Things to do / Travel Guide
Choose Colorado Rockies' less-traveled paths and enjoy a treasure hunt of sorts, as you discover a wealth of natural riches - a tree with a tall reputation, a veritable pot of gold, the site of the world's purest marble, and mineral-laden waters willing to wash your cares away.
Marvel at Marble, Northwest Colorado
Designers of the Denver Capitol Building, Lincoln Memorial, and Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at Washington DC's Arlington National Cemetary searched for the world's purest marble for their important works. Where did they find it? Yule Marble Quarries, southeast of Grand Junction. Today a National Historic Site, you can explore the closed quarry, look into mill buildings, and see giant slabs of marble as if still waiting to be polished. Watch your step; many of the mining pits are deep and appear unexpectedly.
Maroon Bells, Northwest Colorado
Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness Area in Northwest Colorado near the swanky ski resort town of Aspen, is a sight to behold. This is an excellent place to get a glimpse of the Colorado Rockies' signature scenery and be wowed by wilderness beauty. The jagged snow-tipped summits of the Maroon Bells admire their own symmetric reflection in the glassy-clear water of Maroon Lake. Aspen groves wax gold in fall, and in the spring and summer hummingbirds and butterflies flit through valley meadows of wildflowers, making it a perfect place for a picnic, a photography expedition, a rugged hike, or some quiet, peaceful meditation. There are a wide number of hiking trails in the area, both easy and strenuous, that will take you to some of the region's best alpine scenery.
The Ute Council Tree, Southwest Colorado
Are you a tree-hugger at heart? In Delta you can visit the Ute Council Tree, the 85-foot-tall, seven-feet-in-diameter bicentennial cottonwood (having sprouted in 1805) at which Ute Chief Ouray and his wife Chipeta made a peace agreement with the area's white settlers. The tree was included in the book Famous and Historic Trees of the United States and is an official Colorado Landmark.
Mining Fun in the Colorado Rockies
More than $90 million in gold and $8 million in silver was extracted from Gold Hill at the Bachelor-Syracuse Mine, near Ouray in Southwest Colorado. From May-mid-September you can travel more than 3,000 feet into the side of the mine to experience firsthand the precarious perches used by the mineers to extract these precious and semi-precious metals. If you've got your heart set on that which glitters, there are plenty of other gold mines in the Colorado Rockies open to the public. Old Hundred Gold Mine, where you can ride a mine train, see mining demonstrations, and pan for gold, in the Southwest Colorado town of Silverton is a good option. The Country Boy Mine, once one of the largest and most profitable mines in the Colorado Rockies region, also offers gold panning and an underground mining foray to learn about the process of ore extraction. Country Boy Mine is located near the Northwest Colorado ski resort destination of Breckenridge.
Two silver mines near the Northwest Colorado town of Aspen are also great places to learn about how the miners picked, poked, and prodded their ways to wealth. Compromise Mine (largely responsible for Aspen's boom) extends 2,000 feet into Aspen Mountain - visitors can take an 18-guage locomotive ride into the deep, dark mine. And though you won't find much to smuggle out today, Smuggler Mine once produced the world's largest silver nugget, which weighed-in at around 2,000 pounds. You can take a guided walk around Compromise Mine to get a sense of its history and the mining process. Gold and silver mines are usually open to the public from late spring until late summer, or early fall.
Colorado Rockies' Heavenly Hot Springs
Ease your aching muscles with minerals, soak your skin in the springs - Colorado Rockies hot springs are a hot attraction in just about every way. Most of the hot springs feature mineral-rich stream-fed swimming pools and private pools with naturally-heated temperatures of between 85-100 degrees. They can be either outdoor or indoor, and are usually open year-round, but many say that in winter they are most fun. Many, many hot springs are available throughout Colorado Rockies region, and they are frequented by locals and tourists alike. Here are a few you might enjoy:
- Teddy Roosevelt soaked his feet at the Glenwood Hot Springs in the Northwest Colorado town of Glenwood Springs, and for hundreds of years before him, people seeking miracle mineral cures and relaxation frequented the waters. More than 10 million gallons of 124-degree stream into the pools every day.
- The steam is sweet at Strawberry Park Hot Springs near Steamboat Springs in Northwest Colorado, located between Rocky Peak and Copper Ridge, and offering a large pool as well as private tubs.
- Salida Hot Springs near U.S. Highway 50 and Rainbow Boulevard in South-Central Colorado, is Colorado's largest indoor hot-springs pool. The facility features two pools, one large lap pool about 85 degrees hot, and a smaller pool with water at temperatures close to 100 degrees.
- Also in South-Central Colorado, between Salida and Buena Vista, Mt. Princeton Hot Springs in Nathrop has been around since the late 1800s and is a favorite among the locals. In addition to the regular public and private pools, you might enjoy a more rustic rock-lined pool situated on Chalk Creek below the lodge.
- You will feel much more nimble after a visit to Trimble Hot Springs, north of Durango in Southwest Colorado, which features an Olympic-size swimming pool as well as private tubs.
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