Colorado Outdoors

Colorado Outdoors is a page for visitors to see what activities there are in Colorado.

There are 21 designated Scenic and Historic Byways in Colorado, most in the western side of the state. Each Byway is marked by a sky blue sign with a columbine, the state flower, in the middle of it. Many of the Byways cross National Park lands and recreational activities can be accessed from them. http://www.wildernet.com/pages/area.cfm?areaname=Colorado Scenic Byways

A great place for a vacation, Colorado seems to have it all! Mountains, plateaus, canyons, flat, high plains and rolling prairies. With all that at our disposal there is an endless variety of outdoor activities.

Rivers & Streams - The rivers running from the mountains are known for their steep continuous drops but the level out on the plains into lazy rivers. These offer the opportunity for fishing, boating, kayaking, whitewater rafting and canoeing. http://www.wildernet.com/colorado/

Colorado has no less then 19 National Parks and Monuments. They are:

• Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests - rolling hills to soaring, snowy peaks.
• Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site - Archeological excavations and original sketches, paintings and diaries were used in the fort's reconstruction in 1976.
• Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park - narrow canyons with stunning overlooks.
• Colorado National Monument - soaring canyons, monoliths, vivid formations, prehistoric Natives cultural remains.
• Comanche National Grassland- interesting Geological, historical and cultural sites
• Dinosaur National Monument - some fossils can be seen by hiking ½ mile from the Temporary Visitor Center, rock art and lovely scenery, homestead sites and whitewater rafting.
• Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument - internationally renown fossil beds of Florissant
• Grand Mesa, Uncompahgre and Gunnison National Forests - world's largest flattop mountian, lakes and reservoirs.
• Great Sand Dunes National Monument - tallest sand dunes in America.
• Hovenweep National Monument- best examples of ancient stone architecture in the southwest.
• Mesa Verde National Park - remains of homes of ancient pueblo people.
• Pawnee National Grassland - stunning grassland sunset views.
• Pike and San Isabel National Forests - gold-medal fishing, secluded reservoirs, 14,000' mountains, huge white water, scenic drives and historic ghost towns.
• Rio Grande National Forest - Sangre de Cristo and San Juan Mountains.
• Rocky Mountain National Park - Rocky Mountains offer stunning, snowcovered peaks about flourishing valleys and lakes.
• Routt National Forest - forest habitat with cascading waterfalls over 263 rock walls.
• San Juan National Forest - Alpine lakes, canyons, cataracts, waterfalls, unusual geologic formations, rugged and remote wilderness areas, high mountain peaks, historic mines and ruins.
• White River National Forest- includes two and one-quarter million acres of Colorado's mountains
• Yucca House National Monument - see a large, unexcavated Ancestral Puebloan surface site. http://www.nps.gov/colm/index.htm

Colorado also has many State Parks:

• Golden Gate Canyon - beautiful thick forest, rocky peaks and meadows filled with aspen trees.
• Roxborough - spectacular red rock formations.
• Barr Lake - Great place for birdwatching, boating and fishing.
• Chatfield - camping, horseback riding, hiking, biking trails, boating, fishing and a hot-air balloon launch.
• Cherry Creek - boating, jet skiing, water skiing, sailing, fishing, swimming, biking, horseback riding.
• Eldorado Canyon - beautiful panoramic view, rock climbing, stream side picnic areas.
• Castlewood Canyon - amazing canyon walls, ruins of a century-old dam.
• Mueller - mountain biking, hiking, 85 miles of trails on some you can see elk and big horn sheep.
• Eleven Mile - excellent fishing, power boating, sailboating and windsurfing.
• Spinney Mountain - boating and very good fishing.
• Lake Pueblo - fishing, boating, swimming, water skiing, sailing, sailboarding, jet skiing, hiking, camping, picnicking, horseback riding and biking.
• Rifle Gap - Bicycling, Birding, Camping, Fishing, Natural Wildlife Viewing, Swimming.
• Rifle Falls - beautiful, famous triple waterfall. Hiking, fishing, biking, picnicking, camping and sight seeing, cross-country skiing.
• Harvey Gap - fishing, canoeing, windsurfing, swimming, boating, picnicking, ice fishing and cross-country skiing.
• Vega - boating, fishing and camping, picnicking, water skiing, jet skiing, sailing and hiking.

Skiing - When you think of skiing you, of course, think of Colorado. Rightly so, as there are a multitude of places to ski. Ski areas are as follows: Arapaho Basin, Aspen Highlands, Aspen Mountain, Beaver Creek, Breckenridge, Browns Pass Trail #369, Buttermilk, Coal Mesa Trail, Copper Mountain, Crested Butte, Cuchara, Durango Mountain, Eldora, Holy Cross Wilderness, Howelsen, Keystone, Lake Irwin Cross-country Ski Train, Loveland, Monarch, Powderhorn, Ski Cooper, Snowmass, SolVista, Splains Gulch Cross-country Ski Trail, Steamboat, Sunlight, Telluride, Vail, Winter Park Resort and Wolf Creek.

• Adler Publishing: Travel Guides to America's Backroads and 4WD Trails

• Amazon.com: Colorado Hiking & Camping, Hunting & Fishing and Outdoor Recreation Books