About Central Colorado

About Central Colorado

Either before or after your ride with ABA, opportunities abound for fun adventure beyond the town borders of Salida.  There are dozens of 13,000 and 14,000 foot mountains to climb, rivers to raft, ghost towns to explore, trout to catch and mountain views to lose yourself in.

Here are some of our favorites:

Soaking up Mountain Sunshine in local hot springs.

Mount Princeton Hot Springs – Located up the Chalk Creek Valley north of Salida, the Ute Indians used to winter here next to the hot springs.  Today it’s the site of two large, kid-friendly pools and great hot pools right in Chalk Creek itself.  There is also a restaurant, bar, lodging and most importantly, a wter slide.  www.mtprinceton.com, 719-395-2447

Saint Elmo Ghost Town – Continue up the road past Mount Princeton Hot Springs (CR 162) and drive until you reach the ghost town of Saint Elmo.  It’s one of Colorado’s best preserved ghost towns from the gold mining rush that hit this area in the late 1800s.  Many of the original buildings are still standing.  Saint Elmo is also the starting point of our popular Downhill and Historic Rides.  www.st-elmo.com

The boardwalk in downtown Saint Elmo.

Brown’s Canyon Whitewater Rafting – Located in a roadless canyon between Salida and Buena Vista, Brown’s Canyon is one of the best and most popular whitewater rafting runs in the USA, with lots of exciting rapids.  Ask at any rafting company for the complete rundown.  For those who don’t want to run whitewater, there are other sections of the Arkansas River where the rafting is much more mellow.  You can also paddle a little Duckie raft on the mellow sections and the fishing is good too.

Great Sand Dunes National Park – Okay, so it’s really not that close, but 90 minutes south of Salida lies one of the coolest places in the entire United States.  Sand dunes 700 feet high and a river that flows in waves in the spring.  You can camp in the dunes, pretend you’re at the beach, climb to the highest point and enjoy this incredible natural place.  The Dunes lie at the base of the beautiful Sangre de Cristo mountain range that includes the dramatic Crestone Peaks group.  www.nps.gov/grsa/index.htm

Great Sand Dunes NP and the Crestone Peaks

Buena Vista South Main Street – Just one town to the north, we like what is happening on the south end of main street.  Check out the new whitewater park, hiking and biking trails, climbing rocks and the Eddyline Restaurant and Brewery, www.eddylinepub.com.  South Main Information, www.southmainco.com.