10 Best Colorado Mountain Towns, According to a Lifelong Local

"As someone who grew up in a Colorado mountain town-and still calls one home-I've spent a lifetime getting to know my home state, often visiting friends, attending festivals, or skiing in neighboring mountain communities. My ideal Colorado mountain town has a laid-back attitude, an adventurous spirit, and a calendar filled with events that make the most of the their incredible natural setting-from live music in outdoor venues to film festivals that take place beneath the stars."

"Durango is a larger mountain town, and thanks to its size, it has a bit of everything. There's kayaking and rafting on the Animas River that runs through town, hiking part of the Colorado Trail, and easy access to mountain biking in the Horse Gulch trail system, which takes off from right in town. There's also skiing at Purgatory Resort and hot springs at Durango Hot Springs Resort & Spa, which has 32 natural mineral pools and personal Japanese-style ofuro tubs."

"There is plenty of hiking and biking in Salida-in fact, it is surrounded by several 14,000-foot peaks (or what we Coloradans call "14ers"). But what really makes Salida stand out as a mountain town is its focus on the water. The heart of this town is the Arkansas River, which flows right through town and is a popular place to raft, tube, and kayak. The mountain town also has easy access to skiing at nearby Monarch Mountain (which recently nearly doubled in size)."

Ten Colorado mountain towns combine laid-back attitudes, adventurous spirits, and event calendars that leverage natural settings with outdoor music and film festivals beneath the stars. These towns balance rugged outdoor access with refined amenities, letting visitors disappear into high-country solitude and return for cocktails, dining, and cultural events. Durango offers Animas River rafting and kayaking, Colorado Trail hiking, Horse Gulch mountain biking, skiing at Purgatory Resort, and Durango Hot Springs Resort & Spa with 32 natural mineral pools and Japanese-style ofuro tubs; Salida sits amid multiple 14,000-foot peaks and centers on the Arkansas River for rafting, tubing, kayaking, and access to Monarch Mountain skiing. Visually, Telluride appears idyllic, surrounded on three sides by mountains with a quaint Main Street lined with Victorian homes and buildings.

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