For us, Summer is all about going on adventures, spontaneously hanging out with our friends, and chasing the best Sunsets we can find. Recently, we took a detour from the day-to-day to explore some hidden gems out our back door. Of course, we took our favorite sunglasses along for the ride.
When we want to head out on the highway, looking for adventure, we don’t have to go far…
Recently, we went on a journey of discovering what our own backyard has to offer. We found what we were looking for and more.
3 days, endless memories
Day 1 – Gunny (aka – Gunnison, Colorado)
When you drive through this town nestled into the Western Slope of the Colorado Rockies, you’ll be at the gateway between Crested Butte in one direction and Telluride in the other – not such a bad crossroads if you ask me. This town is a recreation mecca, a paradise for fishermen, rafters, bikers, and all kinds of outdoor adventure seekers.
After making our camp on some BLM land just outside of town, we headed down to the Gunnison Whitewater Park to soak up the sun, watch surfers take on the rapids, and fish.
It wouldn’t be an adventure without friends pushing you to try something new and I somehow found myself in an Alpaca Raft next to Lisa taking my turn on the rapids which resulted in my fiancé and I discovering a new sport we want to get into and more gear we’re going to have to buy – #coloradolife – haha!
With a full afternoon playing in and around the river to fill up our happy meter, we made our way back to camp for sunset, Lisa’s famous Moscow Mules, bougie charcuterie, and elk burgers over the fire.
Day 2 – Crested Butte
With a rich history in mining, built by immigrant families, today Crested Butte is a mountain biking & skiing mecca. We rolled into Crested Butte ready to ride. The wildflowers were almost in full bloom surrounding us and we couldn’t fight the feeling that we had been transported to Switzerland… The iconic 401 trail that we were planning to ride was not suitable for riding due to recent rains, so we took a detour to Brush Creek and found some awesome riding with a variety of technical terrain and flowy single track.
The ride ended with a raging river crossing – a great opportunity for us to all cool off and get muddy like little kids coming home from soccer practice. With smiles pasted on our faces, we headed back into town, took solar showers off the back of our vans and waltzed onto Elk Ave. in search of cocktails.
First stop, the World Famous Wooden Nickel for martinis. First constructed around 1880, this bar is rich in history and definitely worth a stop as you’re thinking about where to grab dinner.
Next, we walked across the street to The Dogwood for craft cocktails and tapas. The Mac & Cheese was out of this world and the back patio was an absolute dream world tucked away in a secret garden off the back.
For dinner, we headed over to Bonez for tacos & tequila to finish off a perfect day.
Day 3 – Gunnison River & Cottonwood Pass
Waking up with the sun has its perks – enjoying coffee without interruption and watching the world come alive.
After a leisurely morning, hanging in the Eno, drinking our favorite naturally processed coffee from Bivouac and filling up on snacks to fuel our day, we headed back into Gunnison to float a section of the Gunnison river with mellow rapids and scenic canyons.
As we headed out of town for the journey home, we turned left at Almont to head up and over Cottonwood Pass, perfectly timing the sunset when we reached the top. We could go back and spend an entire week just exploring the pass for all it has to offer with fishing, climbing, hiking the Continental Divide and abundant vistas.
Alas, every fun adventure must come to an end so we can start planning the next one. With reality setting in we descended into Buena Vista where we passed the Cottonwood Hot Springs and the drive in movie that was just about to start for the night as the last bit of daylight began to fade.
These are the adventures that build equity into our lives, providing us with lasting memories that continue to get better as time goes by. These are the experiences we live to have and to share.
Lessons learned
01 // Keep Colorado Wild – tag responsibly & let others make their own discoveries
02 // Leave No Trace – it’s up to each of us to leave each place better than we found it
03 // Respect Locals – the influx of tourism in rural mountain towns can be detrimental to locals by driving up their cost of living & creating challenges on their economy. It’s important that we have patience for the service industry that is working their butt off to accommodate tourism and leave FAT tips for the people who are working so hard to make our experiences amazing.
Thanks to my friend Gabriel Rovick of F4D Studio, his wife Lisa and my fiancé Christian for sharing this adventure with me and keeping life fun.
xo, Kelly
To learn more about the F4D Studio + Pier Collective Collaboration & to work with us, please drop us a line here & we’ll be in touch!
Thank you to all of our partners and friends for making our adventure memorable:
@f4dstudio, @piercollective, @zealoptics, @sahmurai_usa, @cellarwestartisanales, @bivouac.coffee, @theconsciousmerchant, @belovedboutiqueshop, @wallaroohats
Written by Kelly Mazanti, Founder & CEO of Pier Collective – a brand identity & design studio based in Breckenridge, Colorado
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