Dozen Distinctive Destinations
Glenwood Springs, CO
Year Listed: 2004
Nestled in a beautiful valley on the western slope of the Colorado Rockies, Glenwood Springs (pop. 7,700) was developed as a health resort in the late 1800s. Today, the town offers travelers limitless opportunities for adventure, sightseeing and relaxation in a richly historic setting. Sightseers will delight in the town's many turn-of-the-century buildings, including quaint bed-and-breakfasts and a handsome - and still active - railroad station. The variety of dining and shopping opportunities on and around Main Street will keep parents busy, while kids will get a kick out of visits to a historic ghost town, the Glenwood Railroad Museum, the Frontier Historical Museum, or the grave of the town's best-known resident, cardshark and gunfighter Doc Holliday. Explorers can go mountain climbing or caving at the Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park and Iron Mountain Tramway, a series of caves stretching 16,000 feet into Iron Mountain. Winter brings skiing and snowboarding as well as ice skating and ice climbing; in warmer months, visitors have their choice of hiking, rafting, biking and fishing in scenic Glenwood Canyon and other nearby natural areas. Celebrations such as Strawberry Days, Summer of Jazz and the Groove Grass festival keep days and nights lively throughout the year - and the reward for all this activity is the chance to chill out (or warm up) with a relaxing dip in the world's largest outdoor hot-springs pool. "Whether you want exertion or relaxation, Glenwood Springs can give it to you," said National Trust President Richard Moe. "I've spent lots of time in Colorado, and I don't know of many other places that offer such a wide variety of ways to have fun in a beautiful setting steeped in Rocky Mountain history."
