Quick Half-Day Colorado National Monument Itinerary for First-Timers
If you’re wondering how to take advantage of half a day in the Colorado National Monument, this itinerary is for you! This Colorado National Monument itinerary will cover all the best short hikes and the scenic drive, so that you can see it all in half a day.
The Colorado National Monument is carved into the mountains to the south of Grand Junction. And because of how flat the valley is, you can see the monument from really far away. It’s a bunch of half-ovals on the side of the mountain, with cute, tiny spires spread out between them.
Then you get up close and you realize some of those tiny spires are thousands of feet tall. It’s an impressive place!
Let’s get straight into this Colorado National Monument itinerary!
How to get to the Colorado National Monument
The easiest way to get to the Colorado National Monument is to fly to Grand Junction. The Grand Junction Regional Airport receives flights from Dallas, Phoenix, Orange County, San Francisco, Las Vegas, Salt Lake City and Denver.
If you’re driving, the Colorado National Monument is 5 hours (262 miles) from Denver and 4 hours and 40 minutes (287 miles) from Salt Lake City.
Grand Junction and the Colorado National Monument are typically stops on road trips, usually Colorado road trips.
However, it’s also close enough to Utah and Arches National Park to make it part of the Grand Circle road trip, which goes through 6 national parks and all the wonders of the American Southwest.
Half-Day Colorado National Monument Itinerary
This itinerary includes the Visitor Center, scenic drive and a few key hikes and outlooks!
1. Western Entrance
Enter the Colorado National Monument from the Western Entrance, which is the one closest to the Saddlehorn Visitor Center. Starting on the west side works best because you get more activities straight off the bat and you save the best views for last.
2. Visitor Center
The Visitor Center is a great place to learn about the park, and you can get a park stamp here just like at the Visitor Centers of national parks. I’m a big fan of Visitor Centers… you can get a lot of value from them, whether by learning about each park or by talking to the park rangers about your visit.
3. Canyon Rim
There’s a flat 1-mile roundtrip hike starting right from the Visitor Center.
It’s the Canyon Rim Trail, and it has some of the best views with thousand-foot cliffs. You can walk right up to the edge of these cliffs. The views are outstanding and you get to see the whole canyon spread out before you with its spires and other formations.
From the Canyon Rim, look for the spire called the Kissing Couple. Let me know if you see it!
You can either stop at the Bookcliff View Shelter and turn back to make it a 1-mile hike or continue a little bit on the Window Rock Trail. Doing the Window Rock Trail only adds about half a mile of hiking and you get amazing views.
4. Scenic Drive
From the Visitor Center, start driving the same way you were before to continue the scenic drive. Go slowly so you can take it all in!
5. Otto’s Trail
You first stop is Otto’s Trail. It’s only 1 mile roundtrip. You walk on top of a ridge that juts out into the canyon, and you have an even better view of all the spires and formations there because you’re closer.
You can even see the outlooks you were just standing on close to the Visitor Center, and it really puts the cliffs’ height into perspective!
6. Scenic Drive
Hop back in your car and continue driving. The whole drive is a treat, and you have a bunch of outlooks where you can stop, like Grand View, Monument Canyon View Overlook, Artist Point, and Fallen Rock Overlook.
7. Serpent’s Trail
The last stop on this Colorado National Monument itinerary is the Serpent’s Trail. It’s in one of the most impressive parts of the scenic drive, where you’re really up close and personal with the cliffs and formations. The hike leads you through a wildly beautiful landscape.
Coming from your direction, it’s a 1.75 downhill hike the entire way and it ends further down the road. If you have someone in your party who doesn’t want to hike, they can wait below in the car while you hike. Otherwise, someone is going to have to hike 1.75 more miles up with 700 feet of elevation gain.
It would be worth it if you do!
8. Grand Junction
Finish the scenic drive and head back to Grand Junction!
The Best Hikes in Colorado National Monument
If you have more time, you should consider doing one of the super immersive hikes in Colorado National Monument. They all drop into the canyon and are gorgeous.
- Monument Canyon Trail
- Ute Canyon Trail
- No Thoroughfare Canyon Trail
Where to Camp for Free near the Colorado National Monument
There are campgrounds in the Colorado National Monument, which are your best option for paid camping, and outside the park.
But Lala and I, since we’re always trying to save during our long-term road trip, always look for places to sleep for free. The dispersed site we found close to Grand Junction for car camping has been one of our favorites! If you look up Grand Valley OHV Recreation Area, there are a LOT of sites past that.
You have mountains close to you on the north and you can barely see the Colorado National Monument on the side of the southern mountains. It looks tiny from the car camping area!
I created a map of all the free car camping sites I found during my Colorado road trip, and you can access it here for FREE:
If you’re looking for a hotel, you have a ton of great options, from very affordable hotels like the Days Inn by Wyndham Grand Junction or nicer hotels like SpringHill Suites.
And just like that, this Colorado National Monument itinerary has come to an end in just half a day. That’s really all you need to get the gist of the park. All you’re missing is a hike down into the canyon below those gigantic cliffs.
But hey, sometimes you just need to drive through a park to check it off the list! That’s what we did at the Colorado National Monument and it was a pleasant visit to a spectacular park.
If you have any questions at all about the Colorado National Monument or any road trip ideas you’re planning, comment below and I’ll be sure to answer you personally!
