A few weeks ago, my husband and I decided to sneak away together for a few days! It was very spur of the moment, I only had about a week to plan our getaway. Since the trip was planned on such short notice and we knew we’d be road tripping, we decided to go to Colorado. It’s one of our favorite destinations anyway, but we wanted to travel to an area we had never visited before. I am so thrilled to report that we found six epic destinations in Southwestern Colorado that you can’t miss!
Durango
Favorite Restaurants in Durango:
- Derailed Pour House – This place has great food, excellent drinks, beautiful décor, and a super fun 80s music video vibe! We had dinner here our first night in Durango and found ourselves coming back at night for dessert, martini espressos, and great music! I am still dreaming of the pot stickers I had for dinner!
- Los Amigos Del Sur – We were craving Mexican food and kept seeing this place online as ‘best Mexican food in Durango’, so we decided to give it a try. Y’all, it was so good! The staff was great, the watermelon margaritas were even better! We both had street tacos and loved them.
- Chimayo Stone Fired Kitchen – We ate here on our last night in Durango. Jereme had pizza and I had fettucine. Both dishes were excellent, they were just really small portions!
Mesa Verde National Park
If you follow along on our adventures, then you know that exploring the outdoors and visiting National Parks is a huge passion of ours. We couldn’t stay in Durango without exploring Mesa Verde National Park!
We really got lucky planning our visit here. You must make reservations to explore the cliff dwellings and tours go live on the National Park website two weeks in advance. We were able to get tickets for the Balcony House and the Cliff Palace on the same day. We encountered many visitors here that did not purchase reservations and were unable to explore the cliff dwellings. Tours are $8.00 per person and entrance into the Park is $30 per vehicle.
Be sure to allow enough time to drive from Durango to the Park entrance (roughly 45 minutes), and then another hour to drive from the Park entrance to the parking lots for the different dwellings!
The Balcony House
This cliff dwelling is the hardest to explore as it requires you to climb ladders and crawl through a small tunnel. It wasn’t too strenuous to maneuver. I highly recommend this tour if you are able to get tickets. Our guide was extremely knowledgeable and respectful to the natives that one time inhabited these dwellings.
Cliff Palace
This is the most popular and largest dwelling on site! You can view it from the lookout above, but it’s really spectacular to hike down to the entrance and get an up-close view of these dwellings. It is truly amazing to think about what life would have been like here hundreds of years ago!
There are many hiking trails around the Park, a hotel, and even a café which we enjoyed eating lunch at! I would definitely recommend allowing a full day to explore this Park. If you are unable to reserve a tour, you can still see some of the dwellings from a distance at different look out points from the road and on different trails.
After our visit, we were left with so many questions about this amazing ancient site. Nobody knows why the Ancestral Puebloans left the dwellings and never came back. So, we listened to an interesting Podcast called, The Mysteries of Mesa Verde & Histories of the Antiquities Act by Backtrack History.
Ouray
Ouray, Colorado is probably the most beautiful mountain town we’ve ever visited! It took us about two hours to drive from Durango to Ouray. We really enjoyed burgers and beers at Ouray Brewery! We ate and had a drink on the rooftop while taking in the sights and the cool temperatures! We decided to try two different entrees and split them, so I got the Cluck Norris chicken sandwich and Jereme had the Green Chili Burger. Both were wonderful, but I loved the green chili burger!
Cascade Falls Park
Just around the corner from the restaurant is a very impressive waterfall! It’s a stunning sight, but what’s even better is that you can hike to the falls. Waterfall hikes are my favorite and this one did not disappoint. And the best part is that you can even hike behind the falls!
Ice Lake
Near Silverton, in the San Juan Mountains, we hiked the most challenging and epic trail to date! I clocked a total of 8.9 miles and the elevation gain was equivalent to climbing two Empire State Buildings. It was just as tough hiking back down to the trailhead as it was hiking up to the lake. But the views were beyond worth it!
We trekked around waterfalls, crossed through streams, scrambled over rocks, and ended at the craziest blue lake we’ve ever seen! It is definitely not for the faint of heart, but if you enjoy hiking and challenging yourself, then this is the trail to take!
Click on the following link from AllTrails for more detailed information about this trail: Ice Lake Trail Information.
The Million Dollar Highway
After finally driving on the Million Dollar Highway, I can truthfully say that it is as scary as I’ve heard! But it’ also one of the absolute most beautiful drives we’ve ever taken!
We drove the Million Dollar Highway from Durango to Ourey, which is about 70 miles and takes almost 2 hours each way. The most stunning part of the drive is between Silverton and Ourey, although the entire drive is actually very impressive. There are many spots to pull over and check out the views! You can’t miss stops at Bear Creek Falls, Molas Pass, and the Switzerland of America Look Out Point!
Overall, Southwestern Colorado is a destination that appeals to nature lovers, history buffs, adventure seekers, and those looking to experience the rugged beauty of the mountains!
If you are looking to plan a more unique travel experience with several different adventures, then I highly suggest checking out these epic destinations in Southwestern Colorado!
