Our family stood in awe as we looked 1,800 feet down into the dark, metamorphic walls of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison. The wind howled. The Gunnison River raged below. Chipmunks scurried along the rock. Lizards darted. Ravens flew overhead. Cicadas chirped.
But mostly, there was silence.
We saw only four other humans on the North Rim of Black Canyon of the Gunnison as we hiked the half-mile Chasm Nature Trail and took in more views at The Narrows, Balanced Rock and Big Island.
“We have a winner,” I told my husband, on our quest to explore America’s lesser-visited National Parks.
We love National Parks, and we are delighted to see more people enjoying the outdoors. But with COVID-19 still lingering, we did what some may find unthinkable: We left Rocky Mountain National Park off the itinerary of our epic road trip through Colorado.
As America’s fourth-most-popular National Park, Rocky Mountain had nearly 4.7 million visitors in 2019. The park has been so crowded this year that it requires timed-entry permits, and visitors are being turned away.
By contrast, if you wake up early, you can rent a sled and find your very own hill to slide down at Great Sand Dunes (528,000 visitors in 2019). You can hike into Black Canyon of the Gunnison (433,000 visitors). And you can marvel at the cliff dwellings of the Pueblos at Mesa Verde (556,000 visitors).
Great Sand Dunes
No National Park has made us laugh and scream and giggle quite like Great Sand Dunes did. To get to that point, we had to wake up early to beat both the crowds and the heat. I set the alarm so we could be in line at the Great Sand Dunes Oasis near the park entrance at 8 a.m. to rent our sleds (a great deal at $20 apiece) and find a good parking space. Temperatures were in the high 60’s when we arrived, and we found a front-row spot. You have to walk a bit through the shallow Medano Creek and then sand, sand and more sand.
Most people stopped at the first hill, but we opted to go a little further to have a hill all to ourselves. We followed a friend’s advice and took off our shoes as soon as we got to the sand, because – trust us – sand gets everywhere. (Pro Tip: Buy some cheap socks at a dollar store that you might consider throwing away at the end of your adventure. And bring a laundry bag or trash bag so you can separate all your sandy clothes from the rest of your luggage).
I can’t even put into words how much fun we had sledding and playing in the sand.
Walking back up the hills was brutal enough to wear us all out by 11 a.m., as the temps rose to the high 80s. (The sand temperatures can get up to 140 degrees in the summer). As we pulled out of the now-full parking lot, we were glad for our early start and finish as people were now having to walk an extra half-mile just to get to the dunes.
For a complete contrast of nature, we left the park and hiked to the frigid Zapata Falls, which was cold enough to numb our feet. Zapata is located just a few miles outside Great Sand Dunes. Getting there requires a 3.5-mile drive up a very steep, rocky road that may not be suitable for some cars. Bring water shoes as you must hike a half-mile up and then get in the water and walk along rocks if you want to see the actual waterfall. There is an overlook with a great view of the Great Sand Dunes and the Sangre de Cristo Mountains in the distance.
Both of my boys, age 10 and 12, agree that this was one of the best days of their lives. Ever.
We had planned to camp at the Pinon Flats Campground at Great Dand Dunes (recommended to reserve months ahead of time); but with all the sand, we opted for a hotel with a shower in Alamosa instead. For a delicious and inexpensive meal, try the tacos, carne asada, enchiladas (and margaritas) at Calvillo’s Mexican in town.
Next, we spent a few days in Colorado Springs, tasting the healing waters of Manitou Springs and rating them from best to worst; exploring Garden of the Gods; and driving up Pike’s Peak. Then we headed southwest to a park most people we have talked to had never even heard of: Black Canyon of the Gunnison.
Black Canyon of the Gunnison
There are parts of Black Canyon of the Gunnison that only see the sunlight for minutes each day. Hence, the dark color and the name.
It takes two hours to get from the North Rim of Black Canyon to the more popular South Rim. But for the experience of having a National Park all to yourself, it is well worth the drive. In route you may face a rather fun delay as we did as ranchers herded moo-ing cattle along the rural highway. There is a campground at the North Rim (first-come, first-serve with 13 sites; we only saw one tent during our June visit), a Ranger Station, several view points, and several trails, including a 3-miler to Exclamation Point.
The South Rim is more popular, yet we found plenty of solitude as we hiked two miles into the canyon on the Oak Flat Loop Trail, where we got some fantastic views of the rocky, lichen-covered walls of the canyon. This trail offered some shade on an otherwise hot summer day.
The boys loved seeing some rabbits hop along the trail, and I may have a new favorite tree – the aspen. If you want to go further than that, get a wilderness permit and scramble down (and eventually up) rocks with no trail. Go early to avoid the heat and crowds.
Park Rangers and maps are available at the Visitor Center here; and there’s a gift shop and campground (reserve your site ahead of time). You can book a hotel and grab a bite to eat nearby in Montrose (Colorado Boy Pizzeria has some unique and tasty pizza combinations). Then drive down the Million Dollar Highway toward Durango and Mesa Verde for some of the most spectacular views in the entire U.S. We recommend stopping by the Bachelor Syracuse Mine in Ouray to stretch your legs as you walk 1,500 feet into a mountain to learn about the hard work miners endured every day. Beware the Tommyknockers!
We made our next base Durango, where we found a western saloon with a live piano player at the Diamond Belle Saloon one evening; enjoyed a white-water rafting trip on the Animas River through Southwest Raft and Jeep; took in a wine-tasting at Four Leaves Winery; and devoured the Dirty Fries and sampled some craft beer at Steam Works Brewery.
Mesa Verde
Just 40 miles from Durango is Mesa Verde, which is unlike any other National Park we had visited. Go here as much for the history as for the beauty as you encounter in both the natural surroundings and the details that the Pueblo put into the cliff dwellings they built here 800 years ago.
Plan ahead if you want to go into the dwellings, which we highly recommend, as the park is limiting the number of people who can get these up-close and personal views. Check the park’s website for the latest procedures, and be prepared to log on at the designated time to buy tickets as they sell out within minutes.
We visited Long House (just $8/person), the park’s second-largest dwelling, located on the lesser visited Wetherill Mesa. As my boys would agree, it was amazing.
Arrive at the park two hours before your tour starts as there is a long, scenic drive to get to any of the dwellings. Bring plenty of water, sunscreen and a hat, as getting to Long House, for example, requires a 2.4-mile, unshaded walk. (We witnessed Park Rangers rescuing a dehydrated visitor at the nearby Step House, which does not require a timed ticket.)
There was something about hiking in the heat that made us better appreciate why the Pueblo would put forth the effort to build these magnificent dwellings by hand. In the cliffs, there is shade and a breeze. We listened to the park’s podcasts during the drive and the boys asked Park Rangers stationed inside Long House plenty of questions. We learned that they planted the Three Sisters – corn, squash beans – above them on the mesa. They hunted deer, domesticated turkeys, and drank water that seeped into their alcove. About 200 people lived here. And then they, and the other cliff dwellers, mysteriously left.
Rocky Mountain National Park remains on our to-do list, as we would love to camp there and hike the trails. But for this trip, sticking to these three lesser-known National Parks gave us the perfect balance of adventure and diversity as we explored, and fell in love with, Colorful Colorado.
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