Glenwood Springs is a charming fun little town of around 10,000 people on Colorado’s Western Slope. With a world-famous hot springs pool, mountain adventure park, and much more affordable hotel rooms than it’s Aspen and Vail cousins nearby, the town sees over 2 million visitors a year!
It’s also makes for a fun day trip from Grand Junction. In fact, it’s just 89 miles (or 142 kilometers) from Grand Junction, Colorado to beautiful Glenwood Springs.
Under normal driving conditions and speed, it would take you about an hour and 20 minutes to drive.
During the snowy season, the route can get very tricky to navigate and take longer. For most of the time however, this is a desolate stretch of Western Colorado interstate – one in which you won’t encounter much traffic.
The 89 miles figure is starting from downtown Grand Junction, and ending at the City Hall building in downtown Glenwood.
Drive from Grand Junction to Glenwood Springs
The drive is about as straightforward as you can get. You simply get on Interstate 70 and head east. It’s very scenic in spots, and mind-numbingly boring in others.
Along the way, you’ll follow the Colorado Rivers, traverse through two steep canyons, and spend what seems like endless miles covering slightly hilly desert terrain.
You’ll start by a somewhat slower drive through De Beque Canyon, where the sharp curves will have you practically slamming on the brakes. The speed limit is 35 miles per hour in some spots.
From there, the highway continues to follow right along the Colorado River. Upon exiting the canyon, it gets flat and wide-open.
Because the road is flat and often empty, you’ll be tempted to speed here. At least I do. I have to keep my eyes on the speedometer to keep from reaching the 95 miles per hour range (yes, it’s that flat and empty).
Small, non-descript towns dot the way to Glenwood, meaning you’re never really too far away from a gas station. These towns include, (in order) from west to east:
- De Beque
- Parachute
- Rifle
- Silt
- New Castle
After passing Silt, you’ll enter a canyon. I’ve driven through this countless times, but I don’t know it’s name, (South Canyon?). Either way, it’s the less pretty cousin to Glenwood Canyon to the east, on the other side of Glenwood Springs. Once in South Canyon, the pretty red wall canyons tell you are just a few miles from arriving in West Glenwood Springs.
Grand Junction to Glenwood Springs Map
Here’s the route from Grand Junction “A” to Glenwood Springs, “B”
- Points of interest along the way, include the James M. Robb Colorado River State Park. This is a small, shaded campground area where you can park an RV or camper, (although the proximity to the interstate doesn’t make it THAT peaceful in my view.
- Closer to Glenwood Springs, you’ll find a memorial to the fourteen firefighters who lost their lives in 1994 fighting the Storm King Mountain fire.
- You can reach the Glenwood Springs Visitor’s Center website here: Visitglenwood.com
- One last note: This portion of Interstate 70 from Grand Junction/Fruita/Palisade to Glenwood Springs is labeled on maps as the “Grand Army of the Republic Highway” but I’ve lived here forever and have never once heard anyone call it that.
(Related: Grand Junction to Vail)
Bus from Grand Junction to Glenwood Springs
If you’re not driving, you can still get to Glenwood Springs from Grand Junction via a couple of different bus options (there are no flights to Glenwood from Grand Junction).
Bus service is through either (1) Bustang or (2) Greyhound
- Bustang
This is the taxpayer funded bus system that runs from Grand Junction to Denver and back. There are four departure points in Grand Junction, including from the Grand Junction Regional Airport.
As of this writing, the bus leaves from Grand Junction at 12:05 PM (arriving in Glenwood Springs at 2:25 PM), and at 3:30 PM (arriving at 5:50 PM).
Tickets cost $15 one-way.
The exact schedule for the Bustang to Glenwood Schedule and current pricing can be found on their website here: Bustang
(Related: Grand Junction to Denver)
- Greyhound
There is one departure daily (at 1:20 PM). As of this writing, prices range from $24 to $31 for a one-way ride, varying on the day of the week. It is a 1 hour 30 minute trip. Tickets here: Greyhound
Train from Grand Junction to Glenwood Springs
Amtrak runs from the downtown Grand Junction railroad station at 2nd and Pitkin to downtown Glenwood Springs. The trip takes around and hour and a half. Tickets change based on the day and demand, but a recent search found one-way seats starting as low as $21.
(By Steve Beauregard. Photos courtesy of TheBoyFromFindlay, Jeffrey Beall, and Jimmy Thomas via Flickr.)