Summer on the Road
Explore Colorado and enjoy amazing outdoor adventures, thriving arts communities and historic sites. Learn about ancestral Pueblo people who carved their homes into the sides of cliffs in Mesa Verde. In addition, Colorado is home to three more national parks – Rocky Mountain, Great Sand Dunes and Black Canyon of the Gunnison. Go hiking and fishing, see wildflowers and wildlife, and marvel at sand dunes towering 2,650 meters high.
Map
Highlights
Trip Infos
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Stay in a all inclusive authentic working cattle and bison guest ranch owned by The Nature Conservancy
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Escape the crowds
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Enjoy amazing and diverse landscapes
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Explore the desert on a horseback
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Get a close encounter with wild bisons
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Discover Archeological wonders
Duration: 10 Days / 9 Nights
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Locations:
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Day 1-2: Denver - Hotel Born
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Day 2-5: Alamosa - Zapata Ranch
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Day 5-6: Mesa Verde - Far View Lodge
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Day 6-8: Gateway - Gateway Canyon
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Day 08-10: Tabernash - Devils Thumb Ranch
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Estimated Price: $3,300 per person
(Based on 2 Adults and 2 children/ Shared Activities)
DAY 1
Welcome to Denver ! Upon arrival, pick-up your SUV and drive to your hotel.
With 300 annual days of sunshine, Denver is a year-round destination that combines urban excitement with rich Western heritage and a passion for the outdoors. Its walkable downtown features chef-owned restaurants, brewpubs, professional sports, shopping, family attractions, arts and culture. Denver is also the premier gateway to the best of the Western USA’s national parks, including Mesa Verde, one of four national parks in Colorado, as well as Yellowstone in Wyoming and the Canyonlands in Utah.
Night at: Hotel Born - 2 queen
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DAY 2
This Morning, take the road to the tallest dune in the USA. Find yourself atop a sandy peak with vast reaches of dunes stretching out before you, take a deep breath and slide on down. It’s not just the child-like joy of sandsledding and the otherworldly landscape of North America’s tallest sand dunes that make this park a must-visit; the surrounding views of the Sangre de Cristo Mountains are equally impressive.
Night at: Zapata Ranch - 2 Queen
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DAY 3
Zapata Ranch offers extensive programs based around horseback riding and nature programs, and also the opportunity to experience life on a working cattle and bison ranch while enjoying high-end amenities and gourmet food. Guests who desire a working ranch experience are welcome alongside our wranglers and ranch staff on various ranch projects. For those seeking to just experience the ranch and its surroundings, horseback rides through the herd of 2,000 wild bison or the neighboring Great Sand Dunes National Park
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Night at: Zapata Ranch - 2 Queen
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DAY 4
Take a tour and learn more about the Zapata Ranch bison herd. A knowledgeable staff member will guide you through the 50,000 acre portion of the ranch known as the Medano, with the aim of getting you up close to our herd of 2,000 North American plains bison.
The tour is designed to provide you with opportunities to view and photograph the bison, but, more uniquely, it is also designed to educate you about the ways in which we manage this “conservation herd.”
Night at: Zapata Ranch - 2 Queen
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DAY 5
Today, find a view as far as the eye can see and archeological wonders are waiting for you.
Try to imagine what life was like 1,400 years ago for Ancestral Puebloan people who lived in dwellings carved into cliffs along a mountain range. That view becomes clearer with a visit to Mesa Verde National Park, where the ancient culture is celebrated and preserved. Start at the Chapin Mesa Archeological Museum to see a collection of artifacts, dioramas and displays. Drive nearly 10 kilometers on the Mesa Top Loop road, stopping to see a number of dwellings — at an elevation of 2,134 kilometers — and other sites, such as Petroglyph Point Trail to see carvings in rock and Sun Point Overlook for an unparalleled, picture-perfect canyon view.
Night at: Far View Lodge - Kiva deluxe 2 queen
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DAY 6
Take the road again toward your next destination. Make a detour by the amazing Black Canyon of the Gunnison. The star of this hidden gem near the town of Montrose, Colorado, is its dramatic, deep gorge that has been carved by the Gunnison River over the course of 1.7 billion years. The canyon walls, which plunge more than 600 meters into the earth below, are so tall that the bottom of the gorge receives only minutes of sunlight each day. Each year, as the river flows, the canyon grows deeper, but only by the width of a human hair.
Night at: Gateway Canyon - Kiva deluxe 2 queen
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DAY 7
Enjoy a day at leisure to explore your surroundings during a rewarding hike. Whether heading out into the vast high-desert landscape or meandering along the resort grounds, you’ll find a hiking adventure to suit your interest and ability. While here, take a leisurely hike through desert ranch land or get your heart pumping with a climb to the top of the Palisade for a spectacular view of the world.
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Night at: Gateway Canyon - Kiva deluxe 2 queen
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DAY 8
Take the road again toward your last stop of this incredible journey. The Devils Thumb ranch is waiting to offer you experiences that embrace the pioneering spirit of the early homesteaders while honoring and preserving the pristine landscapes for future generations. Here, you are invited to participate in real, authentic ranch adventures from horseback riding, fly fishing, and cross-country skiing, to fat tire mountain biking, zip lining, and more on over 6,500 acres of Rocky Mountain wilderness.
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Night at: Devils Thumb Ranch - Meadow 2 Queen
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DAY 9
Enjoy a day at leisure and relax at the ranch or take a short drive to the Rocky Mountain National park. Rejoice in the crisp air and panoramic vistas at the top of the world in Rocky Mountain National Park, which comprises 107,000 hectares of some of the most dramatic, high-altitude scenery on Earth. As its name suggests, this is a park of peaks – multiple 4,000-plus-meter peaks, in fact – linked by winding roads and 483 kilometers of trails and bisected by the Continental Divide.
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Night at: Devils Thumb Ranch - Meadow 2 Queen
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DAY 10
After a last morning at leisure, it is time to drop-off your car rental at Denver airport and fly to your next destination.
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