MichelleA few years ago I had planned a trip to the ‘West Slope’ as Colorado calls it. Basically the entire west side of the mountains. I never did the trip but in my research I was sure I would love the city of Montrose, and would hate Grand Junction. Because of that I almost didn’t stop in this area. The opposite ended up being true and I’m so glad I spent time here. Grand Junction has done a wonderful job with their downtown area! Instead of a straight Main Street, the street slaloms back and forth allowing for islands of landscaping and outdoor seating at restaurants. There were lots of trees and flowers giving a cool yet vibrant feeling. The Colorado River runs through the valley and there are parks and paved pathways all along, including a disc golf course. Grand Junction had a botanical garden that I visited. It was smallish but nicely done and backed up to a park along the river.
The real highlight of this area was Colorado National Monument. I shudder to think I almost bypassed this monument. To be honest, I enjoyed it more than Black Canyon of the Gunnison NP. I stayed in a campground within the park that was built on a hillside. This provided a beautiful view of the valley. I was blessed with a fairly private pull-thru site that was surrounded by Juniper bushes and Pinyon Pine. This park was less granite and more red rock. The road followed the rim with lots of pull-outs for viewing the landscape. Many of the overlooks required a short walk to get to them so I definitely got a workout. There were multiple canyons with interesting rock walls and hoodoos, and the canyons were deep, long and green. Being the perfect type of terrain, I saw several big horn sheep along the way. Wildflowers and Prickly Pear cactus were in bloom adding touches of color here and there. This road was definitely a favorite with bicyclists! Scores of them going up and down the road. I can’t blame them… the scenery was incredible. And the weather was perfect during my stay.
This was only a 4 day stay, so a shorter story than usual.
