Atop Aspen Mountain, we clip into short fat skis. Just over 3 feet long, these twin-tipped “skiboards” would look trendy on a teen, but that’s not us. We’re a group of gray-heads for whom the term “hip” is usually followed by the word “replacement.” For two of the next four days, we old dogs will use these squat skis to learn a new trick – how to navigate Aspen’s…
Bubbles rise and a strange chortle comes from beneath the pond’s murky surface. It’s the sound of trout laughing. The fish, doubling over in gill-splitting glee, watch my first attempts to fly cast. For practice, my guide and instructor, Steve, has knotted surveyor’s tape to the end of a line. It looks as if I am flinging an orange moth from a strand of yellow yarn. What appeared so…
Most towns of 800 people are lucky to have a diner or two, let alone a full-service restaurant. But Ouray has bucked the trend of boring small-town fare. This tiny mountain town, often called Colorado’s Little Switzerland, has 19 food and drink establishments. The restaurants and bars range in size and specialty, but most of them would do well in a big city. Despite their remote location in the…
It happens all the time: You’re a little late out the door and you hit bad traffic on Interstate 70 on your way to the airport. You barely have enough time to make your flight, but now you’re circling the lots looking for a parking space — the economy lots are full like they always are, you’re going to have to pay $18 a day for a piece of…
Summertime in the Colorado mountains delights the ears. Tumbling streams, warbling birdsong, wind whistling down the canyons… every day is an open-air concert. But the Rocky Mountains also happen to be home to four nationally-recognized festivals with world-class musical offerings ranging from classical and bluegrass to jazz. And each takes place in a natural setting far from the state’s urban centers. Aspen Music Festival Aspen, Colorado aspenmusicfestival.com Classical music…
Less than 30 miles west of Denver, Evergreen, Colorado, is perfectly located between the metropolis and the mountains. The area is home to hiking trails, bike paths, scenic views — and more than a few restaurants to tempt your taste buds. So if you’re in town to stay or just passing through, set your sights on one of these fine eateries. Saigon Landing — Vietnamese 28080 Douglas Park Road…
Every time Nick Miller, manager at Krabloonik Kennels, starts to hitch up his team, they go crazy. “They love it,” Miller says. “As soon as they realize they’re going out, they get excited, even if they’ve already been out that day.” Dog-sledding has become increasingly popular in many Colorado mountain towns and ski areas as a different — and effortless — way to explore the winter wilderness. Krabloonik, in…
Birds make their migration trek through Colorado every spring and fall, and bird watchers make their own trek to see them. While Colorado offers many western mountain views, for bird lovers and binocular-toters, the Eastern Plains is the place to be. The Colorado Division of Wildlife, Colorado State Parks and several other nature organizations teamed up to create the Colorado Birding Trail, a network of outdoor nature sites where…
If Parker hasn’t been in your travel plans lately, you may think the town 20 miles southeast of Denver is nothing more than an amorphous, fast-growing bedroom community. But the community of 48,000 people, which boasts a Western Victorian downtown, is making a name for itself as a cultural, recreational and artistic boomtown. Here are seven ways we found to have fun in Parker: Railbender Skate and Tennis Park…
It’s Colorado topography in transition, a place where snow-fed streams surge into sandstone desert and flattop peaks fall to canyon precipices. Naked cliffs, their bases hemmed with stony skirts, stretch along one side of Interstate 70. Across the roadway, vineyards and orchards line a tree-trimmed Colorado River. This ring of merging landforms turns the Grand Junction area into an outdoor theater of scenery in the round. While panoramas seen…