Busskipper,
Completely agree with you on Estes. It is not the Colorado experience anymore as they seem much more interested in how much money the town can draw in than anything else. I have no plans to ever return there myself.
Fortunately there are many, many other places in Colorado to get that experience and you did a great review.
If I were to recommend a location other than SW Colorado (Ouray, Ridgway, Silverton, Telluride and Durango) I would recommend the Buena Vista/Salida area. Lots of great things to see for that Colorado experience using BV/Salida area as a base.