Colorado Getaways: Montrose

In addition to having a remarkable 7,207-yard Jack Nicklaus layout and the best restaurant in Montrose, The Bridges Golf & Country Club (montrosebridges.com; 970-252-1119) offers lodging right on premises. Four spacious, beautifully appointed suites—ranging in price from $100 to $165 with breathtaking views of either the San Juan Mountains or Grand Mesa—occupy the second floor of the clubhouse. Book one and your green fee drops to $65, including cart, range balls and club storage. 

Golf & Beyond

Not only do the Majestic San Juan Mountains provide a stunning backdrop for a round at the The Links at Cobble Creek (cobblecreek.com; 970-240-9542); the peaks also provide gorgeous views from the homes and homesites in the surrounding 530-acre community, which features ten catch-and-release lakes, two tennis courts, Creekside Restaurant and access to the Rio Grande Bike Path. Real estate ranges from quarter-acre ($65,000) lots to 4,000-square-foot homes ($500,000+).

Just Northeast of Montrose spread the 62,844 acres of the Gunnison Gorge National Conservation Area, home to Gold Medal trout fishing and white-water rafting, as well as hiking, riding and biking on primitive trails that wind through adobe badlands and sandstone canyons. Test your technical skills on the expert-level single-track Sidewinder Trail that snakes
20 miles through the area’s cavernous western flank.

Hikes Along The GORGEOUS North and South Rims of the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park (nps.gov/blca) are great to celebrate the National Park Service Centennial. Feeling bold? Take the steep, rocky, strenuous Gunnison Route to the inner canyon. Just remember: what goes down must come up.

On and Off the Course

FOR THE LOVE OF MUNI: The par-70 Black Canyon Golf Club (blackcanyongolfclub.com) clocks in at 6,323 yards, with a hilly tree-lined parkland front nine and a more open, links-like back. The $30 green fee gets you a wonderful walk on a 57-year-old course purchased two
years ago by the City of Montrose.

SWING GROOVE: For the fourth straight year, the patio at The Bridges Golf & Country Club (montrosebridges.com) will hold Friday night concerts throughout the summer. This year’s highlight comes July 29 when Restless Heart performs a fundraising concert. Tickets to that show—which has previously drawn 3,000 people to see headliners Firefall, the Wailers and Nitty Gritty Dirt Band—cost $25. Proceeds benefit the Montrose Community Foundation.

The first two par 3s, holes nos. 3 and 5, differ from the other 16 holes on The Links at Cobble Creek  (cobblecreek.com) in that no water comes into play. The course, completed in 2003, stretches almost 7,000 yards from the tips and demands precision to keep the ball dry and in play, especially on the 276-yard 15th, an eminently reachable par 4 with water crossing in front of the green. Members from the surrounding community get preferred rates and tee times, but the course welcomes the public at all times. The aptly named Creekside Restaurant and Tavern provide the perfect après-golf setting.

So Many Choices

PLAY FARE: Golf course cuisine doesn’t get much better than Remington’s at The Bridges (montrosebridges.com), which bridges casual and fine dining with a wine list worthy of the coveted Wine Spectator Award of Excellence. An “Eat Local Eat Healthy” restaurant that uses local produce and Rocky Mountain Beef, Remington’s also treats guests to spectacular views of the golf course and San Juans.

GET WET: Consisting of 1,000 feet of flowing water from the Gunnison and Uncompahgre rivers, Montrose Water Sports Park (cityofmontrose.org) is one of the largest manmade aquatic facilities in Colorado. Located at Riverbottom Park, it attracts everyone from waders to kayakers looking for a leisurely run with natural obstacles.

READ THE ROCKS: Led by docents from Montrose’s Ute Indian Museum, tours of the Shavano Valley Petroglyph Park (blm.gov) in the canyons west of Montrose reveal primitive life through rock drawings.

One-Stop Shop

ON IN ONE: The City of Montrose has put together a program called Tee It Up Montrose (teeitupmontrose.com) that packages tee times at the city’s three courses—Black Canyon, The Bridges and Cobble Creek—with lodging and other activities. Two-night, three-round packages start at $340 per person and include green fees, cart fees, range balls and select accommodations.

BREWS NEWS: Horsefly Brewing Company (horseflybrewing.com), Montrose’s first and best brewpub, accompanies its mouthwatering food (the 50/50 burger is equal parts beef and bacon) with a variety of site-made beers ranging from pale in porter. The Irish-style Tabano Red enjoys the greatest popularity. A festive patio with live music complete the picture. Black Canyon Golf Club’s Brews & Bogeys also has Horsefly on tap.

SEE ALL COLORADO GETAWAYS:

Colorado Springs

Durango

Crested Butte

Gunnison

Montrose

Grand County

Steamboat Springs

Vail Valley & Beaver Creek

Aspen

Summit County

ALSO SEE: View all current Golf Deals and Stay & Play Packages

This article appears in the June 2016 issue of Colorado AvidGolfer.

Colorado AvidGolfer is the state’s leading resource for golf and the lifestyle that surrounds it, publishing eight issues annually and proudly delivers daily content via coloradoavidgolfer.com. Follow us on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.