Colorado National Parks

There are 14 Colorado national parks to explore in the state and each one has beautiful scenery and unique features for you to experience.

You can camp, hike, fish, swim, watch birds and wildlife, learn about nature, boat, play in the snow, and just enjoy the incredible beauty of Colorado in these gorgeous national parks. The whole family will enjoy nature in any of them.

Here is the list in alphabetical order:

Arapahoe National Recreation Area is near where the Colorado River starts. There are five reservoirs in this area. They are Monarch Lake, Shadow Mountain, Granby, Meadow Creek, and Willow Creek.

Bent's Old Fort is a rebuilt fur-traders fort from the 1830s on the Santa Fe Trail. It was originally built by the Bent brothers and has been reproduced with authentic period antiques and reproductions of antiques and also has artifacts that were found at the fort.

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park is a 2,000 foot deep canyon cut by the Gunnison River two million years ago.

Canyons of the Ancients National Monument is near Dolores, Colorado and is known for being the richest archaeological area in the United States.

Colorado National Monument is a beautiful wonderland of canyons.

Curecanti National Recreation Area is over 60 miles long and has the largest reservoir in Colorado, the Blue Mesa Reservoir, along with two lakes.

Dinosaur National Monument has a wonderful fossil quarry and sandstone canyons.

Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument was created by a volcanic eruption 35 million years ago.

Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve has two sand mountains that each stand more than 1,000 feet high and is more than 565 square miles in size.

Gunnison Gorge NCA is filled with sandstone cliffs, a river canyon, pinon and juniper woods, and adobe hills.

Hovenweep National Monument has canyons with stone towers. Pueblo Indian dwellings from 900 years ago are located here as well.

McInnis Canyons NCA is filled with canyons, arches, rock spires, and the Colorado River.

Mesa Verde National Park has more than 600 cliff dwellings built into canyon walls and more than 4,000 archaeological sites.

Rocky Mountain National Park is perhaps the most famous of the Colorado National Parks. It is located near beautiful Estes Park and is the largest in the state. It is filled with streams, lakes, valleys and mountain peaks. The beauty here is incomparable.

Colorado Springs Colleges

There are 11 area Colorado Springs colleges, including the Air Force Academy. Many people move to the Springs just to go to college. That is what brought our family there. We were living in El Paso, Texas and my husband decided that God wanted him to go to Bible College there. So we went up on vacation and checked out the city and Nazarene Bible College. We fell in love with the city and made plans to move up there.

At the time, we were living in a manufactured home parked in a trailer park in El Paso. We put it up for sale and waited but never could sell it. We finally moved it up to Colorado Springs with us and lived in it for the four years we were there.

This was a blessing because housing was hard to come by with all of the military personnel being transferred in. The housing construction could not keep up with the demand for housing. Living in our manufactured home in a trailer park was much cheaper than renting a house like so many of our Bible College friends were doing.

If you will be moving to the Springs to attend a college, try to go up prior to the start of school and check it out. See if you can find a job and a place to live if you will not be living on campus.

We loved living in the Springs. The city is gorgeous and there is so much to see and do. Sometimes, I wish we had never left. I cannot wait to go back this summer there on vacation and I am hoping that we move back soon.

Here is a list of all of the Colorado Springs colleges:

Air Force Academy


Nazarene Bible College (pictured above)


Colorado College

University of Colorado at Colorado Springs

Pikes Peak Community College

Remington College

Colorado Technical University

Colorado State University Pueblo

DeVry University

Regis University

Troy University


Many college students rent apartments or houses in the area and work, either part time or full time.

Estes Park Colorado

Estes Park Colorado is home to the Rocky Mountain National Park. It is an incredibly beautiful place to go for your vacation.

It is called The Gateway to the Rockies. The town was founded by a man named Joel Estes back in 1859 while he was on a hunting trip. He soon moved his family there and friends and fellow outdoorsmen followed.
The winter snows rarely stay on the ground in the town of Estes Park Colorado but it does stay up in the mountains.

Spring is an exciting time as the first spring flowers peak up out of the cold ground signaling to the world that warmth is on its way for another glorious summer of fun here.

As the days get warmer, the locals and weekend visitors hike, bike, canoe, fish, and swim. Make reservations months in advance if you want to stay at the YMCA in Rocky Mountain National Park because it fills up quickly. Some guests go back year after year.

There are plenty of good places to stay in the town, along with a lot of good places to eat.

The historic Stanley Hotel is a great place to stay in the town.

I have been told that The Malt Shop located at 125 Moraine Avenue has the best ice cream in town.

If you want a more substantial meal, I have a friend who says that The Wild Rose at 157 Elkhorn Avenue is her favorite spot to eat.

A family who goes to Estes Park almost every summer say their kids love Bob and Tony's Pizza at 124 W. Elkhorn Avenue.

Shopping is great in Estes Park Colorado. Park and walk the streets. Take your time and you will find some amazing treasures to take home with you. Have fun.

Colorado Springs Is Beautiful

Colorado Springs Colorado is one of the most beautiful places in the United States. It is a great vacation spot because there is so much natural beauty and there are so many things to do.

Welcome to Fun In And Around Colorado Springs. My name is Juanita and I am so glad you stopped by to visit. My family and I lived here for four years while my husband attended Nazarene Bible College.

We had a great time living near Pikes Peak, which inspired the words to America The Beautiful. This truly is a majestic mountain, with snow on the top almost the entire year. We had an incredible view of this gorgeous mountain from our living room window. Below is the awesome view of Pikes Peak from our backyard. 

It very seldom gets uncomfortably hot in the summer. In the winter, it snows, but usually melts within a few days and then snows all over again.

While we were there, my husband, David, got a good education and we got a living souvenir! Our daughter, Tiffany, was born at Memorial Hospital five months after we arrived. She is very proud of the fact that she was born in Colorado.

Our boys, Andrew and Matthew, were four years old and one year old, respectively, when we moved to Colorado Springs Colorado and they had a great time playing in the beautiful outdoors there.

Below is a photo of me holding my beautiful daughter with Pikes Peak behind us. Life was good in the Rocky Mountains, the best!

At Christmastime, we got to visit Santa at the North Pole, right on the base of Pikes Peak. Our children got to sit on Santa's lap, right in the midst of his workshop. We saw Santa's live reindeer and touched the icy North Pole! Our kids were delighted and so were we!

Driving up Pikes Peak is a MUST for any visitor to this beautiful city in Colorado. The view is incredible as you drive up. Take a jacket. It is cold, even in the summer! Yes, we found that out the hard way! During the summer, thunderstorms can quickly develop. All of a sudden, dark clouds appear over the top of Pikes Peak and the rains pour down. We got soaked more than once while we were out and about. We soon learned to always keep jackets and umbrellas in the car. Thank you for visiting Fun In And Around Colorado Springs. I hope our information is helpful to you as you plan an unforgettable trip to the area.