Posted: 5/24/2026 1:02:19 AM EDT
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Hello Coloradans. I’m planning a family trip to Colorado in early June. Plans so far include flying into Denver, two days at Rocky Mountain national Park, three days in Glenwood Springs, and one day in Colorado Springs. Normal stuff at Rocky Mountain Park, staying at the main resort in Glenwood Springs, and checking out Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs. Outside of an afternoon of horseback riding around Aspen one of the days, I don’t have anything else planned. Anyone from the area who has some recommendations or suggestions on things to do? Wife loves to hike. Two girls, 26 and 29, love art type stuff. Thanks |
Hanging Lake is a must, however you'll need advanced reservations for the bus ride and trail pass. It'll be very busy on the trail. So much so private vehicles aren't allowed in the parking lot so l haven't been up there in 20 years.  https://hanginglake.com/hiking/hanging-lake/ |
Drugs kicked in now, need sleep, radiation tastes funny at 7 am every day... a bit like victory. - Ginger
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Originally Posted By Razzman1: Hello Coloradans. I’m planning a family trip to Colorado in early June. Plans so far include flying into Denver, two days at Rocky Mountain national Park, three days in Glenwood Springs, and one day in Colorado Springs. Normal stuff at Rocky Mountain Park, staying at the main resort in Glenwood Springs, and checking out Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs. Outside of an afternoon of horseback riding around Aspen one of the days, I don’t have anything else planned. Anyone from the area who has some recommendations or suggestions on things to do? Wife loves to hike. Two girls, 26 and 29, love art type stuff. Thanks Ok Razzman1, I live right in the middle of where you're planning to visit, so here are a few suggestions. Since you're already going to be in the Estes Park area you can get your horseback riding fix in at the YMCA of the Rockies which is right next to the RMNP. The stables are run by this outfit and the views will be spectacular. Horseback Riding at the YMCA If you have the time and want to see some of the best alpine / mountain scenery in the state, drive to Glenwood Springs from the Estes Park area by heading west on Hwy 34 through RMNP. You'll cross over the continental divide and most likely will see elk, big horn sheep, mountain goats and moose on that leg of the trip. Then head south to Granby, then west again on Hwy 40 to Kremling. From there you can speed up your travel by taking Hwy 9 south to Silverthorne, where I live. There is a great 4.5 mile hike (out and back) over several creeks. This hike is rated moderately challenging, but just take your time and a couple of rest breaks. Willow Creek Falls Hike Heading west on I-70 out of Silverthorne you can get to Glenwood Springs in 1.5 hours. Hanging Lake is beautiful, but a real pain in the butt to get to. I suggest a great alternative visit to Rifle Falls, which is 26 miles west of Glenwood Springs. Rifle Falls State Park There is plenty to see and do walking around Glenwood Springs old downtown area where Hwy 82 crosses over the Colorado river. Many of the lakes, streams and rivers will be very low and not floatable because of our extremely low snow pack and warm winter in 25/26. Also, Aspen IMHO is vastly over rated, very crowded and full of plastic people so you may not want to spend the time going there. On your way back to Denver via I-70 you could do a short stop in Frisco and walk down Main Street. Lots of cool little art shops and places to eat. Great Indian and Nepalese food here: Indian Spice And some great beer and soft pretzels here: Prosit If you have questions just reach out to me here. Have fun and enjoy Colorado!! |
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First off, thank you all for the replies. Your state is incredible! We started off with 2 days in Estes Park / Rocky Mountain Nat. Park. We hiked about 8 miles starting from the Wild Basin Trailhead on day 1 and about the same the next day at Bear Lake Trailhead. Had lunch both days at random creek-side picnic spots that were fantastic, and saw a bunch of wildlife. Left Estes and headed south towards I-70. We arrived at the entrance to Glenwood Canyon just before sunset. I was never so happy for interstate construction slow-downs. The speed limit was 35 and there was zero actual traffic, which made driving I-70 through the canyon incredible. Driving through Glenwood Canyon from east to west might as well be a park in and of itself--it was spectacular! Spent 3 days in Glenwood Hotsprings, staying at the Glenwood Hotsprings Resort--which everyone in the family loved. Both of my adult daughters did a little bit of English-style riding as kids, and have always loved horses, so I surprised them with a half-day horseback trail ride in the Maroon Bells mountain area down by Snowmass. They both got lovely horses--I chose the mule appropriately named Jackass. It was stunning--like I couldn't believe how beautiful the ride was. The hotsprings were a welcome feature that night. On our second day in Glenwood we hiked Hanging lake. Wow. Beyond words. We ate some good food in Glenwood and stopped by to see Doc Holiday's (maybe) grave on the way out of town. From there we headed down to Colorado Springs. We had planned on doing a half day at Garden of the Gods and then hitting the cog railway up to Pikes Peak in the afternoon, but we had so much fun at GOTG that we missed our opportunity at railway tickets. So we dropped back and punted and spent the rest of the late afternoon indoor go cart racing, followed up by a nice steak dinner at Saltgrass. The place made a huge impact on our two girls, as they both began scheming about how to move out there. You all have a beautiful state and I appreciate the suggestions. We'll be back, as we didn't even scratch the surface. |
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Great report Razzman1, and glad you got to do most of what you hoped for. Wife and I visited Colorado on a vacation over 30 years ago, then started bringing our 5 kids up from Texas during summer and winter vacations. No surprise that 4 of the 5 kids ended up moving to Colorado. Now we also have 7 grand-kids up here and decided to buy a Colorado place so we could be closer to family. Living near the ski-resort areas and cities like Denver and Boulder is very expensive, but outside of those it's actually not too bad. Always available if you have questions about Colorado. |
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Originally Posted By Razzman1: First off, thank you all for the replies. Your state is incredible! We started off with 2 days in Estes Park / Rocky Mountain Nat. Park. We hiked about 8 miles starting from the Wild Basin Trailhead on day 1 and about the same the next day at Bear Lake Trailhead. Had lunch both days at random creek-side picnic spots that were fantastic, and saw a bunch of wildlife. Left Estes and headed south towards I-70. We arrived at the entrance to Glenwood Canyon just before sunset. I was never so happy for interstate construction slow-downs. The speed limit was 35 and there was zero actual traffic, which made driving I-70 through the canyon incredible. Driving through Glenwood Canyon from east to west might as well be a park in and of itself--it was spectacular! Spent 3 days in Glenwood Hotsprings, staying at the Glenwood Hotsprings Resort--which everyone in the family loved. Both of my adult daughters did a little bit of English-style riding as kids, and have always loved horses, so I surprised them with a half-day horseback trail ride in the Maroon Bells mountain area down by Snowmass. They both got lovely horses--I chose the mule appropriately named Jackass. It was stunning--like I couldn't believe how beautiful the ride was. The hotsprings were a welcome feature that night. On our second day in Glenwood we hiked Hanging lake. Wow. Beyond words. We ate some good food in Glenwood and stopped by to see Doc Holiday's (maybe) grave on the way out of town. From there we headed down to Colorado Springs. We had planned on doing a half day at Garden of the Gods and then hitting the cog railway up to Pikes Peak in the afternoon, but we had so much fun at GOTG that we missed our opportunity at railway tickets. So we dropped back and punted and spent the rest of the late afternoon indoor go cart racing, followed up by a nice steak dinner at Saltgrass. The place made a huge impact on our two girls, as they both began scheming about how to move out there. You all have a beautiful state and I appreciate the suggestions. We'll be back, as we didn't even scratch the surface. Glad you enjoyed yourself. Fun fact: yours truly was born in Glenwood Springs |
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DenverDan, I assume from your profile you now live in the Denver area. Wife and I moved up here to Summit County because we have 4 kids and 7 grands all living in Colorado. Oldest son lives in Wheatridge. Youngest son lives in Glenwood Springs and has a vet practice there and in Basalt. Other kids / grands are in Ft. Collins, CO Springs. Good to be right in the middle and only 1 - 1.5 hours away from everyone. Quick question - can you recommend a good gunsmith, either in Summit County or the Denver area? I have a vintage 22LR bolt action rifle and want to make it into a little kid starter gun by cutting down the barrel and redoing the stock. Appreciate the help. |
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Originally Posted By buzzardbill: DenverDan, I assume from your profile you now live in the Denver area. Wife and I moved up here to Summit County because we have 4 kids and 7 grands all living in Colorado. Oldest son lives in Wheatridge. Youngest son lives in Glenwood Springs and has a vet practice there and in Basalt. Other kids / grands are in Ft. Collins, CO Springs. Good to be right in the middle and only 1 - 1.5 hours away from everyone. Quick question - can you recommend a good gunsmith, either in Summit County or the Denver area? I have a vintage 22LR bolt action rifle and want to make it into a little kid starter gun by cutting down the barrel and redoing the stock. Appreciate the help. @buzzardbill Sorry man I just saw this post. No I no longer live in Denver. I did when I joined the site. I bailed back to the western slope when I got divorced. I grew up over here. I’m in the Parachute/Battlement area now. |
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Originally Posted By Razzman1: The place made a huge impact on our two girls, as they both began scheming about how to move out there. You all have a beautiful state and I appreciate the suggestions. We'll be back, as we didn't even scratch the surface. They are in luck if you can get them interested in the Military. Ft. Carson is south of Colorado Springs (CS). Air Force Academy North of CS Peterson Space Force Base East of CS NORAD / Cheyenne Mountain is West of CS. Of course, that mountain won't be there after the Loonies revolt. I was at Ft. Carson 77-80 and heading back next week for a month to visit friends that live there. |
Soldier for Life