“Colorado” is Spanish for “colored red,” referring to the Colorado River's reddish hue.¹⁾

Colorado has the highest elevation of any state in the United States.²⁾

Colorado is known as the Centennial State, the Highest State, and the Switzerland of America.³⁾

Colorado is the only state in America that has refused to host the Olympics.⁴⁾

Grand Mesa, Colorado, has the world's tallest flat-topped peak.⁵⁾

Katharine Lee Bates was inspired to write “America the Beautiful” after seeing the magnificence of Colorado's Pikes Peak.⁶⁾

Colorado's Loveland is regarded as “the sweetheart city.” Every year, it re-mails hundreds of thousands of Valentine's Day letters, each with a distinctive Valentine's Day collector stamp.⁷⁾

The Eisenhower Tunnel in Colorado is the tallest automotive tunnel in the United States, with an East Portal elevation of 11,013 feet and a West Portal elevation of 11,158 feet. The tunnel spans the Continental Divide at an elevation of 11,112 feet on average.⁸⁾

Colorado contains more than 75% of the territory in the continental United States that is higher than 10,000 feet.⁹⁾

Nederland, Colorado, marks “Frozen Dead Guy Days”, which honors a guy who has been cryogenically frozen for decades.¹⁰⁾

Dove Creek, Colorado is known as the “World's Pinto Bean Capital”.¹¹⁾

In 1944, Coloradoan Frank Marugg devised the tire clamp.¹²⁾

Mike the Headless Chicken Day honors a rooster that lived in Colorado for 18 months without a head.¹³⁾

The Great Fruitcake Toss is held each spring in Manitou Springs, Colorado.¹⁴⁾

Denver International Airport is the world's second biggest, roughly twice the size of Manhattan.¹⁵⁾

Doc Holliday had tuberculosis and went to Glenwood Springs, Colorado, for treatment.¹⁶⁾

Although most people associate Colorado with the Rocky Mountains and 14ers, the Eastern Plains cover around 40% of the state.¹⁷⁾

The average date for the first snowfall in Denver is October 18, however it might be sooner in the mountains. However, it is not uncommon for the snow to melt fast and for the state to see many more warm days in between snowfalls.¹⁸⁾

Rocky Mountain National Park's Trail Ridge Road is both the highest paved road in a national park and the highest continuous paved road in North America. Its highest point is 12,183 feet above sea level.¹⁹⁾

Colorado has the most mountains exceeding 14,000 feet above sea level in the US, known locally as “14ers”. Mount Elbert, at 14,439 feet above sea level, is the highest of them all.²⁰⁾

Horace Tabor, a silver mogul, divorced his wife to marry Baby Doe, who was immediately rejected by Denver's society ladies. Baby Doe died in a shanty in Leadville, where her frozen body was discovered two days later, as the price of silver fell and their riches collapsed.²¹⁾

The Colorado Gold Rush, also known as the Pikes Peak Gold Rush, began in Idaho Springs, CO in 1858. However, it peaked a year later…and 10 years after that of California.²²⁾

In 1887, Tom Groves and Henry Lytton discovered the biggest chunk of gold discovered in Colorado. The nugget was dubbed “Tom's Baby” since he carried it about Breckenridge covered in a blanket. Tom's Baby is presently on display at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science.²³⁾

Colorado is one of four states that comprise the Four Corners Monument, along with New Mexico, Utah, and Arizona. You can stand on the marker where the four states meet, or you can put your hand and foot in each one.²⁴⁾

Denver is known as The Mile High City, and various landmarks record the exact location where locations reach one mile. As measurement standards changed, there are three markers on the steps of the Colorado State Capitol Building. There is also a mile-high row of purple seats at Coors Field, where the Colorado Rockies play.²⁵⁾

In Grand Junction and adjacent Palisade, the Western Slope is home to 30 vineyards. The temperature and proximity to the Colorado River make it an ideal agricultural location for grapes…and, of course, wine.²⁶⁾

The Mount Evans Scenic Byway begins in Idaho Springs and climbs over 7,000 feet to 14,130 feet. The Mount Evans Scenic Byway is North America's highest paved route. In reality, you may drive to the parking lot, do the short hike to the summit, and then brag about having climbed a 14er!²⁷⁾

The federal government of the United States holds 36.2% of Colorado's 67 million acres of land. The majority of government-owned property is available for camping, hiking, and other sorts of leisure.²⁸⁾

The highest dunes in North America may be found in Great Sand Dunes National Park. It also has one of the world's most complicated dune systems, making it a really unique national park! ²⁹⁾

Most people don't think of Colorado as tornado country, yet there are plenty of them east of the Rockies. Weld County has the most tornado parts, and Colorado is one of the top 10 tornado-producing states in the US.³⁰⁾