- Website: Colorado National Monument
- Campground available for RVs and tents
- Backcountry camping with permit
- Scenic drive
- On or off trail hiking
- Biking
- Backpacking
- Regulated climbing
- When to go? Anytime
Colorado National Monument is located between the cities of Grand Junction and Fruita, Colorado. Grand Junction has a regional airport serviced by a few national and regional carriers, so that is where our trip is going to start. Grab your camera and get ready to be amazed!
Getting There
⇒From Grand Junction, take Highway 340 (Broadway Avenue) west to the park entrance. Drive time: approximately 20 minutes.
⇒Alternate Route: from Fruita and I-70, take Highway 340 south to the park entrance and visitor center. Drive time: approximately 15 minutes.
For additional information about the area, here’s a helpful link: Visit Grand Junction.
Destination: Colorado National Monument
Rim Rock Drive winds through the park from east to west for 23 miles and is the best way to see the highlights of the monument. We suggest taking the drive and stopping at the visitor center before trekking off to hike or backpack in the park. The scenery is spectacular (excellent photo ops), and there are about fifteen viewpoints or overlooks along Rim Rock Drive. Stop at all of them to see the unique rock formations and deep canyons that make this monument so breathtakingly beautiful.
Travel tip: Rim Rock Drive is a two-lane road that has twists, turns, drop offs, and hills. Be cautious. Stick to the speed limit and watch out for the bicyclists who also use this road.
When driving or hiking through the monument, you would never know that there were busy cities just a few minutes away. Come to Colorado National Monument to get away from the hustle and bustle. Feast your eyes on its beauty, while taking a break to enjoy nature. Be on the lookout for bighorn sheep here, as well as collared lizards and a variety of birds that also make their homes in the park. Some visitors may be lucky enough to spot a golden eagle or peregrine falcon.
The photo above was taken at the visitor center. This vista can be viewed anytime online via the park’s webcam. Log on to see how the seasons and changing light affect the view. See our Places/Links page above for the link under the National Park Webcams section and scroll down to Colorado National Monument.
Thank you so much for joining us! We hope you will return to our site for more great American road trips. If you have questions or comments, by all means, leave one. We love hearing from you. We will conclude this post with a shot of the interesting terrain south of Grand Junction along US Highway 50.
Until the next trip…
Travel safe, travel smart, and we will see you down the road.
Mike and Kellye
As always, we strive to be as accurate with our information as possible. If we made a mistake, it was unintentional. (Hey, we’re only human!) We aren’t paid for our recommendations, and we only recommend our own tried and true vendors and venues. Our suggestions are for places that we’ve heard good things about but haven’t visited personally, and our opinions are our own.
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