The One Colorado Town Everyone Should Visit At Least Once

The Rocky Mountain state of Colorado is no stranger to majestic vistas and locales. Its mountainous landscape attracts folks of all stripes to settle in or visit from miners to artists. Out of all these destinations, one of the best towns to visit is the tiny community of Paonia on the North Fork Gunnison River. Here in this town, one can find mountains and canyons all around you, alongside beautiful late Victorian architecture, bountiful orchards, and an eccentric art scene. This rural town is also noteworthy for being a very clean place. Read on to see why Paonia is the one Colorado town everyone should visit at least once.

Historic Sites

The US Army first explored this area in the early 1850s, and it later became part of a reservation for the Ute people before they were forcibly removed in the early 1880s and settlers moved into the region. Sheep and cattle were introduced here in ranches, but with the discovery of coal, mining became a major industry. Mining could be a dangerous occupation even in 1981 when an explosion just outside of Redstone killed 15 men. To honor their memory, Paonia raised the Coal Miner Statue in Paonia Town Park.

As Paonia is a turn of the century town, much of its historical sites reflect the styles that were prevalent at that time. For example, the Blue Sage Center for the Arts maintains two downtown historic buildings called the First National Bank Building and the Curtis Hardware Company. The bank was built in 1903 from sandstone in a Romanesque Revival style with its arch and square cut stone, while the hardware store reflects Late Victorian sensibilities with its Classical Revival style and three-sided oriel window on the second floor.

One structure that resembles a castle in town is the Paonia First Christian Church, made with rustic sandstone in the Romanesque style. Its most striking feature is a three story crenellated tower that wouldn't look out of place in a medieval castle. At the North Fork Historical Society Museums, you can see the Paonia Museum, which features historical artifacts within an old family home and the Bowie Schoolhouse, a one room school with photographs, desks, blackboards, and other teaching materials from the 1800s.

Outdoor

Paonia enjoys beautiful weather thanks to warm air from the valley and cool air from the mountains, which makes it perfect for growing a rich variety of fruit from cherries to grapes, peaches, pears, and apples. In fact, every 4th of July, the town holds the Paonia Cherry Days celebration to share cherry based goods. This weather also helps vineyards produce some of the best wine in Colorado at local businesses like the Painted Vineyard. With these landscapes, Paonia is also an ideal town to spend a day exploring the great outdoors.

As mentioned above, you can start out your outdoor adventures at Paonia Park, which has a playground, skatepark, and music stage for local acts. Within town, you can enjoy a clean, beautiful river at the Paonia River Park. Located along the North Fork Gunnison River, the park offers access to one of the cleaner stretches of the river near town, where people often wade or cool off during warm summer days. The park also has picnic tables to enjoy a family lunch and a boat ramp to go out onto the river. There's an interpretive trail where you can view natural habitats of creatures who live along the riverbanks and wetlands.

Sitting 6,500 feet above sea level is Paonia State Park which sits right in the Gunnison National Forest. Although technically part of the tiny community of Somerset, Paonia is the ideal place to stay while visiting this mountain park. The park includes a surface reservoir with water skiing opportunities along with many beautiful birds. Bird watchers can expect to see Great Horned Owls, Yellow Warblers, Fox Sparrows, and many more.

Paonia can serve as a base for a wider exploration of the Colorado mountain landscape. For instance, you can ascend up evergreen forests to the Mesa Top Trail, which rewards you with a scenic view of a lake, or you can explore the deep canyons of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. If you're looking for a gentle, uncrowded hike, go to the Cliff Creek Trail east of Paonia. You'll see beautiful fields of wildflowers during the spring and summer and beautiful colors during the fall in its aspen and spruce forests.

Arts

This alpine town overflows with artistic opportunities and beautiful pieces to view. The Blue Sage Center for the Arts celebrates local artists within its gallery while also providing classes on painting, dancing, theatre, and other areas. Many of Paonia's other art spaces will make you feel like you've stepped into another world.

The Elsewhere Studios sits within the Temple of the Muse, which hosts eclectic artists, musicians, writers, and others to learn and craft their art. It maintains the Paonia Community Garden, the Alleyscape Art Wall, and the Summer Art Film Series through a partnership with Paradise Theatre of Paonia. This studio is dedicated to art in all of its forms and dazzles both artists and tourists alike.

Nearby Towns

There are a handful of charming towns you can visit nearby from Paonia. The first is Crawford, home to multiple mountains and scenic outlooks such as Saddle Mountain and Needle Rock. Crawford State Park is the most popular place to visit here, as you can go fishing at the Crawford Reservoir or hitch your trailer at one of the campsites. To the west of Paonia is Hotchkiss, a small mountain town that’s home to the Delta County Fairgrounds, the locally known Hotchkiss Meats, and the trailhead for Wolf Ranch Park. If you keep going west, you'll reach Cedaredge. This town is noteworthy for its apple orchards, which it celebrates every October at Applefest. You can explore a 19th-century pioneer mountain town at the Pioneer Town Museum.

A Base for Wider Exploration

Just a quick overview of the area around Paonia will reveal so many different places to see and visit. From the orchards of Cedaredge to the deep canyon of Gunnison National Park and beyond to the reservoir at Crawford State Park, everyone will find something to do in this region. By choosing Paonia as your base for wider exploration, one can also dive into a quirky art scene within historic buildings or try out cherry creations during Paonia Cherry Days. This town is a hidden treasure in Colorado that you should visit at least once.