Your National Parks (And Monuments!) Road Trip Through Colorado
Colorado is a boundless, jagged, sublime playground for outdoors lovers, with 350 miles of hiking trails in Rocky Mountain National Park alone, plus three other national parks and a plethora of national monuments, historic sites, and recreation areas. For long-distance backpackers, the Colorado Trail spans 567 miles from Denver to Durango. Add that to 42 state parks and innumerable municipal open space systems, and you’ve got more hiking opportunities than most could handle in a lifetime.
That’s where Moon Colorado Hiking comes in. Want to tour all 13 national parks and monuments? Here’s an example of a 14-day, counterclockwise, Denver-based loop around the state. This trip is intentionally ambitious, with quite a bit of driving. Feel free to take any portion of this route and adjust it to your time and needs.
Days 1-2
Start in Denver and drive to Rocky Mountain National Park. Spend the day hiking and exploring the park’s lakes, waterfalls, views, wildlife, and ecosystems. Stay overnight in Estes Park or Fort Collins to explore additional local trails and treats.
Days 3-4
Drive clear across the state on I-70 to Grand Junction, Fruita, and Colorado National Monument; camp at Saddlehorn Campground atop a cliff inside the monument; hike Monument Canyon Loop Trail at sunrise.
Days 5-6
Drive southeast through Montrose to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Camp in the national park on the south rim and enjoy the view across such a dramatic canyon. Hike along the rim as the sun sets, then stargaze in one of the darkest skies in the country.
Days 7-8
Enjoy the dramatic drive along the Million Dollar Highway (US-550) through Silverton and Durango to the Four Corners area and Mesa Verde National Park, where you can stay at an upscale lodge inside the park and take a guided tour of the ancient cliff dwellings. Or wake up early and follow signs to Petroglyph Point on your own.
Days 9-10
Drive east through Pagosa Springs and over Wolf Creek Pass to Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve. Hike to the top of the tallest dunes in North America, then slide down the sandy slope. Spend the night in the park at Piñon Flats Campground, where you can commune with the dunes, before heading out to discover the rest of San Luis Valley and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains.
Days 11-12
Head east across the plains to La Junta and Bent’s Old Fort National Historic Site, where rangers dress in period garb and you feel like you’ve traveled back in time; enjoy the perimeter trail while pondering history, then head south to hike in the Comanche National Grasslands.
Days 13-14
Return to Denver. Check off one last hike at Rocky Mountain Arsenal National Wildlife Refuge; catch a glimpse of the bison or elk herds while bald eagles and traffic from nearby Denver International Airport soar overhead.
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