4 Day Trips From Fort Collins That Will Make Any Day An Adventure.
Whether you live in Laramie County or are just passing by, it is the cairn that leads you to many adventures. There are many national parks and open spaces within an hour of FOCO to make any day exciting. See below to review four of the best outdoor spots in Northern Colorado.
Lory State Park
https://cpw.state.co.us/placestogo/parks/Lory/Pages/default.aspx
Located just 25 minutes away from downtown Fort Collins, Lory State Park has many activities to spend your day in the sun. There are many things to do at LSP for example, hike, picnic, mountain bike, and ride a horse through one of the many trails. The possibilities are endless. Focusing on the trails there are 12, each ranging from low to high difficulty and lengths. The trails at LSP are friendly to anyone no matter their athletic ability, and it’s a great place to spend a summer day with friends or family.
Check out this photo story on Arthur's rock trail: https://cpw.state.co.us/placestogo/parks/Lory/Pages/Arthurs-Rock.aspx
Devil’s Backbone Open Space
https://www.larimer.org/naturalresources/parks/devils-backbone
Devil’s Bone is a very scenic public open space located just outside of Loveland, Colorado. Again just a 25-minute drive from downtown Fort Collins, devils backbone has a lot to offer. Devils backbone trail starts at the trailhead in the open space parking lot and can take bikers all the way up through the scenic 6 mile Indian Summit loop trail to Horsetooth reservoir in Fort Collins. Devil’s backbone is known most for its interesting rock formations along the trailhead and some trails, (see image below).
Poudre River
https://www.fs.usda.gov/detail/arp/specialplaces/?cid=stelprdb5150293
Poudre Canyon is home to the well-known Poudre River that flows right through Fort Collins. If you follow the river west you can be led to many sights and activities for wonderful adventures. The Cache la Poudre River has many places for fishing, tubing, and white water rafting if the water isn’t too high of course. The Poudre River connects to the seaman reservoir 30 minutes north of downtown Fort Collins which provides adrenaline junkies a great place to cliff jump in late spring or early summer. And of course, you could always just take a nice drive along the river on Poudre Canyon Rd.
Rocky Mountain National Park
https://www.nps.gov/romo/planyourvisit/index.htm
Couldn’t leave the notorious Rocky Mountain National Park out of this list. There are so many great opportunities that come from it, and with spectacular views, a day trip to RMNP would be one for the photobooks. For those looking for a scare, Trail Ridge Road climbs above the treeline climbing 4,000 feet swiftly with narrow roads and large drops on either side. (NPS.gov.). To experience more of RMNP’s beauty the Emerald Lake trail takes you deep into the wilderness and brings you next to three other lakes, Bear Lake, Nymph Lake, and Dream lake before your final destination, Emerald Lake.
