Top Summer Mountain Towns in Colorado, A trip to Crested Butte

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Without a doubt one of the best places to be in the summer time are the mountains, especially in Colorado. Throughout the state you will find historic mountain towns filled lots of outdoor recreation, cooler summer temps, and of course landscape views that don’t seem real at first site. After hearing great things about Crested Butte and seeing photos, I decided to plan a summer trip and discover what summer and the wildflower hype were really like in Crested Butte.

In this post I’ll be going over where to stay, restaurants that are worth checking out, what activities to add to your itinerary, and the best time to visit. Coool, lets do this.

Where is Crested Butte

Crested Butte is going to be South West of Denver and actually pretty close to Aspen even though there isn’t a direct road connecting the towns. The closest airport will be in Gunnison, a little over 25 miles from downtown CB. If you plan on driving or flying into Denver, the main route to Crested Butte will be through towns Leadville along with Buena Vista and then up and over Cottonwood Pass. Below I listed areas in Colorado and how far they are from Crested Butte.

*If you do plan on driving over Cottonwood Pass, just know that it is a series of switchbacks and to take it slow!

Denver: 4 Hours/190 Miles

Salida:1 hour 50 minutes/92 Miles

Colorado Springs: 3 hours and 30 minutes/161 miles

The drive itself is also really scenic, and worth stopping at the top of Cottonwood pass if you have time. The drive through small towns, winding canyons, and over mountains passes is one of the best parts of traveling around through Colorado as you make your way towards the destination.

Where to Stay

Lodging is unique in Crested Butte in that you can either stay in town or up near the resort, which is considered Mount Crested Butte. I stayed in a nice 2 bedroom closer to Mount Crested Butte, but about a 10 minute Drive to the downtown area.

Is there Camping close to town

Campgrounds are limited near town however there are a few really good ones. Outside of town there will be a number of campgrounds. You can reserve online ahead of time at recreation.gov. I stayed at the O Be Joyful Campground, about 20 minutes from town, but there is also the Gothic Campground. These will be paid sites with bathroom facilities, picnic tables, places to store trash, and fire pits.

If you don’t want to pay for camping, check The Dyrt app for primitive campsites in the area. Two of the best areas for primitive camping are Teocalli Ridge and Kebler Pass!

What is the town like

The town of Crested Butte has got a great local vibe that doesn’t have that tourism feel. That’s what I liked the most about the town area, very chill and laidback.

Restaurants and shops will mostly be found on Elk Avenue. You can find free parking where the in-town transportation center is and then it’s a quick walk to town.

What are the best restaurants

Coffee

Two coffee shops I tried out and liked while here were the Coffee Lab up near Mount Crested Butte and Rumors Coffee and Teahouse right in town. Rumours is connected to a bookstore which was pretty cool. Neighboorly coffee shop vibe on the inside with outdoor seating too, perfect for those summer days. They’ll have baked goods and breakfast burritos as well.

The Coffee Lab is on Gothic road and part of the village at the base of the ski resort. The coffee here is really good, place is dialed! It has a more peaceful vibe as it is farther from town. I’m sure in the winter this coffee shop gets busy!

Breakfast

McGill’s, Paradise Cafe, and Butte Bagels are going to be the main breakfast spots in downtown Crested Butte. I only tried Butte Bagels because McGill’s is close on Tuesday’s and Wednesdays unfortunately. McGill’s and Paradise Cafe will be your classic diner joints.

It will be typical to see a line for Butte Bagels, but the wait will be worth it. Lot’s of creative breakfast sandwiches all made in house and it’s not even that expensive. I also tried Daily Dose, a healthier breakfast place. They will have smoothies, breakfast sandwhiches/burritos, and coffee. Located On Elk Avenue it was actually a damn good place to fuel up after an early hike on the Lupine trail.

Dinner

There will be a handful of laidback or more expensive restaurants in town. The Stash is the place for Pizza, they sell pizza by the slice too. For Mexican, I would recommend Teocalli Tamali or Bonez. Teocalli Tamali is known for their burritos.

For nicer sit down restaurants there is the Breadery or the Sunflower. For the Sunflower you will need to make a reservation weeks or even months in advance! I tried Breadery and it was actually really good. Mostly Breads, Pastas, and Pizzas with an extensive wine menu. Great place for groups or families looking to share some of their plates as well.

The Sunflower will be farm to table with ingredients that is sourced from local Gunnison farmers. When I tried to get on the waitlist, someone at the door who had a reservation that night said, “This place is the best, you gotta eat here.” I’m hoping to be able to eat here this winter when I make it back out to Crested Butte for a snowboard trip.

Breweries and Distilleries

For a good cocktail check out Montanya’s towards the end of town, they use rum for all their cocktails and have a distillery right in town. For breweries there is Irwins, located inside the Public house along with the actual brewery location off of Belleview avenue on the south end of town. For bars check out, Kochevars Saloon, it’s going to be the oldest bar in Crested Butte with a gaming hall.

What summer activities are there

1. Town Events and Concert Series

Every Monday in the evening from Mid June to Mid August is the Alpenglow concert series at the Center for Arts. Other concert series include shows at the base of the ski resort, called Music on the Mountain. Other Events include the Art, Food and Wine festival and the Wildflower festival. Tickets for the Wildflower festival can sell out so make sure to purchase ahead of time.

2. Stop in at the Crested Butte Museum

Located right in town, this museum has some pretty cool history, especially for skiing and snowboarding. The cost is free and would be a good raining day activity or something to do in between outdoor adventures. The Museum also offers historic walking tours of the town.

3. Go for a Mountain Bike Ride

Crested Butte is a popular spot for biking, and I believe Crested Butte was one of the first places for mountain biking to exist. There’s a lot of biking trails including the downhill park at Crested Butte. If you’re new to mountain biking or have limited experience, the Lupine trail is great. Some areas are steeper so you can get off and walk, but for the most part it was a pretty mellow ride. If you want to bike for the whole day, continue onto the Gunsight Pass trail and then loop it back into town! For biking start at the Smith Hill Road Trailhead location as it will offer more of a downhill ride and less uphill climb.

For Bike Rentals there will be shops in town and at the base of Mount Crested Butte. If you plan on Biking the Lupine trail, rent from a shop in town and it’s about a 20 minute bike ride to the trail! Snodgrass is another good bike trail for someone with more experience!

3. Check out the wildflowers

June through about the 2nd week of July will be the best time to see the Wildflowers! There are going to be a handful of trails right in town for this too. My favorite trails were the Lupine, Snodgrass, and Teocalli Ridge.

But there is also Upper and Lower Loop, Brush Creek, and the Woods Trail.

Make sure to stay on trail and to not pick any of the flowers.

Best time of day for hiking is either early morning or late afternoon. Weekends will be busy during this time so try to visit Crested Butte during the week! If you can.

5. Do a 10 mile plus day hike

If you’re up for an adventure there are a couple great day hikes that are over ten miles. Two that I would recommend are Teocalli Ridge as mentioned above for Wildflowers and also O be Joyful. Both will have some elevation gain, but the views are incredible. If you don’t want to hike the full amount, both of these hikes are still great to do a portion of the hike before turning around, especially if you have kids.

6. Drive up Kebler Pass for Golden Hour

Out of all the things I did in Crested Butte, to be honest, this one was my favorite. Drive up here in the evening and you will see that it is pretty magical. The mountains can get rain sometimes in the evening, so check the weather and see if there’s a good window to drive the pass.

There are no guard rails on this road so take it easy and as you get towards the top of the pass, you’ll essentially see an open field with mountain views. This is the best place to get out and walk around.

If you put Kebler Pass in google maps it will eventually take you to the top of the road, no lookout or anything like Independence pass. So the best spot for views will be that wide open area with pull offs.

7. Go Horse back riding

Fantasy Ranch offers horse back rides up Snodgrass Mountain for 1 hour, 1.5 hour, and 2 hour time slots. The minimum age for trail rides is 8 and the max weight is 225 pounds. If you’re not a big hiker this would be a cool alternative activity and the Snodgrass mountain area has some pretty awesome views as mentioned.

8. Sign up for a guided Fly fishing trip

Fly fishing is a really fun way to spend time outdoors. You’ll need a Colorado fishing license for the day or they offer fishing licenses for the year if you plan on using it more often. Dragon Fly Anglers will be right in town and they also offer 24 hour equipment rentals if you don’t feel like doing a guided trip. With guided trips you’ll be shown how to cast the rod, where to cast it, and some basic fundamentals on fly fishing.

If you have experience, but just want to know where to catch fish, guided float trips are great for this. Make sure to book in advance as spots do fill up through out the summer! The top fly fishing areas will be the Taylor River, Gunnison River, East River, Slate River, and Gothic Creek. Spring Creek is also a good spot for fly fishing, which is where I went for a half day. If you want more views I would recommend the Slate River or Taylor River.

9. Pack a beach towel and hang out on the Slate River

This is a fun activity and close to the campground I was staying at, O be Joyful. Bring a towel, a cooler or water bottle, some snacks, maybe a book and hang out on the Slate River for an afternoon. It’s a good place for families too. You can park at the Gunsight Bridge and then walk down to the river. It’s ok to swim in it and the water will be pretty cold. Just remember to pack out what you packed in!

After watching a couple kids jump in no problem, I decided to take a dip. The river was ice cold, but pretty refreshing.

10. Rent a Stand Up Paddle Board

Wheelies and Waves rent inflatable paddle boards right in town. From there they can point you in the right direction on where to float. Some good spots for Paddle Boarding are the Slate River and Lake Irwin. Make sure to bring sunscreen, sunglasses, a good hat, towels, sandals, and lightweight clothing if you plan on going out on the water. As mentioned earlier the water is pretty cold!

11. Ride the Scenic Chairlift at Crested Butte Resort

In the summer the ski resort will offer scenic chairlift rides on the Silver Queen lift until 2pm and the Red Lady Express until 5pm. You can either ride the chair down or hike down which is a fun experience. I took the Silver Queen lift up and then hiked down to The Red Lady Express. From there, I rode the lift back to the base.

Lift tickets can be purchased at the base of the mountain and there is also parking at the base for free or you can take the bus from town up to the resort.

It’s awesome to see what the ski resort looks like in the summer time and the mountain views on the backside of this lift are incredible if you hike down.

That’s it for a summer trip to Crested Butte. This place is pretty amazing in the summer and I hope you’re inspired to take a trip here. If you have any questions or comments drop them below. Thanks for checking out the blog and if you’re interested in other Summer Colorado trips, check out the town of Buena Vista. See you on the next post!

Crested Butte Colorado, Five Summer Hikes that are Worth It

Disclosure: When you buy something through the Affiliate product links I have created below, I earn a small commission. I only promote products and companies I support as well as believe in

Summer time in the mountains is one of the best experiences if you’re looking for adventure. Colorado summers are hard to beat, especially in mountain towns. Cooler temps, amazing views, and plenty of hiking trails. I spent some time in Crested Butte this summer and it is one of the coolest places I’ve been to in Colorado since living here for over a decade. There’s a number of hikes close to town and I think that’s what I liked the most about trekking around.

With that being said, In this post I’ll be going over 5 hikes worth checking out, trail info, what to except, along with some details. Alright lets do this!

Where is Crested Butte

Not far from Aspen (in the summer) Crested Butte is 4 hours west of Denver and somewhat secluded with Gunnison being the closest major area. It’s a smaller mountain town with a local feel that doesn’t get too crowded or busy from what I saw in the summer.

What to Pack

You’ll need some good outdoor clothing and hiking footwear for these trails. I also recommend packing a rain jacket and lightweight insulator just in case! In the mountains, weather does pop up at anytime and temperatures can also drop at anytime.

• Rain Jacket- Anything lightweight that’s waterproof is a go-to for me.

• Hiking Pants and/or shorts- Hiking pants or shorts with stretch makes hiking much more enjoyable. Fjallraven is my favorite hiking brand for clothing.

• Hiking Footwear- I would try these on at your local outdoor store or REI shop. If you don’t live near one, chat with an expert online and someone will point you in the right direction! Anything above the ankle with good support is what I seek out. And if the boots are lightweight it’s an added bonus.

• Sunscreen- Apply at least 15 minutes before hiking. SunBum out of Encinitas California works great, don’t forget to apply chapstick with SPF!

• Lightweight Jacket- Anything down is great because it is going to be packable. Throw it in your bag and whip it out when sun goes down or if you're doing a sunrise hike throw it in the bag when the temps warm up. I like Burton’s down jackets as they have different options, I personally like the Baker down.

I would also recommend downloading All Trails and then saving predownloaded maps on your phone for help with navigation

Five Best Crested Butte Hikes (In no particular order)

Lower Loop

This trail is an easy one so if you have trouble with elevation or more strenuous trails, I recommend starting your trip off with the Lower Loop trail. It’s also a good trail for mountain and gravel bikes.

Directions & parking

You’ll want to get on Butte Ave, a side street in downtown Crested Butte. Right outside of town there will be parking on Peanut Lake Road. There is a parking lot further up the road, but it is for people with disabilities or wheelchairs, spots can be reserved ahead of time. Since this is the closet trail to town, if parking is full, I would park in town and walk a little bit more.

Coordinates: 38.87431, -106.99229

Trail Stats

• 7.2 Mile Loop

• 452 Feet of elevation gain

• Dog friendly

What is the trail like

This is going to mostly be flat with views of Mount Crested Butte, Cascade Mountain and Mineral Point off in the distance. If you started at the parking lot in town you’ll have to walk either along the Peanut Lake Road or The Woods Trail until you reach the actual trailhead for the Lower Loop. At first you’ll walk along a manmade gravel type path until you reach the trail along the Slate River. This is where you can see what makes this hike so unique.

You don’t even have to hike the whole way to enjoy it. There will be benches along the Lower Trail to take breaks and enjoy the surroundings. Eventually the hike will loop you back around on the Upper Lower part of the trail. This part of the hike will take you through Aspen trees. Not as many wildflowers on this hike as some of the other trails I did in Crested Butte, however it’s still worth checking out.

Teocalli Ridge

Looking for a less crowded trail? Then this is a good hike to pick if you’re up for a 10 mile loop. Teocalli Ridge is not only good for hiking, but also dirt biking and mountain biking

Directions & Parking

This trail will be about 20 minutes outside of downtown Crested Butte off Forest Service Road 7738. You don’t need AWD or 4 X 4 unless you plan on camping off the Teocalli Ridge Trail. There is designated primitive campsites that are first come first serve. If you do plan on camping you’ll need a high clearance vehicle. As you make your way to the trailhead you’ll pass a farm/ranch. During wildflower season this drive is awesome, fields of wildflowers as you get closer to the parking lot!

Trailhead Coordinates: 38.89614, -106.88932

There will be a small parking area at the trailhead, however the main parking lot will be further down the road on the left, can't miss it. Restrooms can be found at this lower parking area too.

Trail Stats

• 10.9 Mile Loop

• 2,303 feet of elevation gain

• Dog Friendly (I would recommend putting your dog on a leash due to possible wildlife in the area)

Trail Specifics

This is going to be a challenging hike, but because it is challenging you probably won’t see anyone else on the trail. I went during the week and only passed a few people. What makes it more challenging is that the hike is almost an 11 mile loop!

Essentially you’ll walk along a service road through a valley of the Gunnison national forest that takes you up to a ridge line. The views are amazing as you trek across the ridge line. Not a bad place to take a break for lunch either. I would also start this hike earlier in the day because sometimes thunderstorms due pop up in the afternoon.

The second half of the hike will be mostly through the woods with areas where there is mountain views. I wrote a more detailed blog post on this hike which you can find here -> Best Hiking Trails in Crested Butte, The Scenic Teocalli Ridge Loop

Lupine

One of the most popular trails for hiking and biking is going to be the Lupine trail. I would say it’s an easy to moderate hike with some steeper parts. The location is one of the reasons it is going be a more crowded trail, however hike it during sunrise or even golden hour in the evening and there shouldn’t be hardly anyone on the trail. June through about the first week of July will make this one of the best trails to see wildflowers.

Directions & parking

Kind of confusing but you’ll want to start at the Lupine 2 trailhead as there is no parking in the Saddle Ridge townhome area off Smith Hill Road because it is a private neighborhood. To get to the trailhead take Gothic Road to county road 734 just outside of town. You’ll see a small lake (Nicholson Lake) across from the parking lot. I would imagine on really busy days you can park along the road if the lot is full or there is more parking up the road at the Gunsight Bridge trailhead.

Trail Coordinates

38.90265, -107.01113

Trail Stats

• 7.1 mile out & back

• 987 feet of elevation gain

• Dogs must be on a leash

Trail details

I like how open this hike is and for most of it, you’re going to be hiking with fields on either side, covered in wildflowers during peak season. Towards the top is when you will go through a couple areas with Aspen trees. It is not a technical hike by any means and you are guaranteed to run into a mountain biker(s). Plenty of mountain views on this hike along with being able to see the Slate River from above.

If you want even more details on this hike check out the blog post I did > Hiking in Crested Butte, A sunrise Hike on the Lupine Trail

Snodgrass

My favorite trail in Crested Butte, Snodgrass is another popular one because it is so close to town. You don’t have to hike this whole trail to enjoy it either. This hike is awesome earlier in the summer because of all the wildflowers. The start of the trail is also best in the evening, so if you hike the whole trail in the afternoon/evening, make sure to stay for sunset.

Directions & Parking

Take Gothic Road past Mount Crested Butte and you’ll see the horse ranch to your left and just past that is the parking lot along with parking on the road as well.

Trail Coordinates

38.91896, -106.9598

Trail Stats

• 5.8 Miles out and back

• 1,594 feet of elevation gain

• Dog friendly, but should be on a leash

What makes this trail worth it and what to expect

What makes this a great hike is at the start of it, there’s a stretch where you can see the town, but also 360 degree views of the entire mountain range in the area. During peak wildflower season this trail is covered with violet Lupines and golden Black Eyed Susans! Expect there to be some periods of more strenuous uphill hiking with the elevation gain. Also the best views are no further then halfway up the hike. From the halfway point you’ll be hiking in the woods! For a more detailed post, check out > Best Wildflower Hikes in Crested Butte Colorado, Hiking the Snodgrass Trail

O be Joyful

Located right next to the campground, the drive alone to this trailhead is unreal, an indicator that the actual hike is going to be pretty amazing. It’s an out and back trail, so hike as far you would like to as the trail alone makes for a long day hike.

Directions and Parking

The trailhead is going to be on the same road as the Lupine trail, County Road 734. The road itself is a little rocky towards the parking lot so make sure to you take it slow! You don’t need a high clearance vehicle or AWD to drive to the trailhead, but it definitely doesn't hurt.

Trail Stats

• 13 Miles out and back

• 2,148 feet of elevation gain

• Dogs can be off leash but just be aware of wildlife in the area.

What is the trail like

Since it is a long hike I wouldn’t pack all of your water, but bring a water filter to fill up along the way as the Oh be joyful Creek runs next to the trail. The views on this hike will be different than the other hikes in Crested Butte in that you’re surrounded by multiple 12,000 + peaks while being tucked in this valley hiking through it all. If you’re up for the challenge you will be rewarded. Start early and check the weather ahead of time if you plan on hiking the whole trail!

At the intersection about 5 miles in, make a left on the Daisy Pass Trail to reach the alpine lake, Blue Lakes. I would recommend downloading this trail ahead of time on All Trails too!

If you’re interested in other hiking trails or outdoor recreation check out the Blue Lakes trail in Telluride Colorado. Thanks for checking out the blog and I’ll see you on the next post!