Royal Gorge

The Royal Gorge Region of Colorado is full of sweeping mountain vistas and wonderful hiking/biking trails. We stayed in Canon City, which is the hub of the area and has an abundance of attractions. The Royal Gorge Railroad took us on a fabulous journey through the steep and narrow canyon with spectacular views. The Tunnel Drive trail provided a much higher vantage point to view the Arkansas River and surrounding mountains. The tunnels were first blasted out of rock in 1892 as part of an irrigation project. In 1908, the tunnels were enlarged for horse and buggies using convicts as laborers. It was definitely very cool to be able to ride our bikes through the tunnels, being careful not to get to close to the edge!! Skyline Drive is another spectacular road that was built by convicts in the early 1900’s. It travels on a narrow ridge and has a steep descent with hairpin turns. Thankfully it is a one-way road! The Arkansas Riverwalk Trail goes through the town along the river, and connected with multiple other tails. It was convenient and beautiful to run, bike, hike or go birding along the river. We had some great evening hikes at Royal Gorge Park with incredible views and amazing sunsets.

We are headed to higher elevation in Montrose, Colorado next, on our way to Utah!