Background

In May 2025, we took an anniversary road trip to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. A Memorial Day weekend anniversary can be a double-edged sword: on the one hand, we usually have a long weekend to celebrate, which gives us plenty of opportunity to do something like take a trip… but on the other hand, everyone else has a long weekend, summer is starting, and a lot of cool destinations are incredibly busy.

Our way of working around this is to look for low-key destinations for our anniversary trip. For 2025, we chose Black Canyon of the Gunnison because it’s not too far from Denver, is usually not busy, and we could take the dogs.

The Short Version

If you want the short version, here's our trip itinerary (keep reading for more):

• Day 1
  • Denver to Palisade via I-70 (3.5 hours)
  • Palisade
    • Walk at Riverbend Park
    • Lunch at Palisade Brewing Company 
    • Tasting at Peach Street Distillers
  • Palisade to Delta via the Grand Mesa Scenic Byway (1.5 hours)
  • Delta
    • Stay at Riverwood Resort
    • Visit Confluence Park Dog Park
    • Dinner at Creations on Main
• Day 2
  • Delta to Montrose (30 minutes)
  • Montrose
    • Visit Montrose Dog Park
  • Montrose to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park (20 minutes)
  • Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park
    • Stop at the visitor center
    • Drive Rim Drive Road Scenic Drive
    • Stop at Rock Point Overlook
    • Stop at Cedar Point Overlook
    • Drive East Portal Road
  • Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park to Poncha Springs (2 hours)
  • Poncha Springs
    • Linner (lunch/dinner) at Thai Mini Cafe
  • Poncha Springs to Denver (2 hours)

The Longer Version

If you want more details and links to other posts, here's the longer version:

Denver to Palisade via I-70 (3.5 hours)

From Denver, we took I-70 to Palisade. On the way, we passed the Georgetown Pack Burro Race. Apparently, Georgetown has an annual race where people run with burros from Georgetown to Empire and back – almost a total of 20 miles! 

Because it's us, we stopped at a Love's in Parachute for gas. Although this is a new-ish Love's (I believe it opened in 2023), they sadly did not have a dog park. Luckily, we weren't too far off from Palisade, where I knew we'd be stopping for the dogs.

Palisade

In Palisade, we started off at Riverbend Park, so the dogs could get some exercise. The park is not fenced, but dogs are allowed off-leash. Maya and Piper had a lot of fun exploring the park and walking in the shade of the beautiful cottonwoods. We loved the park, but it’s good to keep in mind that if your dog is off-leash, you’ll need to make sure they don’t find their way into the Colorado River.

After our walk, we got lunch at Palisade Brewing Company. We were able to sit outside in the shade, but Adam did have to go in to place our order (something to keep in mind if you have dogs and don’t have another person with you).

Since it was next door, we stopped at Peach Street Distillers to try some spirits. The dogs and I hung out on the patio while Adam did some tastings. 

Palisade to Delta via the Grand Mesa Scenic Byway (1.5 hours)

Since we weren't in a hurry, we decided to take the Grand Mesa Scenic Byway from Palisade to Delta. 

The views from the byway were beautiful, and it was surreal to see snow during the summer. We were contemplating a stop at Land O Lakes Overlook, but the pull-off was blocked by a huge pile of snow, so the decision was made for us! 

This wasn’t the fastest way from Palisade to Delta, but I think it was worth the detour. We got to see incredible views, and if I were to go that way again, I’d take more time to stop.

Delta

We stayed the night in Delta, which is about an hour away from Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Our stay for the night, Riverwood Resort, had a lot to offer: contactless check-in, fenced yards for the rooms, and s'mores. We would absolutely stay there again. 

Before dinner, we took the dogs to Confluence Park, down the street from Riverwood Resort. Maya and Piper didn’t play much, but the fenced dog park had plenty of room to run.

After the park, we picked up an awesome dinner from Creations on Main. We ate dinner in our room and then ordered some s'mores for dessert.

Day 2

Delta to Montrose (30 minutes)

It's a pretty quiet ride from Delta to Montrose, especially since they're so close. I will note that if you wing it and think you'll find places to stop in between, you may want to rethink that.

Montrose

Before heading to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, we stopped through the Montrose Dog Park. The park was beautiful and well-maintained, with polite dog owners and lots of cute pups. We appreciated that there was a walking path around the perimeter and lots of shade, so the dogs didn't get overheated.

Unfortunately, Maya was having too much fun and hurt herself a bit. We're glad that she's playful still doing well at 11 years old, but she sometimes forgets to pace herself! Adam carried Maya back to the car so she wouldn't make things worse. She did ok for the rest of the trip, but we did try to take it easy the rest of the day.

Montrose to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park (20 minutes)

We liked staying in Delta, but it’s certainly hard to overlook the fact that Montrose is so close. If we do another trip to Black Canyon, I’d look into staying in Montrose (and I’d definitely go back to the dog park).

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park

At Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park, we did the Rim Drive Road Scenic Drive, stopping at Rock Point Overlook and Cedar View Trail. At both of these stops, we did small hikes/walks. They weren’t too strenuous, but we kept an eye on the dogs to make sure they didn’t get overheated.

We also did the East Portal Road Scenic Drive, which didn’t have overlooks, but gave us some great views of the canyon. Before you get on East Portal Road, make sure your vehicle meets the requirements (and make sure the driver is comfortable!)

Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park to Poncha Springs (2 hours)

We had decided to go a different way back home -- Highway 50 to 285. Because we didn’t go back through Montrose, we missed an opportunity to grab food, but we figured we’d stop along the way. Well, let’s just say the options were limited. 

We found ourselves in one of those classic road trip moments where everyone is getting hungry, the weather looks ominous, you’ve got no cell service, and there’s nothing on any exits you pass (maybe this is just a classic for us).

When I eventually had some cell service, I found a Thai restaurant in Poncha Springs, which was still a bit far, but looked promising, so we gave it a try. Thank goodness we hadn’t stopped before then.

Poncha Springs

The outside of Thai Mini Cafe was simple, with some covered outdoor seating, which we appreciated since it looked like rain was incoming. I went in to grab a menu and make sure we could sit with the dogs outside. The folks there were extremely friendly and kind, and I loved seeing all their decorations and pictures from Thailand. I brought the menu out and let Adam know we were allowed, and we switched off so he could go in and order. When the food and drinks were ready, they brought them out to us. 

We checked with the folks inside that we could sit out with the dogs, and they were incredibly kind and friendly. Even better, one of the people working there was a dog lover, so she came out to visit the pups. She gave Piper lots of attention and pets, which Piper loved. She also pointed out that Maya looks very similar to a Dhole, a Thai canid (she’s not wrong--look it up).

The food was incredible, some of the best Thai food we’ve ever had. We genuinely considered ordering more curry to take home for dinner. Ever since, we’ve been trying to come up with reasons to go to Poncha Springs or somewhere nearby so we can visit again.

Poncha Springs to Denver (2 hours)

Once we were full of delicious Thai food, we were ready for the rest of the drive. We thought about stopping on the way in Salida or BV, but we were ready to get home.