Escape the city and the crowds and find solitude in the wild west with this stargazer’s road trip that offers world-class views of the night sky across western Colorado and eastern Utah. No matter where you’re coming from, Denver or Phoenix, Salt Lake City, Albuquerque, or beyond, there’s no better place to marvel at the night sky than at these International Dark-Sky Association’s dark sky destinations.
Norwood, Colorado
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Norwood is a small rural town on Wright’s Mesa at an altitude of 7,000 feet in southwest Colorado. Its high desert climate and very dry conditions create many days and nights with clear skies. Norwood’s remote location and small population of just over 500 residents produces very little light pollution. Norwood is surrounded by mountains and plateaus that shield it from the few, distant urban light sources. The exquisite darkness of Norwood’s nighttime is a source of pride.
The darkness has been proven by the Norwood Dark Sky Advocates Sky Quality Meter project that helped secure its designation as Western Colorado’s first International Dark Sky Community. Approximately 80% of the world’s population can no longer see the Milky Way due to the high levels of light pollution in cities and industrialized remote landscapes. The Norwood Dark Sky Advocates work to protect the beautiful night skies in the Norwood area for present and future generations.
- Location: 38.1305° N, 108.2923° W
- Distance:
- From Denver, CO: 363 miles
- From Salt Lake City, UT: 333 miles
- From Albuquerque, NM: 316 miles
- From Flagstaff, AZ: 365 miles
- Where To Stay:
- Sleeping under wide open skies and bright stars is what you’re looking for, there’s no better place to stargaze than Miramonte Reservoir. Norwood also has a number of cozy hotel, AirBnB, and vacation rental opportunities. Click here for lodging opportunities in Norwood.
- Adventure Tip:
- Grab a paddle board or canoe and paddle around Miramonte reservoir, and be sure to bring your fishing pole! Hike, mountain/dirt bike, horseback ride? Be sure to check out Norwood’s Burn Canyon and Thunder Trail systems. En route to your next stargazing destination, take a scenic drive along the Unaweep Tabeguache Scenic and Historic Byway (Highway 141) between Naturita and Gateway, which follows the Dolores and San Miguel Rivers. Be sure to check out all the hiking, biking, rock climbing, horseback riding and off-road recreational opportunities in Colorado’s West End!
Ridgway, Colorado
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Ridgway is a small town located along the Uncompahgre River in the foothills of the San Juan Mountains in southwest Colorado with a population of just over 1,000 people. The town, situated at an elevation of 6,985 feet, is in a remote location and produces very little light pollution. Ridgway is the newest addition to the International Dark-Sky Association (IDA) Dark Sky Places Program. Ridgway is the second IDA “Dark Sky Community” in Western Colorado.
- Location: 38.1526° N, 107.7556° W
- Distance:
- From Denver, CO: 323 miles
- From Salt Lake City, UT: 369 miles
- From Albuquerque, NM: 296 miles
- From Flagstaff, AZ: 373 miles
- Where To Stay:
- Camp out at Ridgway State Park or check out Ridgway’s numerous lodging opportunities.
- Adventure Tip:
- Grab a stand up paddle board and explore Ridgway Reservoir or mountain bike Ridgway’s RAT trails. Follow up your adventures with a relaxing soak at Orvis or Ouray Hot Springs.
Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
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The Black Canyon Of The Gunnison National Park sits on the edge of the great open spaces shared by western Colorado and southeast Utah, making it a refuge for phenomenal dark, protected skies. It is also close to large population areas, giving visitors the distinct opportunity of being able to observe dark skies without having to travel great distances from urban centers. This blend of opportunities has made Black Canyon a dark sky destination for many years. The Black Canyon was formed by the Gunnison River as it carved its way through nearly 700 meters’ worth of Precambrian schist and gneiss deposits. The feature takes its name from the near-permanent shadowing of the river bottom due to the strong vertical relief of the canyon walls. The Park is composed largely of federal lands and private property used for agricultural production, helping preserve its dark skies against long-term urban encroachment. There is little artificial light at night on the property, and the fixtures that exist are 100% compliant with the Park’s lighting plan.
- Location: 38.5754° N, 107.7416° W
- Distance:
- From Denver, CO: 251 miles
- From Salt Lake City, UT: 354 miles
- From Albuquerque, NM: 333 miles
- From Flagstaff, AZ: 411 miles
- Where To Stay:
- The nearby city of Montrose, CO offers ample lodging opportunities. There are also three campgrounds available throughout the national park.
- Adventure Tip:
- Take a 6.7- mile hike along the North Vista Trail for awe-inspiring views or float the Gunnison river on a guided fly fishing trip.
Dinosaur National Monument
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Dinosaur National Monument, which spans nearly 211,000 acres across high desert peaks and river canyons in northeast Utah and northwest Colorado, is located on the southeast edge of the Uinta Mountains on the Colorado Plateau at the confluence of the Green and Yampa Rivers. Dinosaur National Monument is the fifth internationally recognized Dark Sky Place in Colorado and the twelfth in Utah. Its location near US Highway 40, between Salt Lake City and Denver, puts it within an easy day’s drive of millions of people who can no longer see the Milky Way from their backyards because of increased light pollution. The park contains over 800 paleontological sites and is home to some of the most abundant and well-preserved dinosaur fossils in the world.
- Location: 40.4927° N, 108.9416° W
- Distance:
- From Denver, CO: 244 miles
- From Salt Lake City, UT: 188 miles
- From Albuquerque, NM: 550 miles
- From Flagstaff, AZ: 508 miles
- Where To Stay:
- There are six campgrounds located around the monument. The Gates of Ladore campground offers impeccable views around the confluence of the Yampa and Green Rivers.
- Adventure Tip:
- Take a multi-day whitewater raft trip on the Yampa and Green Rivers through the national park.
Moab, Utah
The public lands surrounding Moab have some of the darkest skies remaining in the contiguous 48 United States.
Arches National Park:
Arches’ relative isolation from the artificial light of urban areas makes it an ideal place for viewing the night sky. On a clear night, you can see great stars just about anywhere in the park. Areas off the main park road with few obstructions of the sky are best.
Canyonlands National Park:
Canyonlands National Park preserves a series of canyons, mesas and other landforms the confluence of the Colorado River and the Green River on the Colorado Plateau. The park is divided into four ‘districts’: the Island in the Sky, the Needles, the Maze, and the Colorado and Green rivers themselves. Night skies at Canyonlands are so pristine that the International Dark-Sky Association designated Canyonlands as a Gold-Tier International Dark Sky Park in 2015. Canyonlands joins three other national parks in southern Utah with the International Dark Sky Park designation. Visitors come from all over the world to attend night sky ranger programs and to experience the dark skies they never see at home.
Dead Horse Point State Park:
Dead Horse Point State Park is one of the most active and accessible areas to stargaze in the Moab area. Its high plateau location, mountains far in the distance and cities out of sight, yields a nearly full view of the celestial sphere. The 5,362-acre park offers stunning views of the adjacent Canyonlands National Park. The park’s position above the canyon walls makes for spectacular, virtually unobstructed, views of the night sky with sweeping, 360-degree panorama. Situated on the relatively undeveloped Colorado Plateau, the park is less than an hour from Arches National Park and Moab, Utah
- Location: 38.5733° N, 109.5498° W
- Distance:
- From Denver, CO: 355 miles
- From Salt Lake City, UT: 234 miles
- From Albuquerque, NM: 365 miles
- From Flagstaff, AZ: 323 miles
Hovenweep National Monument
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Hovenweep National Monument consists of 318 hectares of federal lands divided across six non-contiguous units along the Utah-Colorado border in the western U.S., with one unit on the territory of the Navajo Nation. The monument’s name means “deserted valley” in the native Western and Southern Numic languages, indicative of its extremely remote, harsh character. The multi-story stone structures at the Square Tower unit are emblematic of the monument, and the alignment of Hovenweep Castle defines a solar calendar device used by the builders to reckon the passage of the seasons, important to subsistence farming in the harsh climate of the Colorado Plateau. Hovenweep enjoys dark, natural night skies on account of its geographic isolation in a part of the U.S. that has a very low population density. Its Gold-tier – the darkest of the three tiers – skies afford both a respite from the busy, everyday life of populated areas, and a natural nighttime experience.
- Location: 37.3838° N, 109.0726° W
- Distance:
- From Denver, CO: 475 miles
- From Salt Lake City, UT: 354 miles
- From Albuquerque, NM: 283 miles
- From Flagstaff, AZ: 255 miles
Natural Bridges National Monument
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On March 6, 2007, Natural Bridges National Monument became the first International Dark Sky Park certified by the International Dark-Sky Association. Natural Bridges, located on the Colorado Plateau in the sparsely populated southeastern corner of Utah, is famous for the second-largest natural bridge in the world. It is also notable for its almost perfect lack of light pollution. This advantage of location makes it among the darkest National Park Service units in the lower 48 U.S. states. Natural Bridges National Monument preserves some of nature’s most majestic, naturally occurring, stone bridges. Unlike the exposed rock arches found on cliff and ridge edges, the Natural Bridges hide deep within the canyon valley. Their unusual formation takes a longer time to fully emerge, making them much rarer than the famous arches which populate nearby Arches National Park.
- Location: 37.6041° N, 110.0052° W
- Distance:
- From Denver, CO: 470 miles
- From Salt Lake City, UT: 328 miles
- From Albuquerque, NM: 342 miles
- From Flagstaff, AZ: 238 miles
Resources:
https://www.darksky.org/
https://www.nps.gov/
https://www.discovermoab.com/
https://www.visitutah.com/