Things to do in Colorado
The Garden of the Gods, Colorado Springs, CO
Garden of the Gods Park is a city park located in Colorado Springs, CO. It is a registered National Natural Landmark.
“It was August of 1859 when two surveyors started out from Denver City to begin a townsite, soon to be called Colorado City. While exploring nearby locations, they came upon a beautiful area of sandstone formations. M. S. Beach, who related this incident, suggested that it would be a “capital place for a beer garden” when the country grew up. His companion, Rufus Cable, a “young and poetic man”, exclaimed, “Beer Garden! Why it is a fit place for the Gods to assemble. We will call it the Garden of the Gods.” It has been so called ever since.”
Charles Elliott Perkins owned the land that the park sits on today. In 1909, the Perkins family gifted the land to the city of Colorado Springs to be used as a free public park. Today the park plays host to visitors from all over the world. They come to hike the trails, climb the sandstone rocks, and to photograph the beauty that is the Garden of the Gods.
We visited the park on a clear sunny day which made the impact of the sandstone rock formations and the distant Pikes Peak even more impressive. Inside the visitor’s center is an exhibit about the history of the area as well as information about the habitat and wildlife. This park is a photographer’s dream subject and not to be missed if you are visiting Colorado. http://www.gardenofgods.com/
Rocky Mountain National Park Colorado
On January 26, 1915 President Woodrow Wilson signed the act the established the boundaries of the Rocky Mountain National Park. The Continental Divide runs directly through the center of the park which helps to create one of the most diverse plant and animal environments in the United States. With an elevation of 14,259 feet, the Rocky Mountain National Park is one of the highest National parks with Longs Peak being the highest point in the park.
We visited the park in April and found much of the park closed to cars. Even with the limited access along Bear Lake Road the vast beauty of the park can still be appreciated. On a sunny day, you are able to see snowcapped mountains rising up from the valley floor to create a majestic landscape. Rocky Mountain National Park is a true American treasure to be seen. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rocky_Mountain_National_Park , https://www.nps.gov/romo/index.htm
St Vrain State Park Longmont, Colorado
“Formerly named Barbour Ponds, this nature and people-friendly park offers 604 acres of land and 152 acres of water split among several ponds. It’s a great place for anglers, campers, photographers, birders, walkers and anyone who loves nature.”
While visiting Longmont we hooked our LQ horse trailer up at St. Vrain State Park. The nice thing about hooking up here is that there is plenty of space between sites and almost all the sites have a water view of one of the many ponds in the park not to mention the great view of the Rocky Mountains and Longs Peak in the background. The park is also very close to the city of Longmont so you are able to camp and have access to all the things the city has to offer. http://cpw.state.co.us/placestogo/parks/StVrain/Pages/default.aspx
The Longmont History Museum Colorado
The Longmont Museum houses exhibits on the history of Longmont as well as, art and science. The area that is Longmont was first traveled by nomadic Indian tribes that followed the migrating buffalo herds. Than in 1870 a group of men from Chicago sold memberships to the “Chicago-Colorado Colony and built the small town of Longmont. The town remained primarily agricultural until the early 1960’s when high tech companies like IBM came to Longmont.
The museum provides a chronological look into Longmont’s history and development. The interactive exhibit provides information in format that is fun for all ages. We enjoyed our visit to this local history museum. https://www.longmontcolorado.gov/departments/departments-e-m/museum/collections/history-of-longmont
Left Hand Brewing in Longmont, CO 
Twenty-three years ago, Dick Doore and Eric Wallace started Left Hand Brewing in Longmont, CO next to the St. Vrain River. They decided to name the brewery after Chief Niwot (meaning left hand). They started producing their Sawtooth Ale and moved on to release America’s original Nitro bear, Milk Stout Nitro. Today the company distributes to 40 states, the District of Columbia, Europe and Japan. This award-winning brewery became an employee owned company in 2015.
We were treated to a tour of the brewery by Lauren. She started by telling us about the company and then walked us through the brewery and explained the art of brewing from fermentation to bottling. Turns out that the reason beer is so good from Colorado is the water. Of course, no brewery tour is complete without tasting the finished product. I had their Traveln’ Light Kolsch bear and Mom had three samples, The Milk Stout, Milk Stout Nitro and her favorite the Wake up Dead Nitro. If you like craft bear give Left Hand beers a try. http://lefthandbrewing.com/about/history/
The University of Colorado South Denver Wildlife Experience Museum
The Wildlife Experience Museum offers something for all ages. The Globelogy exhibit is an interactive journey through habits around the globe. The displays depict the animals and the plant life that make each area home. There are interactive video screens that allow you to gain information about each area by selecting the topic you are interested in learning more about. There is also a gallery dedicated to Colorado. This exhibit depicts the wildlife and their habitat that is unique to Colorado.
The wildlife art gallery was established when Dave and Gail Liniger donated a large number of important wildlife art pieces to the museum. The collection is made up of paintings and sculptures by internationally acclaimed artists. For me the highlight of the visit was seeing the bronze sculpture of the Canon Princess by Gerald G. Balciar. The same artist that did the marble sculpture of the Canon Princess at the National Cowboy and Western Heritage Museum in Oklahoma. http://southdenver.cu.edu/events/event/wildlife-experience-gallery/
Vehicle Vault located in Parker, CO
Vehicle Vault is the brain child of Daniel and Erin Dilley. They have taken their private collection of rare and exotic automobiles and have created a museum and event space for the car enthusiasts. They are also creating a community in which elite car collectors can store their cars and share their passion with like-minded car enthusiasts.
You can tell from the moment you walk into the gallery that every car has special meaning to the owners. From the way, the cars were restored and displayed, to the details on the signs it was clear that these cars are something special. The photos say it all. http://www.vehiclevaultco.com/
If I was Irish , I would be very confused…….does each training session cover
the same techniques ? Or are the training coaches a specialist in a specific
technical area ? Irish will need a vacation when he comes home to PA .
Nice pics of the beautiful areas you are visiting……thanks , much appreciated.
When you get to Minot,ND look up Kroll’s Diner .
Travel safe ,
Glenn
All the trainers are reining horse trainers. The maneuvers are the same for a reining horse it is just different exercises to perfect the maneuvers. He is not confused yet. We are not going to ND just to SD. Thanks for checking in.