Westcliffe, CO

Lauren wrote:
Anyone ever spent any time there?

Yes (wouldn't you expect it of me???). We go through there several times a year.

Westcliffe and Silver Cliff abut one another. There's a museum in Silver Cliff open weekend afternoons. Never been through there when it was open. There have gotten to be several art shops in Westcliffe. The restaurants seem to come and go, but we generally only stop in town long enough to use the bathroom in the park. (Thanks, Westcliffe!)

There are interesting trails in the Sangre's. But many are pretty steep, just like the range itself. The rocks are mostly conglomerates, quite different than most rocks in CO. Because of that, in some areas there aren't many trees. You might want to avoid the Venable-Comanche loop trail. There's a one mile section or so called the Phantom Terrace where the trail has been cut into a very steep rock face (maybe greater than 60 degrees?). Knowing that exposure doesn't suit you anymore, it would be a good place to avoid. Do a virtual walk with this video.

Do be aware that a few of the trails get very busy with peak baggers. South Colony Lakes 4x4 trail (which many hike to preserve their vehicles) is a main route to the Crestones.

If you're in the area, head east on CO 96 then south on CO 165 around 10 miles to Bishops Castle. Free admission and an amazing example of what one man can do given enough time and will power. If you stop to see it, remember that the first time I saw it, the walls were no more than 6' high! I think it's 165' tall now.

Over in the Wet Mountains, you could try hiking up to Greenhorn Peak. You can drive most of the way, but you still have a couple of miles or so to the 12,352' summit. Not very steep nor technical at all. Even if you don't make it to the top, the wildflowers are great and the views of the southern Sangres quite nice. To get there, turn off CO 165 at the Ophir Creek CG and head to the divide, then take a left on the Greenhorn Road. This is all graded/gravel so travels isn't very fast. But it's fine back country with a chance to see lots of deer. Blue lakes just before the end of the road is a nice place for a picnic. We once saw a large herd of elk grazing right along the highest ridges just north of the summit.

But the towns themselves are fairly small with only a few tourists (compared to the hordes in many other CO mountain towns).