Situated along a scenic curve in the South Platte River, rustic Bailey serves up healthy doses of beautiful canyon scenery. Its mountain-wilderness backdrop lends a particular charm to this sleepy mountain town.

The five-acre McGraw Park features several historic structures, including an 1864 log cabin and a one-room schoolhouse from 1894. The park leads to a trail offering another 10 acres for nature exploration.Recent improvements to the park include picnic facilities, trout-fishing enhancements and a whitewater kayak launch.

Bailey sits just outside the Lost Creek Wilderness Area in the Pike National Forest, where week-long backpacking trips and day hikes are popular. The logging roads and pack trails crisscrossing the area’s hilly terrain are a mountain biker’s dream and first-rate fly-fishing opportunities abound.

If your stomach’s begging for a pit stop, the local eateries should satisfy the craving. Whether you stop in Bailey for a quick lunch or a week-long excursion, be on the lookout — a herd of bighorn sheep live in the mountains just outside town.