Coast to Country

When we headed up to Telluride this summer, I didn’t know what to expect from the St. Sophia Nature Center, but it ended up being one of our favorite stops of the whole trip. The journey there is half the fun: you can only reach it by gondola. And not just any gondola ride, it’s free, it’s scenic, and it feels like you’re floating above the mountains, the kids were glued to the windows the entire ride.

St. Sophia Nature Center

At the top, the Nature Center is small and welcoming, almost like a tucked-away alpine classroom. Inside, the kids immediately ran upstairs to the children’s only loft to color worksheets. They had a table with animal pelts and skulls for the kids to touch. They had so much fun guessing which animal each belonged to, it’s the kind of hands-on learning that sticks better than any worksheet. There were also taxidermy animals up close, amazing for studying details like fur, claws, and teeth. 

On the way to Ouray we took the road less traveled the Alpine Loop, and that’s where we had our best wildlife sighting: a yellow-bellied marmot playing among the rocks. We even caught it on video, darting around, sunning itself, and then popping back into its burrow. It was perfect for the kids to see one up close at the Nature Center and have the wildlife sighting come full circle. That moment was easily one of the highlights of the day and something the kids are still talking about.

One of the highlights for me was learning about the reintroduction of the lynx in Colorado. It’s one of those real-life science lessons about ecosystems and balance that turns into a natural homeschool discussion. The San Juan Mountains have such a rich natural history, geology, wildflowers, wildlife, that everywhere you turn, there’s something to talk about or observe.

On the gondola ride back down, we were all buzzing with excitement, sharing our favorite moments and laughing about our “expert” guesses on the pelts. Then we spotted a herd of elk stretched out in the meadow below, and It felt like the perfect blend of fun and learning, exactly what I love about traveling as a homeschooling family.

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Homeschool & Travel Takeaways

If you’re a homeschool mom (or just traveling with curious kids), here are a few easy ways to extend the experience:

• Nature Journaling: Have the kids draw the marmot or elk they saw, then write down a few details they remember about its behavior.

• Animal Adaptations: Use photos or even fabric scraps to recreate the “guess the pelt” activity at home, talk about how fur helps animals survive in different environments.

• Ecosystem Balance: Read more about the lynx reintroduction in Colorado and connect it to your science lessons on predators and prey.

• Geology Hunt: Collect rocks on your next hike and see if you can identify them, just like the geology displays at the center.

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If your family is ever in Telluride, I can’t recommend the St. Sophia Nature Center enough. It’s free, it’s fun, and it sneaks in so much learning without anyone even noticing. Pair it with the gondola ride and you’ve got a family adventure that’s equal parts memory-making and education.