Hot Springs and Hikes in Colorado

Waking up in the mountains is something I don’t think I could ever get tired of. Being able to step outside and see a rocky landscape littered with trees first thing in the morning is unexplainable. We woke up not feeling the greatest due to our little endeavor the night before (aka it’s true-alcohol and altitude don’t mix well). Needless to say, I slept every moment I could while we drove from place to place, and we missed out on a few hikes we had intended to do.

Although it had been a pretty lazy day, we still accomplished a few things. We headed to Estes Park and then to Rocky Mountain National Park. I definitely plan to go back and actually explore the area more; do some hikes, etc. While we were there however, we drove the Trail Ridge Road. The road was still partially closed, so it was an out and back drive if you will. As we climbed through the mountains, snow started appearing on the ground next to us until there were mounds higher than the cars. Reaching as far as we could go, we came to an overlook giving way to some of the most amazing views I’ve ever seen. It was also my first time ever seeing elk while we were there!

After sleeping for a few more hours Michael woke me up around dusk. We were about to head into the Eisenhower tunnel and he wanted to make sure I didn’t miss it. Our destination from there was a little BLM campground near Kremmling. We arrived when it was dark, so as soon as we got there we called it a night. The next day was much better and more exciting.

We woke up, made breakfast, and started off a short hike to Radium Hot Springs. These were the first springs I’d gone in and it couldn’t have been a better experience. The water was the perfect temperature, it was located right on the Colorado river with train tracks running across the other side, and the best part was no one else was around. Spending probably a couple of hours there, we went back to the van and headed out.

Remember how I said this day was much better? Well we ran into another technical difficulty. Michael wanted to go to Hanging Lake, but a few days prior they closed it off to start making it a permitted hike with a shuttle to get there. This being due to the area getting so popular and being degraded because of it. The news set us back a bit, so we drove back towards Glenwood Springs to decide what our agenda would be from there. The decision was to hike up Red Mountain. We sat on a bench overlooking the town, played a bit of I Spy, and on the way down climbed through a drain pipe.

On the road again, apparently we thought one hot spring for the day wasn’t good enough. I’m telling you, once you experience them you’re hooked. We stopped at Penny Hot Springs and chatted to some people we met there for awhile. On our way we also passed a little waterfall off the side of the road that was worth stopping for.

Vanlife has its pros and cons, and a little bit of in between. Something that lies in that gray area is finding a spot to sleep at night. Most of the time we slept in National Forests, Walmart parking lots, BLM land, rest areas, or just little pull offs along the roads. This particular night we started to drive down Kebler pass in Gunnison County and figured we would find something down the road. Mind you, there was a sign that said the pass was closed but I guess we just decided to ignore that one. Either way, the drive was beautiful. We did end up climbing higher into the snow yet again and reaching an impassable section of the road. But that was okay. After backtracking a little, we found a pull off on the road, backed the van up, opened the backdoors, and enjoyed the nice mountain sunset.