Colorado has always been known as a sanctuary for winter adrenaline junkies. There is no shortage of skiers and snowboarders who perform gravity-defying stunts upside-down in the air. The state has more than its share of intrepid winter kayakers, unflappable ice fishers, and foolhardy frozen waterfall climbers. When winter ends, spring’s arrival brings a few weeks of relative calm as the skiers at Vail, Aspen, and Winter Park go home.
And then there is summer.
The lack of snow doesn’t mean the ski lifts grind to a halt. Instead, mountain bikers line up to challenge the steep, hair-raising trails. The whitewater rafters come out of hibernation to taunt the twists and turns of rushing rivers. Climbers set out to conquer still-snowy mountain peaks in the Rocky and San Juan ranges wearing shorts and t-shirts, and campgrounds in state and national parks open their gates to an influx of nature-loving travelers. Formerly inaccessible backcountry hiking trails are revealed to the sunlight in Rocky Mountain National Park, and backpackers set out in search of adventure and solitude.
Summer in Colorado offers thrills aplenty. There is the age-old rush of history, of climbing flimsy ladders to precipitously perched Native American cliff dwellings in Mesa Verde, or that galvanizing lotto-jackpot feeling of panning for gold in the Wild West mining towns of Durango, Leadville, and Burlington. Your thrill might be listening to bluegrass music spill out of a Telluride canyon; watching a star shoot across the Continental Divide in a sky so full of constellations that you decide to map your own; or communing with nature in a flowery Estes Park meadow while the puffy clouds overhead morph into the faces, creatures, and fantastical objects of your dreams.
These are the summer seductions of the Rocky Mountain State, a place where far-off horizons and sky-high peaks inspire a restlessness of spirit, and the pioneer zeal never dies. For further adventures, here are some activities you might not have thought of, ranging from extremely daring and outrageous to relatively tame and leisurely.
Night-Vision Rafting
Imagine navigating rapids and careening down a river in complete darkness. Sound terrifying? Maybe it is, but it’s also enticing enough that some outfitters now offer nighttime whitewater rafting excursions. Customers are provided with declassified military night-vision goggles so they can make out enough of the currents, rocks, and turns to avoid mishap. The moon and stars twinkle overhead, and glowing eyes appear out of the darkness as wildlife comes down to the river to drink and feed.
Waterfall Kayaking
Only for the most experienced paddlers, these adventures don’t let anything trivial like an 18-foot waterfall become an obstacle. Helmets are essential, and elbow, wrist, and knee guards wouldn’t hurt, either. Sounds about as crazy as going down Niagara Falls in a barrel, but the die-hards love it. Check it out vicariously this summer by watching the experts on the upper Colorado River, and, remember, don’t try this at home.
Mountain Boarding
These new, flexible, big-wheeled skateboards are perfect for mountain paths and single-track biking trails. Creative types have further tinkered with the sport, and can often be found mountain boarding in tandem with a kite or sail, allowing the wind to carry them across a grassy knoll or meadow. Dirt trails in Arvada or at the Pike’s Peak BMX Track in Colorado Springs are popular, but mountain boarding adventures are ripe all over the state in both urban parks and in the backcountry.
Sandboarding
Landlocked Colorado may not have its ocean beaches, but it sure has its share of sand, and Great Sand Dunes National Monument (10 miles northeast of Alamoso) is the place to find it. Dunes are at an elevation of about 8,000 feet and are constantly shape-shifting--a 700-foot mountain of sand today might be only a molehill tomorrow. Crossing surfing and snowboarding, sandboarders have plenty of room to ride the many dunes. The breezes stirred up by a good ride definitely provide a rush, but be forewarned that the sands can get very, very hot. (Hint: To keep your board from getting chafed by the sand, do as the locals do and duct tape the bottom.)
Mountaineering
Most of us probably don’t relish the idea of hanging out with a bunch of adolescent Ivy Leaguers, but in Colorado their popularity enjoys a summer surge. Fourteen of the state's 51 "fourteeners" (14,000-foot peaks) are located in the Collegiate Range. This close concentration of crests means that conditioned hikers can conquer Mounts Harvard and Princeton in just a few days. You may not come away from the experience with a degree, but the friends back home will be very impressed.
Whitewater Rafting
Late May and early June are the perfect time for this sport as snowmelt flows unfettered down the Colorado and Arkansas Rivers. The water levels are especially high at this time, and the currents are at their fastest. Some enthusiasts, however, prefer to raft later in the summer when the levels are lower, more rocks are exposed, and the runs are trickier to navigate. One of the best spots for river thrills is by the Royal Gorge Bridge, the highest suspension bridge in the world. The swiftly flowing Arkansas River beneath it is not for the faint of heart.
Fly Fishing
The Arkansas River doubles as a fly-fishing adventure spot. Abundant mayflies bring hungry fish to the surface, including a bounty of fish that hatch in early summer, from trout to salmon. Fly fishers enjoy their sport in sublime landscapes along the Colorado River, which runs through parts of Rocky Mountain National Park, and the Animas River, flowing through the gorgeous San Juans in the southern part of the state. Many of the state’s lakes and rivers are catch-and-release only, which means there are more than enough fish to ensure your photograph of “the one that got away.”
Arts, Music, and Culture
Boulder, the funky town at the foot of the Flatirons, has turned into the state’s summer staging ground for arts and cultural events. The Colorado Shakespeare Festival begins in late June and presents nightly performances for nine weeks at an outdoor theater at the University of Colorado campus. During these same months, the town also sees the Colorado Music Festival and the Chataqua Summer Festival kick into high gear.
Many other destinations within the state also offer summer concerts and festivals. Telluride’s annual Bluegrass and Country Music Fest typically takes place the third weekend in June, and draws fans from around the world to hear music against the backdrop of the soaring San Juan mountains. Lovers of classical music will be drawn to Aspen’s Music Festival, taking place from late June to mid August, while arts and crafts aficionados can inspect everything from hand-blown glass to henna designs at the Denver Capitol Hill People’s Fair in early June.•
