Friday, June 11, 2010

Colorado Rocky Mountain High


I am still on a Rocky Mountain high after my spectacular trip through Southern Colorado in the entertaining company of Colorado Tourism’s Michael Driver.

We started the trip in Denver and drove south to Colorado Springs. Then via the Old West mining towns of Gunnison and Crested Butte we carried on to Great Sand Dune National Park and the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Next by steam train from Silverton to Durango - before ending the trip at America’s most celebrated archeological site: magnificent Mesa Verde where we broadcast the Travel Show looking out over spectacular scenery.

To find out more about Colorado, and for great vacation planning tools – visit www.colorado.com or the Colorado page at www.ChrisRobinsonTravelShow.com. Full details of all the attractions, hotels and restaurants mentioned in this blog can be found in the Destinations section of my Travel Show website at www.chrisrobinsontravelshow.ca/images/upload/Colorado Research 2010.pdf .



Denver – Mile High City




Denver will leave you breathless…Partly because it is over 5,000 feet above sea level where the Great Plains meet the Rocky Mountains, and partly because it is such a vibrant city with so much to see and do. Arriving at Denver International Airport is a rare treat: a major airport (6th busiest in the US) which is user-friendly and efficient. Plus it has a tempting view of the Rocky Mountains just to the west.


This was my second visit to Denver (for my previous visit go to http://christalkstravel.blogspot.com/2009/06/denver-colorado.html ). First stop: lunch at Marlowe’s which spills out onto bustling 16th Street Mall. It was really buzzing with a street art festival, full of Colorado creative energy.


Next: a trip to Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre on the western edge of the city at 6,400 feet. This is the only naturally-occurring, acoustically perfect amphitheatre in the world and it has hosted everyone from The Beatles to stars of the Opera in a spectacular setting overlooking the city below. Then from towering red rocks to a symphony of colour - Denver Botanic Gardens is 23 acres of soothing urban oasis, which this year is playing host to an impressive array of 20 Henry Moore monumental sculptures.


Exploring the diverse neighbourhoods of Denver was delightful and wandering around Downtown Denver was also a treat: old meets new seamlessly in this eclectic and wonderful city. For more info go to: www.visitdenver.com



Colorado Springs – Garden of the Gods





An hour long drive south along a scenic route paralleling the Front Ranges to Colorado Springs - the second city of Colorado and even higher than Denver at over 6,000 feet. Star of the show here is The Garden of the Gods, one of the most awe-inspiring geological wonders of the American West. Colossal red sandstone formations tower over converging ecosystems and a maze of trails which I explored in a unique way on a Segway tour, courtesy of Adventures Out West (www.advoutwest.com ).

Other highlights included the U.S. Olympic Training Complex for a fascinating insight into the on-going total commitment of Olympic-potential athletes; the pretty spa town of Manitou Springs from where the world’s highest cog railway departs to Pike’s Peak (next time....!); and the world-famous Broadmoor, an historic, pink, Mediterranean-style resort set in 3,000 acres that has hosted all the great and the good since opening in 1918.


Colorado National Parks




Colorado boasts no less than four National Parks. I visited the magnificent Rocky Mountains NP on my last trip (see http://christalkstravel.blogspot.com/2009/06/rocky-mountain-national-park.html ) and this trip I got to see the other three. First up was the newest US Park, Great Sand Dunes National Park. Here at over 8,000 feet in the Rockies, a curious juxtaposition occurs: winds have piled up desert sands into dunes 750 feet high against snow-capped Sangre de Cristo Mountains. And they are bounded by rushing ice-cold mountain melt-water torrents. Bordering the park is the Zapata Ranch, and I had lunch at this idyllic dude ranch of over 100,000 acres – that raises cattle, buffalo and wannabe cowboys and girls.


Nothing prepares you for when the earth gives way to a 2,700 foot deep chasm that is the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. Ranger Kevin Sweeney introduced me to this almighty half-mile deep gash in the landscape where the canyon walls are as little as 40 feet wide and the turbulent Gunnison River sounds like a murmur. The final National Park, Mesa Verde, is covered in a following section.