Services
Campgrounds
Hotels
Dining
Activities
Weather
  Park Information
Park Home
Plan Your Visit
History & Culture
Nature & Science
For Teachers
For Kids
Management
Support Your Park

Back to Main Page

QUICKLINKS:

Countdown to Centennial!

Only 225 days remain until Colorado National Monument's 100th anniversary.

Welcome to Colorado National Monument!

Colorado National Monument preserves one of the grand landscapes of the American West. But this treasure is much more than a monument. Towering monoliths exist within a vast plateau-and-canyon panorama. You can experience sheer-walled, red rock canyons along the twists and turns of Rim Rock Drive, where you may spy bighorn sheep and soaring eagles.

Devils Kitchen Surveillance Photos

 
Fourth of July on Independence Monument

Freedom Flies High!

People celebrate the 4th of July on the Western Slope of Colorado on top of Independence Monument, 450 feet high!

Park custodian John Otto began the tradition with his first climb to the top on July 4, 1911. Imagine climbing the steep face of a sandstone monolith and, at the same time, drilling holes for a pipe ladder.

Read all about it!
more...

 
rim rock drive

Scenic Rim Rock Drive

Enoy the 23-mile Rim Rock Drive, offering breathtaking views with a parade of geology. Consider that the road is only 8 miles as the crow flies. It twists and turns past sandstone monoliths that are 1.7 billion years old!
more...

 
Hiking Monument Canyon Trail

Things To Do

Located within Colorado National Monument's 32 square miles is a fascinating landscape of deep canyons and soaring cliffs. Colorado National Monument is a little-known treasure full of surprises and offers an interesting array of activities for visitors of all abilities and interests. Hiking, sightseeing, bicycling, and ranger-led programs are just a few of the exciting choices awaiting visitors.
French - German - Spanish
more...

 
camping

Camping

Come to the Saddlehorn Campground 4 miles from the west entrance for your relaxation. There are 80 sites for tents or recreational vehicles. You may register on a first-come, first-served basis.
more...

 

Write to

Colorado National Monument
Fruita, CO 81521

Phone

Visitor Information
(970) 858-3617 ext. 360

Fax

(970) 858-0372

Climate

Weather at Colorado National Monument is represented by desert, semi-desert, and upland climates. Annual precipitation averages 11.03 inches.
more...
Communities Surrounding Colorado National Monument
Note: The times listed below are approximate driving times to the park.
Fruita, CO (4 min. ) Pop. 6,478
Loma, CO (9 min. )
Mack, CO (12 min. )
Grand Junction, CO (14 min. ) Pop. 41,986
Clifton, CO (21 min. ) Pop. 17,345
Whitewater, CO (25 min. )
 Palisade, CO (25 min. ) Pop. 2,579
Glade Park, CO (27 min. )
Mesa, CO (43 min. ) Pop. 116,255
De Beque, CO (43 min. ) Pop. 451
Cisco, UT (48 min. )
Gateway, CO (1 hr.  16 min. )