Bottom Line: Welcoming and helpful staff, clean bathrooms, water bottle refilling station and…read moreplenty of parking. Upon arriving in Ouray my husband and I stopped at the Visitor Center. For starters, I like that the building seems to be an old train depot. We were immediately greeted by Patty and she was incredibly welcoming and helpful. She was able to answer all of our questions about sites, hiking, parking and stuff to see on our trek back down to Durango. Also, she did an awesome job juggling multiple visitors. After a long drive we also appreciated the clean restroom and place to refill our water bottles. Oh, and there was plenty of parking out back. I can't imagine a better welcoming to Ouray!

Stopped in at the visitor center on our drive through town as he wanted a map of the area. It's a…read morecute building with an upstairs and downstairs. There was a volunteer who got testy with me when I went looking for the locally made goods their signage seemed to advertise. Apparently I was wrong and they don't sell goods there. There's a spot to take a selfie with the landscape of Ouray - they have a picture hung where you can do that. And there's a lovely photo of trees with their fall colors as well. Lots of maps and informational brochures. And a water bottle filler plus restrooms. It's a good place to stop for information and to take a break.

Where to start? I love a National Park and this is no exception. Black Canyon of the Gunnison is a…read morefairly understated park, as in many folks don't know about it. It's further out west in Colorado so it takes a bit of effort to find yourself here but you will be rewarded if you venture out west. First of all this part of Colorado is gorgeous and a bit less traveled so you'll have more space to yourself which is lovely. The canyon itself is incredible. It reminded me a lot of the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone if you've ever seen that. We did several smaller hikes around the rim as we had little kids in tow. Be sure to hold onto those small hands as I was pretty nervous about them falling in since it's just a big ol' drop around the edges. All that being said, this is a great park and I'd love to return sometimes without kids or when the kids are older to do one of the bigger hikes.

I didn't have the highest expectations going into our trip to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National…read morePark. I didn't know too much about the park and was a bit disappointed that we had to nix the plans to do our large hike in the North Rim of the park. That being said, BCGNP far surpassed all expectations on just our very first overlook - Tomichi Point - within minutes of driving into the South Rim. I was not prepared for the sheer beauty of the canyons. The South Rim is so very different from the North Rim, so if you only have time to go to one, make sure to do your research. The South Rim is much more developed, more popular, has plenty of tiny hikes and overlooks, and brings the easy, classic beauty. The South Rim drive is an easy 7 miles and features 12 overlooks with the longest hike to the overlook being about 0.5 of a mile. And most of the hikes are more like walks. Stunning views, perfect for sunset. You'll also find the BCGNP visitor center on the South Rim drive. The North Rim is much more underdeveloped and less visited. We visited in the late afternoon and only ran into one other group of people while driving their scenic North Rim drive. I believe it's about 4.5 miles, and it is unpaved - that being said, we drove it in a Toyota Corolla without any issues. These overlooks are equally gorgeous but give you a different perspective of the canyon. You'll find a lot of the bigger hikes in the North Rim. While we weren't able to fit one into our schedule, we did do part of the North Vista Trail to see Exclamation Point - wonderful hike, wish we had been able to do the full trail. Overall, I wasn't sure what I was expecting when I visited Black Canyon of the Gunnison, but it definitely wasn't how breathtakingly beautiful this park is. 100% worth a stop, and if all you do is stop at their overlooks, you will still get to experience so much beauty.

I had an awesome time visiting box canyon waterfall while in Ouray! I came with my husband and…read moretoddler children. They absolutely loved it! Great for all ages. The waterfall was a lot bigger than I thought it would be. It was super loud inside of the canon which made it all the more exciting. Check out both the lower and upper box canon falls trails. The lower falls trail gets very close to the waterfall, we were getting wet from the spray we were so close. The upper trail has a great view of Ouray and a fun bridge to cross that leads into a tunnel. It is $7 for each adult, but super seniors, military, and children under 4 are free! No dogs allowed in the park. I don't think the dogs would want to come anyway with the metal bridges and aggressively loud waterfall. If you are in Ouray in the summertime this needs to be on your itinerary!

Truly magnificent. The lower trail is easy for all levels, it has stable footing and minimal…read moreelevation changes, yet still offers beautiful views of the creek, and waterfalls along steel walkways and short trail. There are also stairs to near bottom of the waterfall. The high bridge trail is much more challenging, although one can opt to only climb the stair portion for a better view of Ouray and a little cardio. At the top of the stairs there is a small shelter, if you're feeling the altitude at this point it's a good idea not to continue further, as the trail continues to climb and there are no stairs/structure. There is a cable above the trail in sections for stability, and cables below some sections for safety. I'd guess the top of the stairs is a little less than half way to the high bridge. The bridge is a very sturdy structure, over a steep narrow gorge, the views of Box Cañon, the creek, waterfall, and town below are breathtaking. There is a hallway-like tunnel on the far side of the bridge, which is part of the perimeter trail. It's low in some spots but walkable, and offers some shade and cooling after the climb. The trail was drub when we went, it would be significantly more challenging/difficult with any moisture or icy conditions.

Telluride seems like a nice place but I never got a chance to find out. I was traveling through the…read morearea after 9pm in the between season and there was absolutely no place to stay. Out of a dozen calls, only one live voice. Verrry disappointing. Not even a cheap roadside motel.

Unemotional, uninspiring help that undervalue all of what Telluride is about. Just wanted to get…read moresome input on some local hikes.

Closed for the season. Reopening in May. Luckily the restrooms were open so we headed in. There's a…read morewater bottle filler station which was handy. The women's restroom was fairly clean. Not stocked with toilet paper but they had hand soap so that was fine. Parking lot not large but enough. Also the start of the Discovery Trail is right there and Cobbett Lake.

Kind friendly owners who are willing to take the time to help you get what you need. And very…read morehelpful on what flys to use.

Spectacular area with great trails. Lake is right next to visitor center…read more Rangers were very helpful in identifying different peaks and mmk lakes. Nice gift shop too. And the restrooms are very neat!

Nice visitor center! Located in the South Rim of Black Canyon of the Gunnison, if you're planning…read moreon visiting the North Rim and have any questions, highly recommend stopping here - the North Rim is a lot more remote and does not have a visitor center. There were plenty of park rangers helping everyone when we visited. We had quite a few questions on the North Rim, and they were able to help us plan our visit there without issue. They have a nice bookstore with plenty of BCGNP merch. Plenty of exhibits to learn more about the park. One of the most important things - they have WiFi. South Rim does not have any internet service, so if you need to look something up for your trip and plug in a route on maps for your trip down the mountain, great stop to get that sorted out. Also has bathrooms - always a plus. Parking can be a bit chaotic here. The lot was full, but there's a lot of movement as people don't stay very long. If you don't find a spot on your first drive-through, you'll have to leave the lot, go back to the road, and circle back. Definitely recommend stopping by, especially if you're planning a visit to the North Rim.

Really nice little visitor's center! 4/5 as while it has a pretty thorough museum with some great…read moreinfo the gift shop is SMALL and there are no indoor restrooms. Not a dealbreaker as it's still a nice spot with pretty nice park rangers. I found the gift shop employees here to be a bit less friendly than other National Parks I've visited, but my kiddo still earned a Jr. Ranger badge and we still had a great time exploring and using this spot as our starting off point.

The Grand Mesa Scenic Drive is a definite must esp during the fall. The aspen tress are bright…read moreyellow along the mountain and the air is fresh and so inviting. The lakes are beautiful and the wildlife are plenty. There are no cars on this road and it is just a spectacular easy drive for any car. No need for a 4x4 unless you would like to go down through Land End's. So pack a lunch and some snacks and spend the entire day there. You won't regret it. Fyi- don't forget to visit the observatory. You have a great view of grand junction and it's vicinities. Also lots of chipmunks that are not afraid of people so bring some nuts.

Came here to camp with a friend over the weekend. We did not get to explore much but from what i…read moresaw of the area, there was a lot of camping, a visitors center, lots of lakes for boating and fishing, so much hiking. The roads are dirt so be prepared for that. There is a fee for camping. Most ranged from $12 to $20 a night at the sites we checked out. They have a envelope to pay cash with at the entrance of each camping area.