PLAN A COLORADO

FAMILY SKI VACATION

"I want to go camping!" Innocent babes, with five simple words, inspire simultaneous excitement and dread in their parents. One of Colorado's most popular outdoor activities, and great fun for kids, camping still calls for planning ahead and knowing what you are getting into.


Nature at its Best

Whether you are camping in Colorado's high country, or in the red rock desert canyons of Western Colorado, or on the eastern wind swept prairies, the great expanses, fresh air, and spectacular scenery of the state offer nature at its best. An added bonus: camping offers an inexpensive lodging alternative to more deluxe accommodations.



The kind of camping you choose depends on the ages of your kids, plus your family's interests, experience in the outdoors, and length of your camping trip. Also, the goals of the trip come into play. A vacation from the city's summer heat with a getaway to a cool mountain lake will be an entirely different trip from an exploration of ancient cultures at Mesa Verde.


Here we've listed and described different approaches to camping, to help your family plan the adventures that fit you style the best.





In many places, vacationers also commonly drive their cars or SUVs along a dusty Forest Service road until finding a nice camp spot to stop and pitch a tent. In Forest Service lingo, this is known as “dispersed camping”, and again with some restrictions, it is a common way to enjoy remote settings and solitude. The camping is primitive and you must bring or treat your own water, deal appropriately with your human waste, and pack out your trash.


Alternatives include established National Park Service, National Forest Service, BLM, or State Park campgrounds. Slightly more improved, these areas have designated campsites, which can often be reserved ahead of time. Usually a picnic table, a fire grate, and outhouses are provided. Most also provide drinking water and trash removal. A few provide amenities such as showers, playgrounds, and electrical hookups. The campgrounds on government lands are frequently situated in very pretty settings, and campsites are spaced and arranged to offer a degree of privacy for campers. Check the area’s website to see if you can reserve a spot ahead of time.



Several National and State Parks visitors the option of reserving tent cabins or yurts. You bring your own gear, like sleeping bags and cookware and eating utensils, but the basic structure and often cots or bunks are provided. This is a good option for families who want to try camping without making a commitment to too much expensive equipment.



Travelers with RVs that require hookups (water and electricity) often must opt for commercially owned campgrounds. Frequently these offer slightly less scenic settings and more congested camping, although they also often offer such amenities as swimming pools, game rooms, showers, and laundry facilities.




Camping out offers families the chance to experience nature in a way they never can when they sleep indoors. Something special happens when kids get marshmallow goo stuck to their cheeks and stay up late watching orange lights dance in the campfire’s embers. Nothing takes the place of rising from a warm sleeping bag to head to the outhouse with your little one, only to be stunned by the blizzard of stars overhead. And to awaken later, to birds singing and pine needle shadows on the canvas. No wonder camping ranks with the most popular of outdoor recreational activities in Colorado.