only mountain of beauty in the scene.  We had hoped to see a moose at the recommendation of a NPS volunteer who said one had been visiting the lake to cool off around dusk.  No such luck.  We even went back another evening and did the delightful Scenic Loop.

Maroon Bells Camping Logistics

Maroon Bells Parking and Camping logistics must be considered.  First of all, Silver Queen is the only place to accept reservations and there are only about 4 sites where you can do this.  The rest are first come first serve.  The Maroon Bells parking wilderness area has very limited spaces and one must reserve and most of the daytime ones for weeks ahead are gone. There are four different varieties of Parking Passes. 1) Half Day Morning (must arrive at 8am and leave by 4:30 pm.  2)Half Day Evening (must arrive by 5pm and leave by midnight)   3) All day must arrive by 8am and leave by midnight)  4) several day passes for hikers.  Otherwise, there are buses that run every half hour or so from the Vail Area again requiring reservation and are surprisingly full.  That being said, the parking reservation with the Senior lifetime pass is only $2.65 otherwise it is $10 so relatively cheap.  If you have a camp site you do not need one of these parking reservations, so we are no longer bound by time that one can drive in and out.  In fact, they say they don’t advertise this because sometimes people will buy a campsite if parking is not available. But all the sites are booked anyway, but if they get here at 11am when they sell the first come first serve sites, then it may be possible.  There is no RV park in the area as far as I could see, although there are several campgrounds again that seem very small and limited access. 

I found two different spots at this tiny 8 campsite Silver Queen using Camp Scanner several weeks ago.  The vault toilets at the campsite and trailhead parking areas are very clean and unscented.  Shortly before 11am after our overnight, we headed several miles down to the gate and was able to secure a First Come First Serve site for 3 Days.  Well, I thought that the Amphitheater Campground in Ouray was the most beautiful ever, but this is ditto, with private aspen filled sites.  The positives, when prepared, far out weigh the negatives.  There is no drinking water, not even at the main visitor’s area where the bus drops off.  Surely, they are making a killing selling water bottles on the bus? There is no cell service, no WIFI, not even if you go to the kiosk. They don’t give out any info paper when you drive here, just take a photo of the map.  I would have liked to be a bit more prepared with All Trails downloaded to my phone.  Vail is only about 10 miles down the road, so surely in this Gucci ski town they have erected plenty of towers, so we will definitely check that out. After all there is an Eagles Game on Thursday night, and generally we don’t miss these.  There is also a John Denver Garden here too.

Royal Cannon Gorge Train Ride

Wow. What a breathtaking experience and we were even able to start the Octoberfest season with a special add on of a Bison Bratwurst Meal and an Oktoberfest Beer!

We had a beautiful day to see this incredible Royal Gorge and pass under the Suspension Bridge that we never got to cross on foot or on gondola the day prior.

It is incredible how they built this railroad through the rock and also it was the first water system carrying water to the parts of Colorado.  One can see the remnants of the broken-down pipe system along the river.

We got seating in one of the dome cars so the field of view upward was really incredible as well.  I spotted Big Horn sheep twice on the ride.   There were raft goers who traversed the river as we chugged by.  It was nice to eat and cool down first in our dome car and then go outside to the open-air car where we stopped under the suspension bridge for the view upward.

There is a private tourist attraction above the Gorge  that allows you to walk across this huge suspension bridge or take a gondola.  Unfortunately, the wind kicked up closing the gondola and the $39 entrance fee did not seem worth it.  I guess you can do zip lining as well for an extra fee if you are the daredevil type.  All is available for das Geld, but after taking the train was enough for us.

Great Sand Dunes National Park

Dune climbing is so exhilarating when you start out, but quickly you feel some different leg muscles that are under utilized for typical hiking adventures, and it was pretty windy in places on top.   I was able to find paths that were a bit more solid and found myself walking atop of a narrow sculpted rise of the dune. 

The vivid yellow aspens in September make the experience even more beautiful. 

The Dunes originate from the Sangre de Cristo and San Juan Mountains.  This eroded sediment and sand were deposited in San Luis Valley by rivers that flowed from these mountains and formed Lake Alamosa some ½ million years ago.  It eventually dried and sand and sediments were exposed to prevailing winds that pushed up against a bend in  Sangre de Cristo Mountains creating the dunes. 

Evidently the dunes are still growing because each spring the snow melt creates streams around the base of the dune fields which dry out in the summer and the winds pile them atop of existing dunes. 

Not only are the dunes something to climb and sled down, but they also provide a sandy flowing stream in the spring perfect for frolicking bodies that don’t mind a bit of sand in all those bodily crevices.  Leaving the park I drove up to a vantage point away an up from the dunes where the colors were shimmering.

Pikes Peak

At over 11,000 feet, Pikes Peak distinguishes itself from so many of the other 14ers in the Rockies because it stands by itself.   It inspired Kathrine Lee Bates to write the poem America the Beautiful which became an iconic American song.   The American Highway which started as a donkey path to the top is not only a tourist attraction, but also hosts a famous annual car race along its many treacherous hairpin turns.

The race is only to the top and does not include the descent.  There is a cog-rail train that also brings tourists up to the visitor’s center at the top of this incredible 360 view or drive it for a fee. We were lucky to be on a tour so didn’t have to worry about the hairpin turns.    Fresh donuts have been a part of the heritage for many years and are still available at the visitor center at the top. 

There are several trails round the top as well as to the bottom if one is so inclined.

A temperature brake check halfway down is mandatory and motor vehicles are warned they must have ability to operate in low gears before being allowed to travel the American Highway.  We had an incredible clear day and could barely spy the skyscrapers in Denver, but the Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs was quite evident.

Garden of the Gods

From Pikes Peak, we could see these distinctive red sandstone that is part of many areas in the Colorado landscape. This park is a National Natural Landmark.

The land was donated by the children of a late Charles Elliot Perkins who was a railroad man in the 1870’s with the stipulation that it must always remain free to the public.  It is one of the main attractions in Colorado Springs and the state.

Florissant Fossil National Monument

This is one of the premier fossil beds in the world and would be even more extensive if tourists back in the day had not taken so many. Trains would bring tourists who would chip away and take home fossils before it became a national park and conservation efforts forbid collection.  Luckily Charlotte Hill,  one of the original homesteaded in the area, collected a preserved one of the largest collections of exquisite fossils with now more than 1800 species being collected.   Many made their way back to the site once it was protected as a National Monument in 1969.  In particular, there are several very large red wood forest fossilized tree trunks that proves that this was a much different environment than today. 

The volcano that exploded some 35 million years ago sent these trees tumbling.  More volcanos sent a huge stream of ash, killing the great trees.  More layers of ash and clay layers piled up trapping all tho use creatures making them into fossils.  At one time there were many large petrified logs and stumps, but they were taken by enthusiasts as even the railroad provided a stop for personal collection.  Now there ae only  several huge stumps that were just too big to be removed, except for Walt Disney who bought on and arranged for transport to Frontier Land.

We found some giant boulders on our hike through the area.

Thomas Dambo Troll Hunting

It’s official we are Troll Hunters.  After being introduced to Rita the Rock Planter sculpture  in Cripple Creek, we couldn’t help ourselves but drive to Breckenridge to see Isak Heartstone, the only other one in the area. 

Thomas Dambo has been busy since 2014 creating some 150 giant whimsical sculptures, and placing them all over the world mostly in forests, parks and botanical gardens.  We have been to Breckenridge several other times in combination with visits to Colorado to visit our daughter who attended Colorado State, and the 2 hour detour in pursuit of our new Troll calling was welcomed an the aspens were really popping in Breckenridge.

But this day in the same park was another exhibit by Swiss Italian Artist, Joe Scolari, who crafted an interactive experiences of playful marble runs twisting and cascading between trees, rocks and other natural elements found on the forest floor.  This required a 2 mile hike through the Illinois Creek and Little Mountain Trails which provided a stunning view of the Aspens at this 10,000 feet. 

Breckenridge is a bustling ski town and appears to have an interest in the arts as the BIFA (Breckenridge International Festival of the Arts) is active.  We remember the village stage had music/market in the area from our previous summer visit. Breckenridge, like most of the more well known ski towns, is a bit upscale for our liking.

Twin Lakes

Oh what a difference two weeks make. We had passed the area on the way and it was not necessarily appealing, but when the Aspens are ablaze on the surrounding mountains with reflection in the still morning lake, it is a whole different story.

 We had tried to camp a bit up a mountain at Lakeview Campground but the gate was closed and locked.  Arrived at Dexter Point in heavy dusk conditions, but several other rigs were in the very flat camping area.  The morning arrived with sun and a beautiful view of Twin Lakes with aspen reflections.

Aspen Peeping/Hail/Snow/Sun

Route 24 into Twin Lakes is where the aspens start shimmering their yellow.  It continued through Leadville all the way through Red Cliff, Minturn, Vail and Frisco.  The hills are aglow and the Red Cliff Area has its own unique deeply carved gorge where you can turn off and drive under the Red Cliff Bridge along a windy road of interesting vacation type houses.

Finally an abandoned mine out-cropping where the abandoned railroad used to transport the riches of this ghost town. 

When I drove through Minturn in 2022, I was delighted with this sweet small town.  In 2025 it was cloudy and drizzly on this Monday afternoon and we explored the Bike Park with nice tiny amphitheater seating.  The trail system goes all the way to Vail and is something to be explored because Minturn is adorable, but no camping here and lots of signs that say so.  

2025 Minturn, was a rainy afternoon and we even had hail collect on our windshield wipers as we left Minturn, so we decided to not venture too far and go to what will be one of our top three Colorado Towns, Frisco. 

As we left Frisco deciding to take the scenic Route 6 through the Loveland Pass, light snow was coming down, and as we drove further, there was accumulation on the evergreen trees 23^rd of  September.  Luckily the snow was melting on the roadway.

John’s eye appointment in Philly required us to be heading in the direction of Denver on the rainy day.  There were several small towns sandwiched between mountains on I-70 and we stopped at this really cute little run down town, Silver Plume. It had a hotel that looked like it had been converted to an Air B N B and a mix of freshly painted modest homes next to ones that were falling down.    People lived right under the rock cliffs on their semi-dirt asphalt pot-holed roads, but the aspens against the cliffs were stunning. 

There appeared to be a train ride from the other side of town.  The rain was to be all day, so we did some coffee shopping hours in Idaho Falls at the Frothy Cup which had speedy internet and a delightful small town vibe.

What a difference a sunny day makes !  We had spent the night at the Westminster Elks Lodge outside of Denver since John was to fly back to Philly,  and it rained and rained all night.

Since the next day was bright and clear, I decided to go back to Loveland pass and see the glistening white peaks that were covered all around. What a beautiful show on this 24^th day in September where the aspens and snow were out in force.

The Panorama trail near  Buffalo Pass near Steamboat Springs had beautiful colors as well. 

There were many trails in the area for both hiking and biking .

Driving along the  Curecanti National Forest during sunset was amazing.

Also daybreak along the way was equally as stunning.

Finally, I was able to stop safely for a stream surrounded in yellow.

The end of September is certainly the time to visit Colorado. It gets a bit cold at night in the 40’s, but warms up to T-shirt weather in the afternoon.    

Dillon Reservoir

We had been here for a concert at the Dillon Amphitheater in 2015 when we visited Jazmine and went to the Rocky Grass Music Festival. There was a Classic Rock band and the evening was beautiful as we sat on the tiered concrete bordered grass levels.  Maybe if it had rained my impression would be different, but this a really nice venue and certainly when thinking about towns to visit, nearby Frisco is on the list.  But on this sunny day 2025, after two days overcast and rain, the reservoir seemed even more beautiful on this Wednesday afternoon.

The bike path around the reservoir was calling with a perfect T-Shirt weather day surrounded by white peaks and aspens.  The reservoir bike paths here are quite extensive and one can even ride to the Heaton Bay Campground where we overnighted after coming down off the Loveland Pass.  Heaton Bay was severely low and very unappealing when I found it from our campground. There seems to be several places where one can get to the water, but swimming is not allowed although in 2021 they have allowed wading (feet on the ground). There was a marina full of sailboats and motor boats, and stand-up paddle is allowed but it is not recommended to fall into this freezing alpine body of water.  I can imagine this place is hopping in the summer, but Wednesday at the end of September was beautiful especially for biking.

Colorado National Monument

In September 2022, I stopped here for an hour drive by.  It was quite beautiful and I later heard on the news that someone had driven over a cliff later that day.  I remember it being many drop offs and tight turns. Beautiful Colorado Red Rocks were everywhere.  

Red Rocks Amphitheater

We stopped here for the Beatles 60^th 1964 anniversary concert that has happened on this date for the last 40 years at the Red Rock Amphitheater.  The venue was the main reason, but singing Beatles songs all night long was certainly our idea of a good time.  We found a small parking area alongside the road just before the tunnel that led up to the venue and the huge parking lots.  It was perfect because at the 3 o’clock hour, it was hot and this spot was totally shaded and under the cliffs of some of that calming red rock.  Opening up the van left enough breeze for a nice nap and when we awoke there was an elaborate white table cloth tailgate party right off of our rear.   The cyber truck had pulled in next to us and this setup was facilitated with flowers, appetizers, wine and sit-down dinner for about 8 people.  They even had a classical guitarist set up near the table. Down further on this 15-spot parking area, there were other tailgates going on and people said they always come early and get this spot for this reason.  There are several parking areas within the Red Rocks compound and there was plenty of tailgating going on.  They seem to close certain parking areas that are close by, before filling capacity and then there is a hike up to the venue from some of the lower parking areas.  The adjoining parking lot to the venue had many tailgaters and empty spaces.  Doors opened at 7pm so it had started to cool for these parking lot tailgaters.  We were happy to have our spot under the eaves of the red rock.

The concert was quite enjoyable, not painfully loud but allowed us to sing all our favorite Beatles songs on the cement bleacher style seating (butt padding would be advantageous here).  We had reserved seats, but were so far back that the big screen was really the source of out visuals for this incredibly beautiful perfect temperature breeze blowing evening at our first Red Rocks Concert.  The museum had water refill and a really cool timeline listing of all the performers who played there beginning in the early 1900’s.  Food and beverage were available at the venue.  We had hoped to walk around the venue but the trail had been closed.   I really prefer smaller venues where you can get up and see the performers.  Unfortunately, “Paul McCartney” seemed to have quite a hoarse voice and have to say that vocals from the look alike concert in Vegas was better, but all in all a great evening.  I guess this band from England had been doing this anniversary concert for 20 years.

We had hoped to sleep in our parking spot because they had said that you could leave your parked car until 10am the next morning, but this did not include with occupants and we got busted by the park ranger around midnight.  She said that we should try the Park and Ride lot down the hill because they don’t usually enforce the No Overnight camping policy there.  We had a peaceful night there, but I just never sleep too well in those types of situations.

Arkansas River

There are so many places to raft or kayak along the Arkansas River which starts near Leadville works its way through the states of Colorado, Kansas, Oklahoma and Arkansas before emptying into the Mississippi River.  The rocky sections in Colorado make it quite a beautiful place to explore as some places like Royal Gorge are so dramatic.

Just south of Railroad Bridge Campground there was a section that had quite the extensive tunnel for a dirt road.  As we drove on Route 50 there were many fly fisherman and rafters on the river in very beautiful settings, the negative being that the two lane highway was close by for a less than peaceful setting.  Salida was one of our favorite mountain towns that had a Riverwalk and some interesting wave making structures for people to ride a single wave on the River – always some new thrill seeker phenomenon. 

There is the South Arkansas River too, and we enjoyed our own personal waterfall the the Riverside RV Park in Salida.

Colorado is a diverse scenic play land  with everything except the Ocean!!