Scenic East Portal Water Reflections in Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park in Summer

The east portal at Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. Photo Credit: Boogich (iStock).

Outside recently released their list of the 'most underrated' park in each state, considering national parks, state parks, wildlife refuges, cave preserves, and more.

In Colorado, the publication dubbed Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park as the 'most underrated' park, a destination best known for a massive ravine that drops more than 2,000 feet to the valley floor.

While the 'national park' status of this destination likely garners it more attention than it would get otherwise, traffic at the Black Canyon of the Gunnison is fairly low.

According to the National Park Service, only 297,257 visits took place in 2022. Not only does this number make it the least-visited national park in Colorado, it also means it ranks 48th of 63 national parks nationwide.

While Black Canyon of the Gunnison might go overlooked by many, it offers a spectacular sight, along with great stargazing opportunities and unique hiking.

Can you think of another park or other type of natural recreation space in Colorado is more underrated? Let us know in the comments.

See the full list from Outside here.

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Director of Content and Operations

Spencer McKee is OutThere Colorado's Director of Content and Operations. In his spare time, Spencer loves to hike, rock climb, and trail run. He's on a mission to summit all 58 of Colorado's fourteeners and has already climbed more than half.

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(3) comments

umagoodness

Beautiful place. 70 years ago my family would take trips into the canyon near the river and pick chokecherries which grow wild there in the canyon. My mom then made jam, and it was the tastiest jam ever.

Kevinboydpeck

Cottonwood lake is also an underrated and unknown gem. Everytime I ask somebody about it they have no idea what I'm talking about, and I've only been in Colorado for 5 years.

Sojourner

Cheyenne Cañon City Park is a great place that not many from out of town know about.

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