Staying close to home for your summer vacation? Take a spin on these Colorado highways

Staying close to home for your summer vacation? Take a spin on these Colorado highways

July 16, 2026 · 9 min · Episode 939

About this episode

The episode discusses scenic drives in Colorado for summer vacations, featuring recommendations from Lenore Bates of the Colorado Byways program.

Summer is a great time to see Colorado by car. And this summer in particular, with high fuel prices pushing up airfares, more Coloradans may decide to keep their summer vacation plans a little more local . Many Colorado highways provide stunning alpine views, scenic forests, wildflowers and waterfalls, and a connection to the state’s historic communities and culture. Today on In The NoCo, we present a few interesting drives for your summer to-do list. Lenore Bates, manager of the state’s Colorado Byways program , joined Erin O’Toole to share some recommendations for where to take a drive this summer. This summer, Colorado Byways released free, downloadable audio tours for 10 of the state’s historic drives – including some we mentioned in the episode, like the Collegiate Peaks Scenic Byway or the Top of the Rockies Byway . * * * * * Sign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.org Questions? Feedback? Story ideas? Email us: NOCO@KUNC.org Like what you're hearing? Help more people discover In The NoCo by rating the show on your favorite podcast app. Thanks! Host and Producer: Erin O'Toole Executive Producer: Brad Turner Theme music by Robbie Reverb Additional music by Blue…

People in this episode

Host: Erin O'Toole

Guest: Lenore Bates

Topics covered

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: Colorado Byways, KUNC

Places: Colorado

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