Colorado's Western Slope

The flat, western part of Colorado from the Continental Divide through the Utah border is known as the Western Slope. Its capital, sort of, is Grand Junction, a quiet ranching-and-farming area known for its outdoor adventures, from mountain-biking to wild-horse-spotting. Grand Junction is part of the Grand Valley, a rich outdoor area of massive mesas, gnarled sandstone formations, tall, natural arches, dry canyons, and scenic lakes. The Grand Valley is at the Colorado and Gunnison Rivers, near the steep Little Bookcliff mountains, the 10,000-foot-tall Grand Mesa and its surrounding national forest, and the 23,000-acre Colorado National ...

The flat, western part of Colorado from the Continental Divide through the Utah border is known as the Western Slope. Its capital, sort of, is Grand Junction, a quiet ranching-and-farming area known for its outdoor adventures, from mountain-biking to wild-horse-spotting. Grand Junction is part of the Grand Valley, a rich outdoor area of massive mesas, gnarled sandstone formations, tall, natural arches, dry canyons, and scenic lakes. The Grand Valley is at the Colorado and Gunnison Rivers, near the steep Little Bookcliff mountains, the 10,000-foot-tall Grand Mesa and its surrounding national forest, and the 23,000-acre Colorado National Monument. Few visitors come to this region for the nightlife - or even the hotels, which skew plain and modest - but the cycling, cross-country skiing, and accompanying mountaineering outfits are world-class. Most of the Valley is made up of conservative, rural towns, such as Craig and Rifle, but charming Palisade is famous for its vineyards and Dinosaur National Monument is a scenic hiking area at the northwest tip of the state. (On the Utah side, it turns into a museum and playground for amateur paleontologists.)

About the Expert

Steve Knopper is the Denver-based author of Moon Handbooks Colorado as well as a contributor to numerous Fodor's city guides.