Grand Junction

Following the Colorado River, now a brown torrent, through canyons becoming familiar from many a Western film and more and more desert-like, we suddenly shot out into the green oasis of the Grand Valley and the town of Grand Junction www.visitgrandjunction.com/ . The juxtaposition of the lush vineyards and the arid desert buttes and mesas is amazing (top). This is the heart of Colorado wine country, so naturally we had to tour and sample a few! We toured Plum Creek Cellars www.plumcreekwinery.com/ (middle), Canyon Wind www.canyonwindcellars.com/ and Varaison Vineyards www.varaisonvineyards.com/ where Alex educated us on the wines in a lively and fun style (bottom). To compliment the excellent wines, we dined in style at 626 on Rood www.626onrood.com/ and enjoyed the hospitality of the Grand Vista Hotel www.grandvistahotel.com/ .

Colorado National Monument

The Grand Finale of our trip was indeed Grand: just outside of Grand Junction is the Colorado National Monument www.nps.gov/ . It’s a 23,000 acre wonderland of shadowed canyons, soaring rock pillars and almost two billion years of earth history carved in sandstone. Jennifer Grossheim Harris from Grand Junction CVB guided us along Rim Rock Drive, a road through the Monument whose every twist and turn reveals a stunning vista, an inviting trail, a patchwork glory of light and shadows cast on the awesome scenery. As I sat on the edge of a canyon breathing in the solitude of this spectacular place, I understood why Colorado calls to so many visitors in so many different ways. Heed the call and plan a trip to this heart of the American West.