About the Grand Valley
Western Colorado Offers Mecca for Outdoor Adventure Vacations
Ready? Try one of Grand Junction’s Six Rs to Revive, Relax, Recreate
If you’re an outdoor enthusiast seeking a vacation destination with adventure, solace, grand scenery, variety, mild weather and almost-guaranteed sun, you may think that such a spot exists only in your mind.
Think again. Vacationers are finding that western Colorado’s rugged beauty and temperate climate make for prime outdoor adventure opportunities. In a state best known for majestic mountains, Colorado’s western slope, anchored by the city of Grand Junction, presents a complement of canyonlands, spires, red-rock ledges and towering walls of sandstone. What’s to do? Try one – or more – of the area’s six Rs.
- Rock climb – On the Grand Mesa, one of the world's largest flat-top mountains, magnificent stretches of vertical rock provide some of the west’s best rock-climbing terrain. The area’s canyonlands offer spires, redrock ledges and towering walls of sandstone at sites with names such as Independence Monument, Castleton Tower, Unaweep Canyon, and Indian Creek. Intrepid visitors to the Grand Mesa, as well as the Little Book Cliffs area north of Grand Junction, are also discovering canyoneering – traveling through a canyon by foot, bike, or boat.
- Raft – The Grand Valley offers access to seven raftable rivers, including the mighty Colorado, with water ranging from mild to advanced whitewater. Outfitters offer single- and multi-day trips with opportunities to hike the canyons, visit Indian ruins, and spot bald eagles, deer and other wildlife.
- Run – Runners will find a myriad of runs for all levels year-round. Each fall, the Colorado National Monument, a 23,000-acre landscape of towering rock spires and majestic canyons, plays host to the 37-kilometer Rim Rock Marathon (www.ascentproductions.net/Events/rrm.aspx) climbing nearly 2,000 feet above the Grand Valley of the Colorado River.
- Ride – Grand Junction is a road and mountain cyclist’s haven. For road cyclists, the area has some of the best road cycling terrain anywhere in the United States, highlighted by the Colorado National Monument (formerly the Tour of the Moon stage of the Coors Classic, and featured in the movie "American Flyers"). Hundreds of miles of little-traveled, scenic roads wind by local orchards and wineries. Rides range from the 18-mile, relatively flat Colorado Riverfront Trail in town to the 7,000-foot climb up the Grand Mesa.
Mountain cyclists will find terrain for every level and taste. Check out www.gjmountainbiking.com, and www.fruitamountainbike.com for info on the famous Fruita Fat Tire Festival, held each spring in the area rated one of the top 10 places to mountain bike in the country.
- Rake – For anyone who has ever wanted to comb through remains from eras long ago, Grand Junction lies in the heart of the Colorado-Utah Dinosaur Diamond. Internationally known for its wealth of dinosaur excavation sites, exhibits, fossils, and hands-on paleontological activities, the area boasts more than 30 dinosaur species. Visitors can get up close and personal with dinosaur skeletons, a working paleontology lab, and realistic robotic dinosaurs. Amateur paleontologists can join single- and multi-day digs (www.museumofwesternco.com/dino-digs).
- Ramble – In the Colorado National Monument, walkers, trekkers and hikers can choose from gently sloping trails that lead to panoramas of monoliths, backcountry trails up to 8.5 miles long, and the Serpent’s Trail, a vigorous hike with more than 50 switchbacks ultimately leading to a spectacular view of the Grand Valley. Serious hikers also can join mountain bikers on a part of the 142-mile Grand Junction-to-Moab Kokopelli Trail or one of its challenging side loops. The Bureau of Land Management also has 1.2 million acres of public lands in the area.
Prefer your rambling to be by jeep? Local operators offer tours, rentals, and specialized off-road 4x4 training to explore four-wheeling terrain that rivals that of better-known Moab.
And at a time when many outdoor adventure vacations come with price tags as grand as the scenery, Grand Junction offers choices that “don’t break the bank,” says Jennifer Grossheim Harris, marketing and public relations coordinator for the Grand Junction Visitor and Convention Bureau. “The area retains its community feel and smaller-town atmosphere,” she explains, “but still offers easy access by plane, train or car, and full-scale lodging and dining options.”
Grand Junction Visitor & Convention Bureau: 800 962-2547, www.visitgrandjunction.com
Established in 1990, the Grand Junction Visitor and Convention Bureau (GJVCB) is a department of the City of Grand Junction. Proactively marketing the Grand Junction area, the GJVCB serves as a liaison between area visitors, conventions, meetings, weddings, and reunions, and the businesses that will host them.
Palisade Chamber of Commerce: www.palisadecoc.com