The Heart of the Intermountain West:
Colorado, New Mexico, Utah, Arizona,
Nevada, Idaho, Wyoming, & Montana

Imagine...  a place where the elk outnumber the people. A place where bighorn sheep ignore human intruders in their space. Imagine special trout waters in the very heart of wild mountain splendor. Imagine flocks of birds with eight-foot wingspans sharing the flyways with great V's of geese, ducks and other migratory waterfowl. Imagine snow-capped pink granite skylines, views of forever and the siren call of wilderness. You've imagined the last frontier, the last of undiscovered America: the hinterlands of the the Intermountain Western United States. Come on in and see for yourself...

I began building this site back in 1998 as a chronicle of my own exploration of my "neighborhood." Over time, I've kept on exploring, taking lots of photos, talking to the local folks, posting my findings, and I've slowly turned Sangres.com into a better-than-regular Colorado and New Mexico information site and vacation planner (and now, after 10 years, I'm seriously expanding my coverage). You're liable to find all kinds of stuff here that the "big boys" (and their websites) don't go into. I'm a bit different and I like to check out everything. What you've found here is a personal exploration and travelogue of some of the most gorgeous countryside on Earth, chronicled by someone who's madly in love with the place. So then...

Come on in and visit with the mountains: the Sangre de Cristo's, the Sawatch, the San Juan's, the Wet's. I look at them and I climb some of them (especially the Spanish Peaks and Blanca Peak).

I've got information, maps and photos of the National Forests, National Parks, National Monuments and Wildlife Refuges, National Wilderness Areas, BLM recreational areas, and unique natural features like the Spanish Peaks, the Dakota Wall, Wheeler Geologic Area, Wolf Creek Pass, Slumgullion Earthflow, Blue Mesa Reservoir, Morrow Point Lake, and Zapata Falls. (No, I'm not done yet, there's a lot here and I'm still exploring... and yes, I'm still in the early stages of a major expansion to this site.)

I've explored some of Colorado's scenic and historic byways and some of New Mexico's scenic byways. Scattered throughout the site are photo galleries of many of the natural wonders in our area. I also have lots of pannable and zoomable Google maps: flat area maps and satellite images.

I cover the modern versions of Colorado's historic western towns such as Trinidad, Walsenburg, Westcliffe, La Veta, Cuchara, San Luis, Pagosa Springs, Creede, Lake City, South Fork, Durango, Buena Vista, Salida, Springfield, Villa Grove, Crestone, Saguache, Gunnison... I offer demographics, climate data, local attractions and local businesses wanting to serve you (for those of you who are planning vacations or coming in for business reasons). I've also got some data about the excursion trains that run through some of the most scenic countryside in our area (places that you just can't see in any other way). A lot of what I cover here is from the "under-served" areas, although there is some stuff from the cities. And I'm oh-so-slowly starting to venture into Green Living.

The West is filled with riches for outdoor enthusiasts, no matter the time of year, so during your trip to Colorado, pencil in some time in abutting states like gorgeous New Mexico, or majestic Montana. Instead of booking hotels though, consider staying in a plush resort, like a Jackson Hole timeshare. Or maybe you'll know a hotel chain you like that also specializes in resorts - like Wyndham timeshares. Get out there and explore!

I live every day in a huge, natural, world-class park that most folks only visit for a couple weeks of vacation... after taking a look at some of this stuff, you may want to move to the Real Wild West, too. It's still a great place for raising kids and grandkids... just don't come here thinking there's a shopping mall on every corner: the nearest gas station/convenience store to my house is 23 miles (15 miles just to get to pavement), and the nearest shopping mall is in Pueblo, more than 100 miles away. God, I love this place...

PS: Every effort has been made to ensure accuracy in the directories included on this website, however, I (the publisher) cannot guarantee the correctness of all information available, or the complete absense of errors, omissions or unintentional inclusions. This especially goes for things like the listings of restaurants: restaurants seem to go in and out of business depending on which way the wind blows.