In addition to contacting the various companies listed below, you can get additional information and even book some activities through the Durango Area Tourism Office.

Durango is surrounded by public land, with numerous opportunities for hiking, mountain biking, fishing, and winter sports. For information contact the San Juan Public Lands Center (tel. 970/247-4874) at 15 Burnett Ct., off U.S. 160 west in the Durango Tech Center, which offers information on activities in the San Juan National Forest and on lands administered by the Bureau of Land Management. The center is open Monday through Friday from 8am to 5pm.

The Durango Parks and Recreation Department (tel. 970/375-7300) operates about 20 parks throughout the city, where you'll find picnic areas, free tennis courts, and other facilities. The department operates (and has its administrative offices in) the Durango Community Recreation Center, 2700 Main Ave., which has an indoor swimming pool, climbing wall, weights and other workout equipment, an indoor track, and other facilities. A recreation center day pass, which includes all the facilities at the center, costs $4.50 for adults 18 to 59, $3.50 for kids 4 to 17 and adults 60 and up, and is free with a paying adult for children under 4.

Durango Mountain Resort, some 25 miles north of Durango on U.S. 550 (tel. 800/982-6103 or 970/247-9000), doesn't close down -- or even slow down -- after the winter's snows are gone. Summer activities here include the popular Alpine Slide, scenic chairlift rides, a climbing wall, miniature golf, disc golf, and bungee trampolines. Individual activities cost from $3 for a chairlift ride to $8 for the alpine slide or the bungee trampoline, but the best deal is the Total Adventure Ticket -- a 4-hour pass for $29 or a full-day pass for $49, providing a shot at everything including unlimited alpine slide and chairlift rides, and disc and miniature golf. Durango Mountain Resort also offers free guided naturalist hikes; call tel. 970/385-1210 for times and registration.

Fishing -- Six-mile-long Vallecito Lake, 23 miles northeast of Durango via C.R. 240 and C.R. 501, is a prime spot for rainbow trout, brown trout, kokanee salmon, and northern pike; for information, contact the Vallecito Lake Chamber of Commerce, P.O. Box 804, Bayfield, CO 81122 (tel. 970/247-1573). There are also numerous streams in the Durango area. To buy Colorado fishing licenses and supplies, get information on the best fishing holes, rent equipment, or arrange for a guided fly-fishing trip, stop in at Duranglers, 923 Main Ave. (tel. 888/347-4346 or 970/385-4081). Full-day float trips for two people cost about $350; wading trips for two cost about $325. Lunch is included. Similar guide services are offered by Anasazi Angler (tel. 970/385-4665).

Glider Rides -- For a quiet, airborne look at Durango and the San Juan Mountains, take a glider ride with Durango Soaring Club (tel. 970/247-9037), located 3 miles north of Durango on U.S. 550. Rides are conducted daily from 9am to 6pm from mid-May through mid-October; soaring is smoother in the morning but there is greater thermal activity, offering the opportunity for longer rides, in the afternoon. Rates for one person are about $95 for 10 to 15 minutes and $145 for 30 to 35 minutes, and individuals cannot weigh less than 50 pounds or more than 260 pounds.

Golf -- Two public 18-hole golf courses open in early spring, weather permitting, in Durango. There's Hillcrest Golf Course, 2300 Rim Dr., adjacent to Fort Lewis College (tel. 970/247-1499), with fees of $25 for 18 holes; and Dalton Ranch and Golf Club, 589 Trimble Lane (C.R. 252), 6 miles north of Durango via U.S. 550 (tel. 970/247-8774), charging $89 for 18 holes, including a cart.

Hiking & Backpacking -- Durango is at the western end of the 500-mile Colorado Trail to Denver. The trail head is 3 1/2 miles up Junction Creek Road, an extension of 25th Street west of Main Avenue. There are numerous other trails in the Durango area, including paths into the Weminuche Wilderness Area reached via the Durango & Silverton railroad. For information on area trails contact the San Juan Public Lands Center .

Horseback Riding & Cattle Drives -- To see this spectacular country as the pioneers did, arrange for a short horseback ride or a 2- to 6-day expedition into the San Juan National Forest or Weminuche Wilderness. Our choice for a licensed outfitter here is Rapp Corral, located on the east side of U.S. 550 about 20 miles north of Durango at 51 Haviland Lake Road. (tel. 970/247-8454). Riders go into the San Juan National Forest, and rides start at $32 for a 1-hour ride. A 2-hour ride to a natural cave costs $60 and a 4-hour or longer trip into southern Colorado's high country costs $150. Reservations are required, and payment should be made with personal or travelers' checks or cash; credit cards are not accepted. During winter, Rapp Corral offers sleigh rides (call for details).

Llama Trekking -- Guided llama trips, overnight pack trips, and llama leasing are the specialty of Buckhorn Llama Co. (tel. 970/667-7411). Guided pack trips for one to three people cost $350 per person per day and include all equipment, meals, and necessary supplies, except for sleeping bags.

Mountain Biking -- The varied terrain and myriad trails of San Juan National Forest have made Durango a nationally known mountain-biking center. The Colorado Trail, Hermosa Creek Trail (beginning 11 miles north of Durango off U.S. 550), and La Plata Canyon Road (beginning 11 miles west of Durango off U.S. 160) are among our favorites. For information contact the Public Lands Center .

You can also get information and rent mountain bikes at Hassle Free Sports, 2615 Main Ave. (tel. 800/835-3800 or 970/259-3874), which rents full suspension mountain bikes for $30 per half-day or $40 for a full day. Guided tours and bike rentals are available from Southwest Adventure Guides, 12th and Camino del Rio (tel. 800/642-5389 or 970/259-0370), with similar rentals rates and guided tour prices starting at $60 for a half-day.

Mountaineering & Rock Climbing -- A variety of terrain offers mountaineering and rock-climbing opportunities for beginners as well as advanced climbers. Guided tours and instruction are offered by Southwest Adventures, with rates starting at $70 for a group half-day rock-climbing course and $310 for two people for a 1-day mountaineering course.

River Rafting -- The three stages of the Animas River provide excitement for rafters of all experience and ability levels. The churning Class IV and V rapids of the upper Animas mark its rapid descent from the San Juan Range. The 6 miles from Trimble Hot Springs into downtown Durango are an easy, gently rolling rush. Downstream from Durango, the river is mainly Classes II and III, promising a few thrills but mostly relaxation.

Most of the many outfitters in Durango offer a wide variety of rafting excursions, such as 2- to 4-hour raft trips that cost $25 to $45 for adults and $20 to $35 for kids, and full-day river trips, which include lunch, costing about $75 for adults and $65 for kids. Trips in inflatable kayaks are also offered at slightly higher rates. Among our favorite companies here are Durango Rivertrippers (tel. 800/292-2885 or 970/259-0289), AAM's Mild to Wild Rafting (tel. 800/567-6745 or 970/247-4789), and Mountain Waters Rafting (tel. 800/585-8243 or 970/259-4191).

Rodeo -- From late June through the third weekend in July, the Durango Pro Rodeo series takes place most Tuesday, Wednesday, Friday, and Saturday nights starting at 7:30pm at the La Plata County Fairgrounds, Main Avenue and 25th Street (tel. 602/237-3000). Admission costs $12 for adults and $5 for kids 12 and under. A Western barbecue ($7 per plate) is served from 6pm.

Swimming & Mineral Baths -- Trimble Hot Springs, 7 miles north of Durango just off U.S. 550 (tel. 970/247-0111), at the junction of C.R. 203 and Trimble Lane, is a National Historic Site more than 100 years old, where you'll often find Mom and Dad relaxing in the soothing mineral pools or getting a massage while the kids have fun in the adjacent swimming pool. Facilities include two natural hot-springs therapy pools, a separate Olympic-size swimming pool (heated by the hot springs but not containing hot-springs water), massage and therapy rooms, a snack bar, picnic area, and gardens. Water from the natural hot springs comes out of the ground at 118° to 120°F (48°-49°C), and the therapy pools are kept at a more comfortable temperature of 102° to 108°F (39°-42°C). The swimming pool is usually about 85°F (29°C). The complex is open daily from 8am to 11pm in summer, and in winter from 9am to 10pm Sunday through Thursday and until 11pm Friday and Saturday. From June through August day passes cost $11 for adults and $7.50 for children 12 and younger; the rest of the year the cost is $9 for adults and $6.50 for children 12 and younger. Day passes cover use of the therapy mineral pools and the swimming pool. The Trimble Hot Springs Spa (tel. 970/247-0212) is open daily from 9am to 9pm year-round, providing expanded body treatments and a quiet relaxing atmosphere for therapeutic massage, herbal oil wraps, face and scalp treatments, dry body brush, and radiant salt glow. Massages start at about $50 for a half-hour. Reservations are recommended but walk-ins are welcome.

Winter Sports -- Some 25 miles north of Durango on U.S. 550, Durango Mountain Resort [STST], 1 Skier Place, Durango, CO 81301 (tel. 800/982-6103 or 970/247-9000), has bragging rights to more sunshine than any other Colorado resort. Surprisingly, the sun doesn't come at the expense of snow -- average annual snowfall is 260 inches -- so you really get the best of both snow and sun. The resort, which has a laid-back friendly atmosphere that we particularly enjoy, contains 1,200 acres of skiable terrain, with 85 trails rated 23% beginner, 51% intermediate, and 26% advanced, and 11 lifts (one high-speed six, one high-speed quad, four triples, three doubles, one surface lift, and one Magic Carpet). The mountain has a vertical drop of 2,029 feet from a summit elevation of 10,822 feet.

Snowboarders are welcome on all lifts and trails, and two snowboard parks offer jumps, slides, and a half-pipe. The Durango Nordic Center has 10 miles of trails for Nordic skiers for both classic and skate skiing, and charges $12 for a trail pass.

Three on-mountain restaurants complement the facilities, which include a hotel, condominiums, several restaurants and taverns, shops, and equipment rentals. All-day lift tickets are about $55 for adults, $30 for children 6 to 12, $45 for seniors 62 to 69 and students, $20 for seniors 70 and older, and free for kids 5 and younger. The resort is usually open from late November or early December to early April, daily from 9am to 4pm.