re: Colorado in Summer - Need Suggestions (Updated)

Sounds like you know where you are going but I will play along. I will assume you have never been here before and won't come back.
Not sure when you arrive in Denver on the 1st but you should head south to the Springs. Drive through Garden of the Gods and hit up Pike's Peak. Dinner in Manitou Springs at Crystal Park Cantina.

2nd head south to Sand Dunes National Park. From there head over to Pagosa Springs for the night and a soak.

3rd head over to Durango then take 550 north up to Ridgeway then west over to Telluride.

4th, just stay in Telluride and relax for a day.

5th head over to Crested Butte with a quick detour to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park.

6th head south out of CB then go east towards Spring Creek and follow the Taylor River to Cottonwood Pass then over into BV. Here is where things get tricky. If Independence Pass is open you need to go over into Aspen and up to Maroon Bells then up valley to Glenwood for the night. If it is still closed then head up through Leadville and Minturn then Vail and over to Breck for the night.

7th you can head over to Estes through Winter Park, Granby, Grand Lake then through the park to get over to Estes.

As far as fishing, early June usually sucks unless you are fishing below a damn. I would do a float trip instead of a wade trip. I have caught some hogs on the upper Colorado in May/June.


Anything high elevation will hopefully be snowed in with lower elevations mud. You will see most of the state on this route, only really missing Steamboat and Grand Nothing. It sucks here and you should tell your friends.