September 27 and 28, I decided to go for a weekend getaway to Steamboat Springs. I knew they were supposed to get leaves changing earlier in the northern part of the state. Also, I had briefly stopped at Steamboat Springs on my way back from the Mount Zirkel Wilderness and was really charmed by the scenery, arts, and culture of the town.

So I had made this drive before, but it was stunningly different now as the leaves were changing.

Fall in Colorado is special. There are brilliant colors set against the peaks.

It was definitely hard not to stop to try to capture the leaves along the way like every few minutes.

Driving into Steamboat was so gorgeous. The mountains were covered in multi-colored leaves. I stopped in at the visitor’s center to ask for some advice on things to do. It looked like some rain might roll in, and I wanted to head into the Strawberry Park Hot Springs before that.

The drive up to the hot springs was pretty short but magical, as the sun shown through the yellow aspen leaves.

It was a great time to be in the hot springs. You could sit and view the beautiful leaves changing. As ever, the photos don’t really do the vibrancy of the sun shining through the leaves justice.

There were different temperatures you could experiment with in the different pools. One was more lukewarm up to pretty hot. It was really beautiful and I stayed for a while.

I had a dinner reservation for Restaurant Week in the evening, so I got out and headed to my hotel. Before I left I wandered around my hotel. It was just a Quality Inn, but I really enjoyed the scenery around.

Cafe Diva was located in the ski village part of Steamboat Springs, so I headed over there at 5 pm, a nice early reservation for a solo diner. The place filled up quickly and the staff were very nice in serving me the preset restaurant menu with wine pairings.

I really enjoyed everything. The first course is pictured below.

After that lovely treat, I knew there was an event downtown at the art museum for painting en plein air as artists depicted autumn scenes around Steamboat Springs. It turns out there’s a free bus that goes all the way around Steamboat Springs, even to the Quality Inn!

The event was great. There was free wine and it was packed. There were prize winning pieces and everything was for sale.

After that, I wandered around Steamboat Springs, which was just charming at night. The trees were strung with lights and there were tons of lively bars and restaurants. I found a lively place downstairs from the street called The Barley, with lots of craft beer and live music. I took the night bus back to my hotel after that.

The next day, I woke up fairly early to check out Fish Creek Falls. I had heard at the visitor’s center that the second falls wasn’t as good as in summer with snow run off. I mostly wanted to go for a fall leaf hike, so I planned to view the first falls and maybe start to head up to the second falls.

Before the falls, I stopped at the Smell That Bread Bakery and got a blueberry cinnamon roll pastry. It wasn’t too busy as I arrived, but got busier into the later morning (9-10 am). I took an easy paved path around to view the falls, and really enjoyed the views there before descending toward the falls.

I saw a river otter in this area! He was moving really fast but I got really excited as I watched him crawl over rocks and swim through the river water.

I enjoyed relative solitude heading up the path toward the second falls and watching the sun shine through the leaves. I could see why the artists used so much pink in their paintings. I did not want to do the entire 5 miles though, so I turned back. I had other things I wanted to do.

Steamboat Springs has the most charming little bookstore called Off the Beaten Path. It’s also a coffee shop, and I included a picture of the menu below.

It was really beautiful and sunny out, so after that I started to scope out a lunch spot. There were some restaurants along the river and I stumbled upon Sunpies. It was a casual joint where you could drink a beer and eat some fried clams along the Yampa River.

With this view and the sun out, I struggled to leave the place for a while. I thought I might do something suggested at the visitor’s center and ride the chairlift at the ski resort for the views.

The ski resort was mostly filled with mountain hikers, who take their bikes on the lift and then bike down the mountain. The views were of course stunning, but I did find parts of the ride pretty terrifying due to my fear of heights! The view below was one of my favorite parts.

After my ride, I headed back to the downtown area. There was a chili cook-off with live music, so it was lively, plus it was gorgeous out. I enjoyed shopping. I found a store I really liked and got a couple of shirts and stickers. I knew I had a long drive back but struggled to leave, as I wanted to linger by the river and read the new book I got at the bookstore.

The drive back was beautiful. This view is quite close as you leave or come into Steamboat.

I really enjoyed my weekend in Steamboat Springs. It’s full of surprises for such a small place. Of course there is natural beauty, but lots of arts and culture and some great restaurants. I definitely want to return and explore more!