Editor’s notice: That is a part of The Know’s sequence, Employees Favorites. Every week, we provide our opinions on one of the best that Colorado has to supply for eating, procuring, leisure, outside actions and extra. (We’ll additionally allow you to in on some hidden gems).
My birthday is near Memorial Day weekend yearly, and I wish to reap the benefits of the lengthy weekend by checking a city off of my Colorado journey checklist.
In years previous, my mates and I’ve soaked up the San Juan Mountain views within the heat of the Pagosa sizzling springs and gone whitewater rafting in Class 4 rapids down the Royal Gorge in Cañon Metropolis. This 12 months, we’re planning on sandboarding by way of Nice Sand Dunes Nationwide Park.
Nevertheless it was my journey to Ouray in 2022 that also has me in pure awe. The mountain city is tucked in a valley surrounded by the San Juan Mountain Vary and lives as much as its “Switzerland of America” nickname. It takes roughly 5 1/2 hours to get there from Denver.
This month, Males’s Journal named Ouray the No. 1 trip vacation spot within the U.S. out of fifty on its 2024 checklist — for good motive.
Right here’s a fast information to my Ouray trip in your reference, earlier than the out-of-state vacationers begin crowding the standard mountain streets:
The place to remain: We booked Field Canyon Lodge & Sizzling Springs on the sting of city. Our room within the old-school lodge was small however reasonably priced, and we weren’t spending a lot time inside anyway. When it rained, we warmed up within the purple cedar tubs which can be fed by mineral sizzling springs water.
The place to eat: We fueled up on espresso and chocolate croissants from Artisan Bakery & Cafe, watching topless, vivid yellow tour Jeeps whiz down Foremost Avenue. We caught the golden hour (when solely the peaks of the mountains are shrouded in solar) with some beers on the rooftop of Ouray Brewery. Then, for my birthday dinner, we celebrated with espresso martinis adopted by braised quick ribs and whipped Yukon potatoes at Brickhouse 737.
What to do: Our resort was a fast stroll away from Field Cañon Falls Park, the place I extremely suggest getting misted by a 285-foot waterfall plummeting into the quartzite canyon.
For summer season guests, horseback using must be a prime precedence. We booked a two-hour experience in Ridgway, simply down the street from Ouray, with Motion Adventures Information Clothes shop. Driving by way of the aspen tree forests, creeks and alongside Ouray’s colourful panorama was an absolute dream.
In case your legs want a break from all of the close by mountain climbing trails, take a drive down the Million Greenback Freeway. Not for the faint of coronary heart, the 25-mile-long street winds round mountain and gorge views of all completely different hues of purple, orange, blue and inexperienced. There’s additionally a “Switzerland of America” lookout level for a photograph op.
In your means house, make a pit cease at Black Canyon of the Gunnison Nationwide Park, an hour exterior of city. The steep look into the gorge, which I likened to the Grand Canyon’s little sister, reminds you simply how small you’re on this large world.
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