On a Rocky Mountain High in Colorado & Utah...

After a few months of isolation, we were ready for our summer vacation. Visiting Colorado cured our Corona Blues! 😍 As a child, I lived in Colorado Springs for a few summers while my Dad worked on his cousin's ranch. Summers were so dreamy... I remember finding snakeskin, playing on bales of hay, and a sister's obsession with a yellow polka dot bikini. 😏 I've never forgotten the majestic mountains🏔in Rocky Mountain National Park and was excited to return!

Here's our 12-day itinerary through Utah and Colorado: Moab, Flaming Gorge, Steamboat Springs, Rocky Mountain National Park, Aspen, Ouray, Silverton, and finally Durango.

MONUMENT VALLEY

July1

I never get tired of driving past Monument Valley! It's on the Arizona-Utah border. Make sure to stop if you have time the views are amazing!

MOAB

July 1-2

Driving over sandstone formations and around narrow cliffs is a rush! I guess this is why Moab has become the Mecca for off-road enthusiasts. We arrived at Hells Revenge as the sun was setting. Greg was so excited since he loves to ride at night. I wasn't as excited... about 10 minutes into our ride it was pitch black. 😩 My nerves got the best of me... it was dark, we were driving along cliffs... I didn't think it was a good combination! 😱 Well, we survived and it was fun... for the most part. 😂

FLAMING GORGE

July 2-6

We had a family event in Flaming Gorge, Utah so our itinerary was planned around this stop. We celebrated Greg's parent's 50th wedding anniversary over the Fourth of July. We used paddleboards for the first time, jumped off cliffs, tubed behind a boat, and rode wave runners. We had such a fun and relaxing time on the lake with our family.

STEAMBOAT SPRINGS

July 5-6

I was excited to visit Steamboat Springs and the geothermal hot springs. We went to the Old Town Hot Springs. You can swim, soak or go on waterslides. The pools are fed by natural hot springs in downtown Steamboat Springs. The pools vary in temperature from 103-degrees to the 80-degree lap pool. It was so relaxing!😌

GRAND LAKE

July 6

We got an early start so we could go off-roading before entering Rocky Mountain National Park. We took the Stillwater Pass above Grand Lake and parked at the Idleglen staging area. We saw lots of wildlife and beautiful scenery before entering the park.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK

July 6-8

I haven't been to Rocky Mountain National Park since I was a child and I can't believe it's taken this long to return. Because I didn't know about the timed entry permits (coronavirus) we only spent two evenings in Rocky Mountain National Park. We entered at 5:00 p.m and stayed until it got dark. So plan ahead! We did quite a bit the first night then returned the second evening and saw the last section we had missed. Our hotel was in Estes Park.

Bunce School Road Plane Crash Site

The Bunce School Road Trail is South of Estes Park. The trail is 15.9 miles out and back and leads to a US Airforce Lockheed T-33 crash site. Once we reached the end of the trail it was a quick hike to the crash site. Two crew members lost their lives when the plane veered off course and flew into the mountainside in 1965.

We drove past this beautiful church and stopped so we could learn more about it. This is St. Catherine's Chapel on the Rock. Pope John Paul II prayed here while visiting America in 1993. It's so unique and looks like something you might find in Europe. 😍

ESTES PARK

We enjoyed a bike ride around Estes Park Lake. We used our hotel bikes... A nice perk offered at The Ridgeline Hotel. My daughters also liked watching movies while swimming and making S'mores at the outdoor firepits.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN NATIONAL PARK

We entered Rocky Mountain National Park at 5:00 p.m and had a picnic at Sprague Lake. After dinner, we took the trail along the lake.

We also made it to Bear Lake and took the trail to Nymph Lake as the sun was setting. We saw beautiful pond lilies and ducks.

ASPEN

July 8-9

"A little place called Aspen" from the movie Dumb and Dumber. The quotes that put Aspen on the map. 😂 We enjoyed our quick stay in Aspen. We loved the quaint downtown area... my kid's favorite was the resort pool. 😂

REDSTONE & MARBLE

July 9

We took highway 133 after leaving Aspen and the views were AMAZING! We stopped along the way so we could soak up all the views. I would love to go back and stay in this area, the river and mountains were so dreamy! We were excited to find marble near Marble (pic with CC & Cicily). 😆 The marble came from the nearby Yule Quarry.

OURAY

July 9-11

Ouray is known as the Switzerland of America! We loved roaming the streets downtown while admiring the beautiful architecture and surrounding mountains. We went off-roading, relaxed in hot springs and visited Box Canyon Falls.

If you want a unique Colorado experience you really need to get off-road. You'll find the best views and secluded alpine lakes. If you go to Ouray don't miss the Yankee Boy Basin Trail. You're surrounded by several mountain peaks and besides the unbelievable mountain views, you'll see lakes, wildflowers, and a waterfall. You can take a tour, rent an off-road vehicle in Ouray or drive your car the first 6 miles then do some hiking. It's 18.6 miles out and back. The first half of the trail is fairly easy then it gets more difficult.

Box Canyon Falls

Box Canyon Falls is an 85-foot waterfall that plummets into a narrow quartzite canyon. You can view the waterfall from both above and below the falls. We enjoyed taking the three trails. You can visit the Falls Trail, High Bridge Trail, and the Native Plant Loop.

We left Ouray and got back on the Million Dollar Highway. We took this highway from Montrose to Durango. This is one of the most scenic highways in the USA and the views are out of this world. Take your time and enjoy all the beauty this highway has to offer. I was in AWE the entire time! 😍

SILVERTON

Silverton is a former silver mining camp. After arriving we got lunch then headed straight for the trails. The Clear Lake Trail is located northwest of the town of Silverton in the San Juan National Forest. After our ride in Ouray, I didn't think we could find anything as amazing but the Clear Lake Trail blew me away! The trail is 9.4 miles out and back and ends at Clear Lake. The lake is nestled near the top of the mountain peaks and the turquoise 🏔water is stunning.

😍😍😍😍😍😍

DURANGO

July 11-12

Durango was the last stop on our vacation! This is our second time taking the Cascade Divide Road near the Purgatory Resort. We went on our SxS and saw beautiful views of Engineer Mountain!

My favorite part of this trip was going off-road! This was when we saw the most amazing scenery. It also made social distancing really easy! 😆