Explore Dolores, Colorado

Outside Magazine calls the town of Dolores “adventure base camp for the whole family,” and we couldn’t agree more. With the Dolores River running south, and beautiful sandstone cliffs to the north, this charming town is only three blocks wide. Surrounded by the San Juan National Forest and McPhee Reservoir, you’ll feel like a local with mountain biking and hiking, paddle boarding or kayaking, snowshoe or cross country skiing opportunities straight from town or head up the mesa to the Boggy Draw trail system to start your adventure.

“Rio de Nuestra Senora de las Dolores” or The River of Our Lady of Sorrows, was named by Dominquez and Escalante, Spanish Catholic priests who came through the area seeking routes from the missions of Santa Fe, NM to California in 1776. In 1891, the railhead was established at the present site of Dolores, and became a major stop on the rail line between Ridgway, Telluride and Durango. A half rail car on the Rio Grande Southern Railroad, nicknamed the Galloping Goose, ran the mail and passenger routes and it lives on today at the Railroad Museum in Flanders Park.

Walk or float from Riverside Park to the east all the way to Joe Rowell Park to the west with access all along the public trail for some of the best fly fishing waters in Southwest Colorado. Dolores is your headquarters for local history and outdoor fun, with fascinating shops and boutiques, excellent restaurants including a local brewery, and river front and in-town lodging options to fit every traveler.