Utah / Colorado Vacation Ideas

[throwittoblythe]

I'm taking the family to NW Colorado / NE Utah later this summer. I'm wondering if anyone has ever been there and MUST or MUST NOT things to see/do.

The focus of the trip is Dinosaur, CO. My daughter is 7 and is really in that phase so that is the one thing we have to do. We'll be staying in Vernal, Utah, just west of there. We'll have 5 days in Vernal.

Things on our list:
- Dinosaur National Monument
- Horseback riding in the national forest
- Flaming Gorge Reservoir hiking/picnic

We also have a 3 year old. So no serious/challenging hikes are in our future.

 

[ISUChippewa]

I'm taking the family to NW Colorado / NE Utah later this summer. I'm wondering if anyone has ever been there and MUST or MUST NOT things to see/do.

The focus of the trip is Dinosaur, CO. My daughter is 7 and is really in that phase so that is the one thing we have to do. We'll be staying in Vernal, Utah, just west of there. We'll have 5 days in Vernal.

Things on our list:
- Dinosaur National Monument
- Horseback riding in the national forest
- Flaming Gorge Reservoir hiking/picnic

We also have a 3 year old. So no serious/challenging hikes are in our future.

I live in that general area; Steamboat Springs, Colorado, definitely within NW Colorado.

I've been to Dinosaur; definitely a must-see and a really cool spot. You can easily make a whole day of it, especially with a young family.

I haven't really spent much, if any, time in Vernal itself, so I don't have much to offer there for suggestions. I haven't been to Flaming Gorge myself, but I've heard good things about it from some people who have been up there.

 

[carvers4math]

Have taken kids to Colorado and Utah but not those specific areas.

Their favorite place in CO was Mesa Verde National Park but that is considerably south of your destination.

If you drive by Fort Collins, they did like touring the Air Force Academy. Also the Discovery Museum.

If you are near Grand Junction, my kids liked the math and science museum and the water park/laser tag/ go kart place which isn’t a bad way to let them blow off some energy.

On drives to California, they have spent a lot of time at Arches NP.

Big on hiking and star gazing in CO. Your kids may be a little young for much hiking. Mine enjoyed the Estes Park/Rocky Mountain NP area for hiking and fishing. There is an amusement park too.

 

[JM4CY]

I love CO but what the hell is dinosaur mtn?

 

[CYEATHAWK]

I'm taking the family to NW Colorado / NE Utah later this summer. I'm wondering if anyone has ever been there and MUST or MUST NOT things to see/do.

The focus of the trip is Dinosaur, CO. My daughter is 7 and is really in that phase so that is the one thing we have to do. We'll be staying in Vernal, Utah, just west of there. We'll have 5 days in Vernal.

Things on our list:
- Dinosaur National Monument
- Horseback riding in the national forest
- Flaming Gorge Reservoir hiking/picnic

We also have a 3 year old. So no serious/challenging hikes are in our future.

If you are taking I70 out to 13.........make some time for the Glenwood Springs Caverns Adventure Park.

 

[BCClone]

If you go through Nebraska and drop down, I always find picking up hitchhikers is a nice opportunity for the kids to see what the less privileged are like.

 

[throwittoblythe]

I love CO but what the hell is dinosaur mtn?

https://www.nps.gov/dino/index.htm

 

[gocy444]

Estes Park is a beautiful area

 

[MuskieCy]

Have taken kids to Colorado and Utah but not those specific areas.

Their favorite place in CO was Mesa Verde National Park but that is considerably south of your destination.

If you drive by Fort Collins, they did like touring the Air Force Academy. Also the Discovery Museum.

If you are near Grand Junction, my kids liked the math and science museum and the water park/laser tag/ go kart place which isn’t a bad way to let them blow off some energy.

On drives to California, they have spent a lot of time at Arches NP.

Big on hiking and star gazing in CO. Your kids may be a little young for much hiking. Mine enjoyed the Estes Park/Rocky Mountain NP area for hiking and fishing. There is an amusement park too.

Air Force Academy is in Colorado Springs, CSU in Ft. Collins.

If you go highway 34 across the continental divide, Devils Backbone State Park just west of Loveland is a simple, easy hike for a young family.

 

[SCarolinaCy]

I'm taking the family to NW Colorado / NE Utah later this summer. I'm wondering if anyone has ever been there and MUST or MUST NOT things to see/do.

The focus of the trip is Dinosaur, CO. My daughter is 7 and is really in that phase so that is the one thing we have to do. We'll be staying in Vernal, Utah, just west of there. We'll have 5 days in Vernal.

Things on our list:
- Dinosaur National Monument
- Horseback riding in the national forest
- Flaming Gorge Reservoir hiking/picnic

We also have a 3 year old. So no serious/challenging hikes are in our future.

"The focus of the trip is Dinosaur, CO. Then five days in Vernal.". Gosh, be sure and post some photos.

 

[cyman05]

I live in that general area; Steamboat Springs, Colorado, definitely within NW Colorado.

I've been to Dinosaur; definitely a must-see and a really cool spot. You can easily make a whole day of it, especially with a young family.

I haven't really spent much, if any, time in Vernal itself, so I don't have much to offer there for suggestions. I haven't been to Flaming Gorge myself, but I've heard good things about it from some people who have been up there.

So what are the highlights of dinosaur nm that you’d suggest if you make a day of it?

 

[06_CY]

Go to Cali and see the dinosaurs from The Wizard and PeeWees Big Adventure.

 

[CYKXBUT2]

Funny. At the same time you posted this we ere at the Dinosaur Visitor Center/Dig site in Utah. Also staying one night in Vernal. Tomorrow we will explore further and view the petroglyphs and pictograph sites before heading south to Arches/Moab/Grand Junction area.

 

[carvers4math]

Air Force Academy is in Colorado Springs, CSU in Ft. Collins.

If you go highway 34 across the continental divide, Devils Backbone State Park just west of Loveland is a simple, easy hike for a young family.

Yep that’s my brain fart. That and maybe 5 AFBs and my oldest two just just had to go to what is now Cheyenne Mountain Space Force Station cause Stargate SG-1, not that they would let them see much. But then we went through Fort Collins and the Museum of Discovery to see relatives in Cheyenne, WY.

 

[throwittoblythe]

Funny. At the same time you posted this we ere at the Dinosaur Visitor Center/Dig site in Utah. Also staying one night in Vernal. Tomorrow we will explore further and view the petroglyphs and pictograph sites before heading south to Arches/Moab/Grand Junction area.

Crazy! Let me know how it was!

 

[Mead For My Horses]

I'm taking the family to NW Colorado / NE Utah later this summer. I'm wondering if anyone has ever been there and MUST or MUST NOT things to see/do.

The focus of the trip is Dinosaur, CO. My daughter is 7 and is really in that phase so that is the one thing we have to do. We'll be staying in Vernal, Utah, just west of there. We'll have 5 days in Vernal.

Things on our list:
- Dinosaur National Monument
- Horseback riding in the national forest
- Flaming Gorge Reservoir hiking/picnic

We also have a 3 year old. So no serious/challenging hikes are in our future.

It's 4 hours to the south of Vernal, but Moab has two of the most beautiful national parks I've ever seen. Arches is the famous one but Canyonlands is my favorite. Canyonlands feels like you have a Grand Canyon on both sides of the road and it has very easy hiking trails kids can do.

 

[ISUChippewa]

So what are the highlights of dinosaur nm that you’d suggest if you make a day of it?

Definitely check out the Visitor's Center; it has all of the fossils that give the place its name. It is pretty damn cool to see all of the fossils of the near mythical beasts that captivate kids (including myself) from a young age.

But outside of that there's a lot of cool history. There is a self-guided driving tour of the whole place that you can make a day of, and some nice hiking trails as well.

 

[JM4CY]

Anyone got any tips for Keystone in the summer time?

 

[CYKXBUT2]

Crazy! Let me know how it was!

The Dinosaur/Visitor Center near Vernal were fantastic, but the section north of Dinosaur, CO was closed for a fire about 20 miles up, so didn't get to see anything there.
Arches was also awesome. Went in Tuesday evening and early (5am) Wednesday morning as I didn't have the ticketed reservations. When I left the park at 11am there were about 100 vehicles waiting to get in.

 

[JP4CY]

If you're going to Colorado/Utah, please invite them to the B12. Thanks.