Category Ranking
Best National Parks for Experienced Hikers in Colorado
The top Colorado national parks for experienced hikers, ranked by experienced hikers score.
Updated
#1 
Rocky Mountain National Park
Busy
Trail Ridge Road crosses the Continental Divide at 12,183 feet. Below, 300 miles of trails connect glacial lakes to 14,259-foot Longs Peak.
#2 
Black Canyon Of The Gunnison National Park
Moderate Crowds
Gunnison River carved North America's steepest gorge through 1.7-billion-year-old rock, with 2,000-foot walls that trap the sun.
#3 
Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve
Moderate Crowds
North America's tallest sand dunes rise 750 feet against the Sangre de Cristo Mountains, with alpine lakes and tundra at 13,000 feet above.
#4 
Mesa Verde National Park
Moderate Crowds
Seven hundred Ancestral Pueblo dwellings are carved into sandstone alcoves, including the 150-room Cliff Palace accessible by ladder.