Mount Princeton Hot Springs
Today we began our drive from Fort Collins. It took about 3 hours to get to our first stop- the St Elmo Ghost Town. A beautiful drive up through a stunning canyon gets you to a cool, historic old mining town high up in the mountains. "Ghost" town is a bit of a stretch, but there is a great story to the place. At one time it was home to about 2000 people and was serviced by a railroad. When the mining prospects declined, the railroad stopped operating in the 1920's and legend has almost all residents rode the last train out of the town before the tracks were pulled up. One brother and sister stayed in the town until they were removed by the state in the 1950's. There is now an organization that is slowly restoring the buildings.
Afterwards, we headed down to the Mount Princeton Hot Springs Resort. Large property in a lovely spot with views of the mountains. We had a really nice dinner here and walked through the hot springs. There are several pools (including an adult only section) that are fed by the hot springs. These are all man made pools with full services. There is a place where the hot springs flow into the river for a more natural experience. The property was very nice, but not for those looking for the wild and natural hot springs experience. For that experience, the Valley View Hot Springs is located south of Salida. We did not go to this one- it's on the list for next time!
We left after dinner to get to our accommodations for the next two nights at the Outside Design Company. This is one of the most peaceful and relaxing stays I've ever had. The property is made up of about 10 different tiny house options. We stayed in the Rock Room, which is the last unit. We had lots of privacy and the entrance to the State Forest was 15 yards from our door. Each unit is different, so it is important to read the full description of each unit to make sure you get the one that is best for you. Our unit had a small kitchen area with hot plate, microwave, sink and basic dishes, and queen bed inside. A garage door opened up to a large patio with picnic table and hanging queen sized bed.
This is glamping- there are no bathrooms in the units. ONE unit has a toilet and two or three have sinks, but showers and toilets are in a common bathhouse. The bathhouses are a great design and the building also houses a sauna, two hot tubs and a cold plunge, coffee station and small "store" area. I am honestly not a camping kind of girl, but I could have stayed here for a week easily. The night sky was gorgeous and had more stars than I have ever seen in my life.
The next day, we did a hike through the attached State Forest before going down the street to the O'Haver Lake Recreational site. The lake is at 9200 feet and it a lovely little alpine lake area. Parking is $10 for the day and you can paddle board, kayak, fish and hike around the lake and on a few trails from the area. (Bring your own "toys.") There are bathrooms and lots of camping spots should you choose to camp. There is also great hiking if you drive further up Monarch Pass. There are also several companies that lead 4x4 tours all throughout this park.
We next went into the historic old town of Salida. A fantastic little mountain town. So many restaurants, shops, art galleries, but not a stuffy or entitled feel at all. The town sits right on the river and there is a big bandstand where they have concerts and other events. The river was full of people learning to kayak and surf (a multi million dollar surfing area was added to the river). Tubing, rafting and paddle boarding was available and plenty of places to rent the "toys" needed to do any and all activities.
Lunch was at Amica's Pizza and Microbrew. Great pizza, friendly staff and good, local beer. We had an excellent dinner at Shavano. Wonderful staff and the food was really outstanding. They do only serve beer, wine and two specialty cocktails that change regularly. Drinks that night at Tres Litros Brewery. Beer was just ok but the atmosphere was great and lively and they had live music. Several bars in town had live music in the evenings.
**Also, honorable mention to Bunny and Clydes Corner Cafe for great coffee, smoothies and gluten and dairy free pastries and breads.
