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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Centeral Texas- NW of Austin
    Posts
    2

    Default Denver Colorado to Austin Texas

    I'm staying in Denver for the summer but normally live near Austin. On the trip up here I had time constraints and my plan was thrown off by multiple tornadoes in north west texas so I didn't really get to look around. I've lived in central texas since elementary school and so I know my way around there pretty well. On my trip back there is really nothing saying when I have to be somewhere at sometime. I know I will be going back in the first week or two in August and don't want to spend weeks and weeks on a road trip (maybe 5 days or so.. I have no idea). However, I would like to look around and see a bunch of cool stuff. I'm more of an out-doors person rather than museums and stuff (excluding science museums) but I'm not opposed to anything. Does anyone have any places I should visit? This is my first time in colorado and I might not be able to come back for a while. Some trips I've seen have shown going into Kansas and down through Oklahoma? I came up through Texican then the edge of New Mexico to Pueblo, CO. I'm not opposed to Kansas, and have never been there so who knows... One thing I have always wanted to see is the four corners so I'd rather stick to that direction and I'm in colorado longer. Any advice would be fantastic because I've never made a road trip and had never driven alone for more than 2 or 3 hours before coming here. Thanks and have an amazing day!

  2. #2
    Join Date
    May 2003
    Location
    Green County, Wisconsin
    Posts
    13,826

    Default The less direct route

    Welcome to the RTA Forum!

    Personally, I could spend 5 days alone just driving through the backroads of colorado and never get tired of it.

    Since 4 corners is on your list, I'd probably head west on I-70 to Grand Junction, and then head south to Durango taking you on the million dollar highway. From there you can easily check out Mesa Verde and 4 corners. from there, start working back south into New Mexico. You could hit White Sands, Roswell, and/or Carlsbad Caverns before getting back into Texas for the trip home.

    I think that would be pretty scenic, and fill up 5 days, without too much hastle. If you were up for adding more mileage, a trip from 4 corners through Monument Valley and onto the Grand Canyon would only add a few hundred miles to your trip, but I'd probably want to add a couple days to the trip then.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Tucson, AZ
    Posts
    10,358

    Default Another Take

    Welcome aboard the RoadTrip America forum.

    I see Michael has given you info on what to do if you do end up going via four corners, but I'll offer a slightly different take on this. Yes, some mapping software routines will send you down I-70 east to Salina, KS, and then down I-135 and I-35 south to Austin. But I think you can do better for your purposes by first heading south along the front of the Rockies before turning east to Austin. I think that the four corners area is a bit far off the route to Austin to be an ideal destination but some things to see and do that aren't too far afield would include Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, Garden of the Gods, and Pike's Peak in and around and in Colorado Springs. Proceeding south there's Royal Gorge outside Caņon City and Great Sand Dunes National Park just west of Pueblo. In New Mexico, I'd also recommend a visit to Taos Pueblo, be sure to take the tour with the native guide - very informative. If you start heading east from there, your next stop would be Capulin Volcano National Monument where you can drive to the top of the volcano and walk completely around (and in) the caldera. If you'd like to do some hiking in a badlands setting, try Caprock Canyons State Park outside Quitaque, TX (southeast of Amarillo). At this point, you're starting to get into central Texas, an area you probably know better than I do anyway. But those are some of the out-doors type stuff I know of from my trips in those areas that I can recommend. You clearly have a plethora of options and some choices (none of them bad) to be made. Enjoy your trip home.

    AZBuck

  4. #4
    Join Date
    May 2003
    Location
    Green County, Wisconsin
    Posts
    13,826

    Default A personal warning

    Proceeding south there's Royal Gorge outside Caņon City
    This is just one person's advice, and should be treated as such. My experience may not end up being the same as others, but...

    I will NEVER return to the Royal Gorge, or at least not to the Royal Gorge Bridge. I was there last summer and was appaled that they charged $20 a person to enter the tourist trap area around the bridge. The gorge was nice, but no where near worth the rediculous cost of admission.

    If you do decide to go anyway, it did appear that there were some other options, like a train trip through the gorge that I believe cost less money and could be worthwhile.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Mar 2005
    Location
    Tucson, AZ
    Posts
    10,358

    Default A Close Call

    Michael may very well be right. I was last at Royal Gorge more than 45 years ago, and while it is spectacular, $20 would be a bit much. I hesitated for that very reason to post a link to their website. There is a ton of other stuff out there in southern Colorado (see this post) that is better and cheaper.

    AZBuck

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Jun 2006
    Location
    Centeral Texas- NW of Austin
    Posts
    2

    Default

    I just looked up on the internet and tickets for Royal Gorge for adults are $21!! Thats crazy but there is a lot of different things to do there. I guess it is the same cost as an amusement park?

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