Summer 2022 Bucketlist Challenge-Colorado Edition.

Did Someone Say Wine?  Yes, Please!

For Moms and Dads, Colorado boasts two federally designated American Viticultural Areas (AVAs): the Grand Valley AVA along the Colorado River between Palisade and Grand Junction, and the West Elks AVA along the North Fork of the Gunnison River between Paonia and Hotchkiss. Together, these regions produce 90 percent of the wine grapes grown in the state. Colorado's Grand Valley is home to 30 wineries and vineyards that serve up some of the region’s very best wines. The must see wineries of western Colorado include Azura Cellars & Gallery and Alfred Eames Cellars in Paonia, The Storm Cellar and Mesa Winds Farm and Winery in Hotchkiss, and the Two Rivers Winery and Chateau, located near the Colorado National Monument in Grand Junction.

Live out your Tour de France dreams in Colorado’s Roaring Fork Valley.

Home to Aspen, Snowmass Village, Basalt, Carbondale and Glenwood Springs, the Roaring Fork Valley provides an incredible breadth of experiences for mountain bike enthusiasts seeking beauty and exhilaration. Together, the region makes up the Aspen Snowmass / Roaring Fork Gold Ride Center, the first Gold-Level IMBA (International Mountain Biking Association) Ride Center™ in Colorado. Guests can choose to drive and explore the trail systems within each town and ride the trails between each destination.

Splash Through Northern Colorado

For road trippers who love all things water, start in Steamboat Springs, where rivers, streams, waterfalls, and hot springs are all a vital part of what sets the destination apart. Fly-fish, tube or paddle your way down the Yampa River, the wildest (most free-flowing) river in the entire Colorado River system. Stop at State Forest State Park for camping and fishing in the park’s alpine lakes and rivers. Be sure to stop and see the 100-year-old Mishawaka, a bucket-list music venue offering “classic eats and river beats.” Look for fly-fishers, rafters, kayakers, and stand-up paddleboards along the Cache la Poudre, Colorado’s only designated Wild & Scenic River. Head to Fort Collins and visit the Poudre River Whitewater Park, located in the up-and-coming River District neighborhood, or try Horsetooth Reservoir for boating fun.

Summer in the Rockies Playground.

Colorado’s Summit and Eagle Counties are home to some of the best-known ski areas and resorts in the world, and these destinations transform into summer playgrounds worth the road trip. Start at Arapahoe Basin and enjoy a round of golf at one of Keystone’s two 18-hole golf courses. Drive over Swan Mountain to the historic mining town of Breckenridge where endless hiking and mountain biking adventures are set against the backdrop of the ski area's massive five peaks. From Breckenridge, head to Copper Mountain and experience Woodward Copper’s on-snow, skiing, and riding summer camps. In Vail, hit up Epic Discovery featuring the Forest Flyer Mountain Coaster, tubing hill, climbing wall, mini-golf, zip-lining, and more. Just 10 miles down the road from Vail, Beaver Creek offers hiking, biking, horseback riding, or 4x4 to Beano’s Cabin, high atop the slopes of Beaver Creek Mountain for delectable Colorado mountain cuisine.

Native American History and Culture in Southwestern Colorado.

Any road trip around southwest Colorado will lead travelers through the history of the Ancestral Puebloan, Ute, and Navajo people. Start at the Ute Mountain Ute Tribal Park, where tribal members interpret tribal culture, pictographs, cliff dwellings, surface ruins, and artifacts. From there, head to the Cortez area and visit the Canyons of the Ancients Visitor Center & Museum, an archaeological museum and the headquarters for the Canyons of the Ancients National Monument, containing the highest known archaeological site density in the U.S. Visit Chimney Rock National Monument, once home to the ancestors of the modern Pueblo people and travel on to Pagosa Springs, whose name is a Ute word meaning “healing waters.” The hot mineral springs of the area are renowned for their healing qualities.

Roadside Attractions and Curiosities in the Mystic San Luis Valley.

Colorado’s San Luis Valley is a land of hidden treasures, including quirky roadside attractions (UFO Watchtower, Colorado Gators Reptile Park, and Stations of the Cross), incredible scenery and outdoor adventures, interesting towns, unique ranches, and agriculture, wildlife viewing. and the tallest sand dunes in North America at the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve. Opening this summer, the historic Frontier Drive-In is a 1940s-era drive-in movie theater that has been reimagined with nightly film screenings on a fully restored movie screen, overnight accommodations in steelmaster sheds converted to luxury hotel suites, and glamping yurts and one-of-a-kind spas located inside signature 3D-printed adobe structures that open up to the sky.