Summer and Winter in Telluride, Colorado
With its alpine air, world famous festivals, and beautiful mountain scenery, Telluride is much more than just a winter playground. You can hike or bike through picturesque alpine forests, mountain trails and scenic meadows. Or enjoy horseback riding with friends and family, cast a line to enjoy world-class fly fishing or go on a river rafting adventure.
Summer Fun
As the snow melts and nature blooms on the alpine peaks surrounding the town, it gives rise to gorgeous hiking, mountain climbing, and mountain biking opportunities. If you’re on a budget, then visit Town Park, where you can check out many items for free. Just keep in mind that you’ll need to leave a driver’s license as collateral, equipment can’t leave the park, and everything must be returned by 5:00pm. While on property at Cimarron Lodge 6, you can rent summer gear via an exclusive package that includes inner tubes, Kan Jam, badminton set, bocce ball, tennis rackets and more that you can take with you on a hike or day trip. Imagine playing bocce ball at the top of a mountain, or a game of badminton next to a lake. With the CL6 Summer Package, fun can happen wherever and whenever you choose. Package is available for bookings between June 1 – September 30.
Find the perfect trail, from quick rides to all-day epics
Explore the most popular trails with maps and driving directions
One of the season’s best loved activities
Kan Jam
2-on-2 outdoor game that can be played in almost any open space
Bocce Ball
Played between 2 players or 2 teams of up to 4 players each
Fly Fishing
Catch one of the five species of trout that swim the San Miguel River
Play this little-known disc golf course in Telluride
Play in Town Park until 5:00pm, or rent the package and play anywhere
Play in Town Park until 5:00pm, or rent the package and play anywhere
Play in Town Park until 5:00pm, or rent the package and play anytime
Play in Town Park until 5:00pm, or rent the package and play anytime
Play in Town Park until 5:00pm, or rent the package and play anytime
Picnicking
Enjoy an elegant picnic for four with tableware and serving essentials
Cool off at the Town Park swimming pool
Enjoy a scenic adventure with the entire family
Come to Telluride for the winter, but stay for the summer
Winter Fun
Of course, there is the Telluride Ski Resort, ranked by Condé Nast Traveler’s annual reader survey as the #1 Ski Resort in North America, and the reason many guests visit Telluride in the first place. With over 2,000 of acres of terrain, there are runs for beginners, accomplished back country skiers, and everyone in-between. So if skiing and snowboarding are on your winter vacation agenda, then Cimarron Lodge 6 is the perfect location – as the rental office, lift ticket booth and ski lift are just steps away. But skiing and snowboarding are only a part of what Telluride has to offer all year round. In winter, there is also snowmobiling, sleigh rides, winter fly fishing, ice skating, and Fat Biking.
Enjoy a winter experience unlike anything before
There are three ice rinks in Telluride, including an outdoor rink in Town Park
Explore the magnificent backcountry on a snowmobile
These oversized bike tires allow you to ride on packed snow
Day Trips
Telluride is a perfect place for the outdoor enthusiast since there’s always something going on – from festivals and concerts to specials events. But if you’re willing to venture outside of town for a day or so, there are many more adventures to be had. These are some of the many day trips that you might want to add to enhance your vacation experience (all destinations are within a 3 hour drive of Telluride).
Mesa Verde National Park
Mesa Verde, Spanish for green table, offers a look into the lives of the ancestral Pueblo people who made it their home for over 700 years. Today, the park protects nearly 5,000 known archaeological sites, including 600 cliff dwellings. These sites are some of the most notable and best preserved in the United States. Mesa Verde was discovered in the 1800s and was established as a National Park by President Theodore Roosevelt. This beautiful park has numerous hiking trails, scenic camping grounds, heritage foods and cuisine, Native American handcrafts and shopping, and more.
Million Dollar Highway
U.S. Route 550 runs from Bernalillo, New Mexico to Montrose, Colorado. Boasting one of the most beautiful, jaw-dropping drives in the entire nation, this stretch of road is frequently called the Million Dollar Highway. The Highway is known for its mountain passes, high elevation, amazing scenery, steep cliffs, and other various adventures: this drive is not for the fainthearted, but it’s worth every mile! The stretch between Silverton and Ouray offers you the best opportunity to experience the amazing scenic highway and stop over in nearby Telluride. Enjoy sites of the Uncompahgre Gorge, Idarado Mine, Animas River, San Juan National Forest, Haviland Lake, Elektra Lake, Twilight Peak, Red Mountain Pass, and many more “million dollar” views that epitomize the American West.
Durango & Silverton Narrow Gauge Railroad
Carrying silver and gold from the San Juan Mountains during its mining days, the Durango train has been in continuous operation since 1882 and travels through spectacular canyons in the remote wilderness of the two-million acre San Juan National Forest. Experience the adventure of traveling by a coal-fired, steam-powered locomotive on the same tracks miners, cowboys and settlers of the Old West traveled over a century ago as you journey on an unforgettable 45 mile one-way trip from Durango to Silverton along the Animas River with amazing views of Colorado’s canyon scenery.
Ouray
Situated in the heart of the San Juan Mountains in southwest Colorado, Ouray is known as the Switzerland of America and is set in a box canyon similar to Telluride. Situated in a river valley at nearly 8,000 feet and surrounded by the snow-capped San Juan Mountains, you almost expect to hear yodeling echo from the high hills. Enjoy the thermal activity at the local Ouray Hot Springs year round swimming pool and be sure to check out the Vapor Caves. Take a beautiful, historic drive or four-wheel adventure from Telluride along Yankee Boy Basin and the Imogene Pass. The original True Grit film was filmed in this area back in 1968.