Test your trivia at Lake City Brewing Company ’s Tuesday night events, go for live music on Saturdays, or fill up on the kitchen’s gourmet hot dogs and deviled eggs before an ice climbing session at the top-rated municipal ice park nearby. For a more celestial view of this International Dark Sky location, check out the guided nighttime tours by Lake City Skies, a local community of sky watchers, stargazers, and amateur astronomers. Begin your adventure in Ouray-Lake City’s better known “big sister”-by pointing your four wheel drive vehicle toward the Alpine Loop Scenic and Historic Byway, a network of 4×4-only roads linking the 12,000-foot mountain passes that drop you into Lake City via Hard Tack Mine, the ideal place to get under the surface (literally) of the area’s notorious gold prospecting past. When the call of the wild becomes irresistible, the most remote town in the lower 48 states answers. Here Magazine’s Ultimate Road Trip Guide → Lake City, Hinsdale CountyĤ.5 hours from Denver, seven-hour drive from Ouray Head into or out of town via the Peak to Peak scenic byway. And, around the corner, the rough-and-tumble former frontier town’s original hotel, the Teller House, is now Face Bar (there’s a juicy story behind the name) and JKQ BBQ. Imbibe in more local history at family-owned Dostal Alley Saloon and Casino, where the award-winning beer is made from wild hops planted by local brewers decades ago. Other events include the annual “Paranormal Night With the Spirits” at the adorable (and, it goes without saying, quirky) Gilpin History Museum, home of the Nautilus-Colorado’s original (and only?) hand-cranked submarine. Because Central City is a place where nationally-renowned performances in the 19 th -century opera house meet cemetery crawls featuring costumed locals re-enacting tall tales from their area’s colorful past. The frozen-in-time façade of this Victorian-era gold rush boomtown that once rivaled Denver makes a lot of sense. Or, head to Zenzen Organics where the owner, who has been growing hemp and offering farm tours since 2016, has converted her flower-filled barnyard and adjoining field to an outdoor summer music venue. On summer Friday nights, dance under the stars to local bands playing from the orchard’s outdoor stage. Start by pitching your tent (or reserving a cabin) at Big B’s Delicious Orchard and fueling up with the cafés clean home cooking (save room for the seasonal fruit pie). As if that weren’t enough, the town is also a favorite stop for musicians on the mountain tour circuit. Located at the base of Grand Mesa, the largest flat top mountain in the world, Paonia is your base for visiting wineries like The Storm Cellar of the West Elks AVA -the state’s newest official wine region-plus home to a thriving art scene centered around Everywhere Studios, a funky downtown artist studio and residency. Several spectacular backroad byways converge around this unpretentious farm town that anchors Colorado’s organic agricultural heartland. Pick up provisions at Skip’s Farm to Market, sleep at The Basalt Mountain Inn, and check with the locals who run Taylor Creek Fly Shop about the best fishing holes in the Gold Medal waters that converge in Basalt, Colorado’s “Town of Two Rivers.” spirits on the front patio of Tempranillo Restaurant, a local favorite since 2006. Across the street, in the circa 1896 Railroad Hotel and Saloon building, sample Madrid-style tapas and sip local Marble Distilling Co. In Basalt’s historic old town, visit The Art Base community gallery and education center for the latest exhibitions by Colorado contemporary artists. It’s also the ideal basecamp for exploring Roaring Fork Valley after motoring over the continental divide via the Independence Pass scenic byway. Laid back Basalt is the Berkley to neighboring Aspen, the gingham to Aspen’s chrome. 5 Under-the-Radar Colorado Ski Destinations → Basalt, Pitkin County From off-roading to opera, wine tasting to cemetery crawls, engaging with these communities reveals a Colorado culture that thrives away from the slopes. And whether you are road-tripping by Prius or pickup, getting off the beaten path in the Rockies means discovering the independent small towns that anchor these byways. As a national leader in sustainable tourism, Colorado just completed fitting out seven of these spectacular two-laners for electric vehicles, with others coming online soon. state, Colorado’s Rocky Mountains are interlaced with 26 scenic and historic byways -more than in any other state-that emerge in the spring like bluebells at snowmelt. With the highest average elevation of any U.S.
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