Snapdragons: October 2015

COLORADO

Golden Colorado is the home to Coors Beer. We ate breakfast there, nothing was open, made a plan to swing back later in the day, didn't happen, next time. The have excellent bike racks.

Red Rocks is located just 10 miles west of Denver and so worth a visit. My bucket list now includes seeing a concert at the Red Rocks Ampitheater. We did our first hike here, breathtaking in more ways than one. (no filters)

Georgetown, Colorado was founded in 1859 during the Pikes peak gold rush and still retains it's victorian charm.

I purchased Lavender Shortbread cookies in this quaint bakery...melt in your mouth goodness.

We took the Guanella Pass Road back to Denver, the road less traveled is always a good idea.
It was stunning.

Aspens! Being from New England I wasn't prepared to be enchanted by these flexible golden trees and the music they make.

sigh

summit 11,700 ft...felt a tad lightheaded but so beautiful and humbling.

BOULDER IS SO CHARMING!
I loved these inquisitive robots.

Repurposed Chevy (love)

They were having a Fall Fest

Temporary Art at it's finast

Chautauqua Park was right up the street from our airbnb...it was love at first sight!

Flatiron Mountains, view from half way up The Royal Arch Trail.

Oh yes, we took a hike. The natives were running up and down this trail, we could barely catch our breath. Folks in Boulder are competitive! This hike was billed as a three hours RT. After an hour and a half we asked a young woman how much further to the top? Running in place, she told us she did it in 40 minutes and that we had another 20 until the top. ( She was calculating our age and apparent level of fitness or lack there of.) We thanked her, watched her jog off, looked at each other and turned around.

Eldorado Canyon, another treasure located in Boulder's backyard.
We hiked the Rattlesnake Gulch Trail

We hiked up to the ruins of the Crags Hotel. It's hard to imagine that this tranquil park used to be a popular resort. Back in the early 1900's, visitors would arrive from Denver by train, and stay at the Crags Hotel, which was perched 800 feet above the canyon floor. The resort even had its own incline railway to take visitors in and out of the canyon.

We stopped here on our way to The Celestial Seasonings factory...so peaceful.

DRAGONFLY/GIRAFFE is an interesting piece of sculpture along the Boulder Creek Path.
This path which zig-zags it way through town is another lovely surprise in Boulder. We saw cyclists, walkers, boarders, a couple tubing, folks reading, picnicking and napping. Delightful.

Estes Park CO. The gateway to Rocky Mountain National Park.
Greeters at the visitors center

Here we are heading up to the summit of Trail Ridge East (12,000 ft) for our cycle down the highest continuous paved road in the country.

Cold and starkly beautiful, We need to come back next July to see the tundra in bloom.

Brandon, half of the husband/wife team who run New Venture Cycling, their passion and love of "Rocky" is infectious. His stories were entertaining and informative.

We did this ride on our last day in Colorado. In a word, amazing!

An all out, full assault on your senses, you just don't get the same experience in a car.

Back in town...picnicking elk

Sunset in Boulder

One last stop on our way to the airport..Chautauqua Park

After spending three days in Denver I can see why the folks who live here love it so much. The first thing you notice is how happy everyone is and then how healthy they are! Nice mellow vibe.
There's no traffic as long as you stay away from the highways.
Great museums, entertainment, restaurants.
Neighborhoods!
Real Mexican food!
The beer is awesome!
Cycling trails are everywhere!
Red Rocks!
Cowboy boots!
Lots to love and we barley scratched the surface.

An example of a relaxed, healthy and happy Denverite.