Colorado Wine Country

Dominating the limitless skyscape of Western Colorado is the massive Grand Mesa, the world’s largest mesa. Situated just to the east of Grand Junction between the Colorado and Gunnison Rivers, and encompassing almost 500 square miles of wooded timberland and more than 100 crystalline lakes, the Grand Mesa truly is Western Colorado’s premier playground. Much of the mesa sits above 10,000 feet in elevation, reaching a maximum of 11,327 feet at Crater Peak, clearly towering above the surrounding Grand Valley.

Colorado’s wine country is equally compelling. The vast majority of Colorado’s vineyards are concentrated in the Grand Valley and Orchard Mesa between Grand Junction and Palisade, and in the valley of the North Fork of the Gunnison River near Hotchkiss and Paonia. In all, Colorado is home to more than 80 wineries and the highest vineyards in the U.S. The region has received two highly coveted, federally mandated American Viticultural Area (AVA) designations.

In the course of this seven – day cycling trip, we’ll tour both AVA regions, climb the Grand Mesa that links the two areas, visit Colorado National Monument and ride along the Colorado River bike trail through Glenwood Canyon before we’re finished.

We’ll assemble in Grand Junction (van shuttle from the Denver airport available) and ride into the Colorado National Monument early morning of Day 2. We’ll climb to the monument’s summit along historic Rim Rock Drive in what will be a worthy tune-up for the Grand Mesa. We’ll spend much of the day exploring the park’s stunning red rock formations, including an optional hike to the sandstone grotto of Devil’s Kitchen. We’ll ride to Palisade later in the afternoon and spend our first of two overnights in the heart of Colorado’s fruited fields.

Day 3 will be devoted to a tour of the many vineyards of the Grand Valley and Orchard Mesa. Early morning of Day 4, the Mesa awaits and we’ll climb from the Colorado River along the Grand Mesa Scenic Byway to its crest, some 6,000 feet above the valley floor. The views of the San Juans to the south are incredible as we begin our descent to Cedaredge, where we’ll spend the night.

We’ll explore the vineyards and wineries along the West Elks Loop on Day 5 and then ride to Paonia for an overnight. Day 6, we’ll continue upstream along the North Fork of the Gunnison to the summit of McClure Pass (8,755 feet), and then plunge into the Crystal River Valley and our final overnight in Redstone.

We’ll continue downstream along the Crystal River on our final morning, with grand views of imposing Mount Sopris much of the way. We’ll join the Roaring Fork bike trail at Carbondale as it follows the Roaring Fork to its confluence with the Colorado River in Glenwood Springs. The Roaring Fork Trail joins the Colorado River Trail as it parallels the river through incomparable Glenwood Canyon. Our last 19 miles will be on the scenic, paved bike trail through the canyon to the community of Dotsero. Here the Timberline van will be waiting to shuttle us back to Denver for the conclusion of our Colorado Wine Country Cycling Tour.