21 Jul 2026 4 min read

Gunnison and Crested Butte

If you recall, we had a fun time in Vernal, Utah except winds blew us into town and a snowstorm in the mountains caused us to reroute our drive to Gunnison. Well, we weren't totally in the clear and I may have fretted a bit until we knew we were safe. Sister talked to Chatty Cathy (her AI assistant) and determined what areas we needed to keep an eye on and found an app to monitor the Colorado road conditions. As it turned out, we were just fine; while we saw some snow, nothing our minivan couldn't handle. In fact, we enjoyed some beautiful scenery between Vernal and Gunnison.

When we got to Gunnison, my friend Sissy and her pawrents were there. I was excited! I'm usually very anxious around other doggies ... but Sissy is my friend and I love her. Her pawrents are dear to us as well and we love spending time with them.

Our hotel was located adjacent to a golf course. My daddy and Sissy's daddy went golfing a couple times and really had fun. I really wanted to take my tinkle time on the greens. I mean, they were right there at the hotel. So what if a fence was there with a sign saying not to get on the greens. That grass was lovely and I was robbed of marking it as my own! I think we all know by now that my sister Carrie can be a real Debbie Downer!

Downtown Main Street feels like you are stepping back to a simpler time. We really enjoyed the shopping and dining (I just got sniffs, but they were delightful) the town had to offer. My sister especially liked Gene Taylor's Sporting Goods store. I didn't say this, but she didn't act like someone between jobs. I counted several bags stuffed full of new clothes! Not one item in a single bag for me!

Despite being robbed of the greens experience, I had a nice time at the hotel and really enjoyed the sniffs this particular tree had to offer.

We decided to take a trip to Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. It was breathtaking! I highly recommend driving through. If you are a hiker, there are some nice trails available as well.

Don't worry ... I was safe ... my Daddy would never drop me!

We took the short (ish) drive to Crested Butte a couple of times. Such a fun town with lots of dog-friendly shopping! On one of the trips, we had to stop in the middle of the highway for an actual cattle drive. I've seen cattle drives on Yellowstone but they didn't compare to seeing it right outside the minivan. I'm a herder! From my carseat, I helped the cowboys and their two dogs herd those cows down the road! Sister took a video of the cattle drive ... check it out on my Instagram or Facebook page. If that wasn't exciting enough, Crested Butte was AMAZING!

My people were laughing at those gloves on the fence. I don't get it, do you? In fact, as a puppy I had a major glove fetish and I don't laugh at such serious objects of interest. Isn't my friend Sissy pretty - she has the prettiest longest eyelashes! We both had an amazing time shopping in Crested Butte. We advised our people and they made some really smart purchases. The best purchase was at Mountain Tails (Elk Jerky Treats ... yum)!

Like all adventures, the day came for us to pack up the car and head for the next stop in the 2026 Spring Adventure: Colorado Springs. I'll tell you about that leg of the trip next time. Until then, know that I appreciate you! Have a great week! Do a little shopping (like sister did, haha) and bite some elk jerky!