Dates we visited: October 21st-27th
Where we stayed: Black Canyon / Montrose KOA
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park is a lesser known park on the western side of Colorado. It was our next stop after completing the Utah Mighty 5 with a visit to Canyonlands. We didn’t really know what to expect going into this park, and it ended up ranking near the top of our favorites list! There were very few other visitors in the park, so we were able to take our time and explore the many overlooks available along Rim Drive. Two million years in the making, the Gunnison river carved out this canyon to be exceptionally deep, narrow and ominously scenic.
Snow
While staying in Montrose, Colorado we were hit by a massive snowstorm that tested our RV cold weather preparedness. Our pipes briefly froze up and I had to clear the snow off the slide roof with a broom. But, we survived and learned a lot about cold weather camping in the process. Additionally, the storm gave us the opportunity to see the Black Canyon through the lens of multiple seasons. It was quite striking with the fresh Colorado snow.
Highlights
The Rim Drive road is the main thoroughfare through the park. Starting at the South entrance station and ending at “High Point” it stops at the visitor center and offers many scenic overlooks. The various stops highlight different vantage points of the precipitous canyon. Some of our favorites were Tomichi Point, Chasm View and Painted Wall View.
There is also a road on the north rim, but there is no bridge to it inside the park and it’s a 3-4 hour drive out and around to reach it…maybe next time.
We spent several days at this park, but if you are just passing through, it’s possible to drive the south rim road and see the main attractions in an afternoon. Just make sure the road is open!
Pine Creek Trail
While we were in the area, we also took a drive east to hike a portion of the Pine Creek trail in the Curecanti National Recreation Area. This was a fun trail that runs right along the Gunnison river. There used to be a passenger rail line that ran alongside the river and there are a number of informational placards and remnants of the rail system along the trail.
Even though I grew up in Colorado, and Kristy lived there for years, neither of us had spent much time west of the mountains. The blizzard was definitely a challenge, but it was fun to frolic around in the snow, and we really enjoyed our time in the area. Since the Rim Drive is closed in the winter months, we consider ourselves lucky to have been able to see Black Canyon covered in snow.