Location: La Junta, CO
Bent's Old Fort National Historic Site features a reconstructed 1840s adobe fur trading post on the mountain branch of the Santa Fe Trail where traders, trappers, travelers, and the Cheyenne and Arapaho tribes came together in peaceful terms for trade. Today, living historians recreate the sights, sounds, and smells of the past with guided tours, demonstrations and special events.
Fees: Per Person - Adults (age 16 and older): $10.00 Children (age 15 and under): Free All park visitors are required to pay an entrance fee or have a valid federal recreation pass to recreate in the park, including walking on the trails. Entrance fees can be paid to a ranger at the entrance of the fort (credit card only) or at Western National Parks Association (WNPA) park store in the back of the fort (all forms of tender accepted). Permits are good for 7 consecutive days. Fees apply to all 16 years & older.
Hours Info: Summer Hours (Memorial Day Weekend to Indigenous Peoples' Day) The fort is open from 8:00 am to 5:30 pm. The gate is open from 7:00 am to 5:30 pm. Winter Hours (the day after Indigenous Peoples' Day to the day before Memorial Day Weekend) The fort is open from 9:00 am to 4:00 pm, except on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day, when the fort will be closed. The gate is open from 7:00 am to 4:00 pm, except on Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year's Day.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/beol/
Location: Montrose, CO
Big enough to be overwhelming, still intimate enough to feel the pulse of time, Black Canyon of the Gunnison exposes you to some of the steepest cliffs, oldest rock, and craggiest spires in North America. With two million years to work, the Gunnison River, along with the forces of weathering, has sculpted this vertical wilderness of rock, water, and sky.
Hours Info: The park is open 24 hours a day, every day, and no entry reservation is needed. The South Rim Road is open to vehicles from early April to mid-November. In winter, the South Rim Road is open to Gunnison Point. The remainder of the road is closed to vehicles, but open to cross country skiing and snowshoeing. South Rim Visitor Center hours are listed on the Basic Information page.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/blca/
Location: Various States CA,CO,ID,KS,MO,NE,NV,OR,UT,WY
Follow in the footsteps of over 250,000 emigrants who traveled to the gold fields and rich farmlands of California during the 1840s and 1850s: the greatest mass migration in American history. The California National Historic Trail is over 5,000 miles long and covers portions of 10 states. Step into history along more than 1,000 miles of ruts and traces from travelers and their overland wagons.
Fees: There are no user or entry fees for the California National Historic Trail. Fees may be charged at some trail-related federal, state, or locally owned historic sites and interpretive facilities. Please contact individual trail sites before visiting for more information.
Hours Info: The California National Historic Trail is not a clearly marked hiking trail. Instead it is a corridor that passes through communities, urban areas, public lands, and Wilderness. The route travels across a variety of land ownerships and management, including private land. Each location varies as to the hours of operation and access. Please contact individual trail sites before your visit for more information.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/cali/
Location: Fruita, CO
Colorado National Monument preserves one of the grand landscapes of the American West. But this treasure is much more than a monument. Towering monoliths exist within a vast plateau and canyon panorama. You can experience sheer-walled, red rock canyons along the twists and turns of Rim Rock Drive, where you may spy bighorn sheep and soaring eagles.
Fees: Allows all people in one private non-commercial vehicle entrance into the Monument. Receipt good for 7 consecutive days. Entrance Fees are paid at the entrance station by credit card, cash or by check. Seven day passes can also be purchased on-line at https://www.yourpassnow.com/parkpass.
Hours Info: The Monument is open 24 hours a day year-round. Rim Rock Road is only closed for poor road conditions (snow, ice, rock fall, etc). For updates on storm or temporary closures call the park hotline at (970) 858-3617 ext 350.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/colm/
Location: Gunnison, CO
Curecanti National Recreation Area is a series of three reservoirs along the once wild Gunnison River. The reservoirs that make up Curecanti today are a destination for water-based recreation high in the Rocky Mountains. Best known for salmon and trout fishing, Curecanti also offers opportunities for hiking, boating, camping, and bird watching.
Fees: There is no entrance fee for Curecanti. Visitors traveling to East Portal through the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park entrance must pay $30.00 per vehicle. It covers all persons in a single, private, noncommercial vehicle and is valid for seven calendar days.
Hours Info: Open 24 hours per day, 365 days per year, weather permitting.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/cure/
Location: Vernal, Utah & Dinosaur, Colorado, CO,UT
Dinosaurs once roamed here. Their fantastic remains are still visibly embedded in the rocks. Today, the mountains, desert, and untamed rivers flowing in deep canyons support an array of life. Petroglyphs hint at earlier cultures. Later, homesteaders and outlaws found refuge here. Whether your passion is science, adventure, history or scenery, Dinosaur offers much to explore.
Fees: Admits one private, non-commercial vehicle (14 passenger capacity or less) and all occupants.
Hours Info: The outdoor areas in the monument is open 24 hours per day. Facilities such as visitor centers and the Quarry Exhibit Hall have specific hours of operation. Visit the Operating Hours & Seasons page for more information on facility hours. Some areas of the monument may close in the winter due to snow.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/dino/
Location: Florissant, CO
Beneath a grassy mountain valley in central Colorado lies one of the richest and most diverse fossil deposits in the world. Petrified redwood stumps up to 14 feet wide and thousands of detailed fossils of insects and plants reveal the story of a very different, prehistoric Colorado.
Fees: Per person for individuals 16 years old or older. Good for 7 days.
Hours Info: Spring, Summer, and Fall Hours (March 14, 2021 - November 5, 2021) are 9:00 AM - 5 PM
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/flfo/
Location: Mosca, CO
Open 24/7 year round! There are no reservations to visit or limit on the number of visitors in the park and preserve, but there is currently limited capacity in the visitor center. The tallest dunes in North America are the centerpiece in a diverse landscape of grasslands, wetlands, forests, alpine lakes, and tundra. Explore this website to learn more!
Fees: Passenger vehicle with all occupants; fee valid for 7 days.
Hours Info: The park and preserve are open 24/7 all year
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/grsa/
Location: Blanding, Utah & Cortez, Colorado, CO,UT
Once home to over 2,500 people, Hovenweep includes six prehistoric villages built between A.D. 1200 and 1300. Explore a variety of structures, including multistory towers perched on canyon rims and balanced on boulders. The construction and attention to detail will leave you marveling at the skill and motivation of the builders.
Hours Info: Hovenweep National Monument is generally open year-round. Park trails are open only sunrise to sunset.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/hove/
Location: Cortez and Mancos, CO
This wild landscape of deep canyons and expansive vistas is home to over a thousand species, including several that live nowhere else on earth. For over 700 years, the Ancestral Pueblo people built thriving communities on the mesas and in the cliffs of Mesa Verde. Today, the park protects the rich cultural heritage of 26 tribes and offers visitors a spectacular window into the past.
Fees: This is a per-vehicle entrance fee for the summer season (May 1 to October 31, 2020). It is valid for seven days from the day of purchase. Please note that we offer fee waivers for qualified education groups. Visit http://www.nps.gov/meve/learn/education/feewaiver_info.htm to learn more.
Hours Info: The park is open, but services are limited. For more information on services, please visit https://www.nps.gov/meve/planyourvisit/ops_updates_covid19.htm.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/meve/
Location: AZ,CA,CO,NV,NM,UT
Follow the routes of mule pack trains across the Southwest on the Old Spanish National Historic Trail between Santa Fe, New Mexico, and Los Angeles, California. New Mexican traders moved locally produced merchandise across what are now six states to exchange for mules and horses.
Fees: There are no user or entry fees for the Old Spanish National Historic Trail. Fees may be charged at some trail-related federal, state, or locally owned historic sites and interpretive facilities. Please contact individual trail sites before visiting for more information.
Hours Info: There are many places of history and commemoration on the Old Spanish National Historic Trail to visit. Museums, interpretive centers, and historic sites provide information and interpretation. Please contact each site before you go to obtain current information on closures, changes in hours, and fees.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/olsp/
Location: Various States CA,CO,KS,MO,NE,NV,UT,WY
It is hard to believe that young men once rode horses to carry mail from Missouri to California in the unprecedented time of only 10 days. This relay system along the Pony Express National Historic Trail in eight states was the most direct and practical means of east-west communications before the telegraph.
Fees: There are no user or entry fees for the Pony Express National Historic Trail. Fees may be charged at some trail-related federal, state, or locally owned historic sites and interpretive facilities. Please contact individual trail sites before visiting for more information.
Hours Info: The Pony Express National Historic Trail is not a clearly marked hiking trail. Instead it is a route that passes through communities, urban areas, public lands, and Wilderness. The route travels across a variety of land ownerships and management, including private land. Each location varies as to the hours of operations and access. Please contact individual trail sites before your visit for more information.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/poex/
Location: Estes Park and Grand Lake, CO
Rocky Mountain National Park's 415 square miles (265,807 acres) encompasses a spectacular range of mountain environments. From meadows found in the montane life zone to the glistening lakes in the subalpine zone and to the mountain peaks located in the alpine zone, there is something for everyone to discover. Along the way explore over 300 miles of hiking trails and incredible wildlife viewing.
Fees: Valid for date of purchase. Covers single, non-commercial vehicle with capacity of less than 16 passengers.
Hours Info: While certain roads and facilities may be closed, the park is open 24 hours a day, 365 days a year.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/romo/
Location: Kiowa County, CO
The Sand Creek Massacre: profound, symbolic, spiritual, controversial, a site unlike any other in America. As 675 cavalrymen came around a prairie bend, the camps of Chiefs Black Kettle, White Antelope, and Left Hand lay in the valley before them. Chaotic, horrific, tumultuous, and bloody, the events of November 29, 1864 changed the course of history.
Fees: There is no fee to visit Sand Creek Massacre National Historic Site.
Hours Info: Sand Creek Massacre NHS is open Thursday through Monday, 9:00 am to 4:00 pm, and closed Tuesday and Wednesday.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/sand/
Location: CO,KS,MO,NM,OK
You can almost hear the whoops and cries of "All's set!" as trail hands hitched their oxen to freight wagons carrying cargo between western Missouri and Santa Fe, New Mexico. Follow the Santa Fe National Historic Trail through five states and you'll find adventure and evidence of past travelers who made this remarkable trip before you!
Fees: There are no user or entry fees for the Santa Fe National Historic Trail. Fees may be charged at some trail-related federal, state, or locally owned historic sites and interpretive facilities. Please contact individual trail sites before visiting for more information.
Hours Info: There are many places of history and commemoration on the Santa Fe National Historic Trail to visit. Museums, interpretive centers, and historic sites provide information and interpretation. Please contact each site before you go to obtain current information on closures, changes in hours, and fees.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/safe/
Location: Cortez, CO
Yucca House National Monument preserves a large unexcavated pueblo with a stunning setting in Montezuma Valley, nestled between Mesa Verde and Ute Mountain. Since Yucca House was protected as a national monument in 1919, it has remained largely untouched, offering intrepid visitors a sense of discovery and preserving the pueblo's beauty and integrity for future generations.
Fees: There is no entrance fee for Yucca House National Monument.
Hours Info: Open year-round, weather pending. No services are available.
More Info: https://www.nps.gov/yuho/