Sights in Front Range
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Garden of the Gods
A compound of 13 bouldered peaks and soaring red rock pinnacles accessed by a network of concrete paths and trails. From the main parking area you'll see the Kissing Camels, White Rock and Tower of Babel right away. The Cathedral Towers and Sleeping Giant are further on.
It's a great place for families, as little ones love rambling the paths, while lovers snuggle or quarrel in shadows, and resident deer prance among the brush. This land was originally purchased in 1879 by Charles Elliot Perkins. He'd always wanted to make it an official public park and his kids carried out his wishes after his death. It became a park in 1909.
To be clear, this is not a wilderness…
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University of Colorado at Boulder
It is possible for prospective students and curious visitors to tour one of the finest public universities in America, and one of the best schools overall. It's a beautiful campus set above downtown, on what is known as the Hill. Free tours begin with a one-hour informational session followed by a 90-minute walking tour.
As you stroll, remember you are moving in the footsteps of notable alumni such as astronaut Scott Carpenter (one of 17 astronauts with CU diplomas), Apple's Steve Wozniak, Sidney Altman (one of six Nobel Laureates), Robert Redford (didn't graduate), South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone (smoked a ton of dope, did graduate), actor Jonah Hill…
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Chautauqua Park
This historic landmark park is not just the gateway to Boulder's most magnificent slab of open space (we're talking about the Flatirons) it also has a wide, lush lawn that attracts picnicking families, sunbathers, frisbee folk, and – gasp – even studious students from CU down the road. It also gets copious hikers, climbers and trail runners.
This was once an important site for the inspired rural educational organization, the Chautauqua movement. These days, it's a park, a lodge and an auditorium where world-class musicians perform each summer.
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US Air Force Academy
One of the third-highest profile US military universities in the country, this is something like the Ivy Leage meets basic training, where the students are soldiers, all have killer academic and extra-curricular backgrounds and work full-time while going to school. It can be a surreal place, but it's well worth visiting, especially if fighters are rocketing into the sky from the airfield.
Did we mention they have a decent football team and are nestled on their own base-campus tucked high on a plateau at the base of the pine draped red earth Rockies?
Set 14 miles north of Colorado Springs, you can access the base from the north (exit 156) or south (exit 150) gate. Most…
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Colorado Springs Fine Arts Center
This recently re-done $28-million art museum and 400-seat theatre opened in the 1936. The museum's collection is surprisingly sophisticated with some terrific Latin American art and photography, and a great series, in the original, pebbled marble wing, by local artist Eric Bransby on the history of navigation. But these are just some of the 23,000 pieces in its permanent collection
There are Mexican clay figures, Native American basketry and quilts, wood-cut prints from social justice artist Leopoldo Mendez, terrific abstract work from local artists such as Vance Kirkland and Floyd Tunson. Its biggest and most famous work is Richard Diebenkorn's Urbana No. 4, an abstract…
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Manitou Cliff Dwellings
A set of stunning Anasazi cliff dwellings grooved into the red-rock hills at 6530ft just east of Manitou Springs off Hwy 24. You'll see the adobe facades, and get a feel for the cool cave interiors with their grain-storage turrets and beamed ceilings in what is a string of half-a-dozen multiple family homes. Talk about an efficient use of space!
There's also a museum gift shop and snacks on site in a groovy Pueblo-style structure that looms from the hills. The museum has a terrific pottery display downstairs and interesting video displays thrughout, including inside the bathroom! It's not exactly Mesa Verde, but it'll do if you can't make it to the Four Corners.
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Will Rogers Shrine of the Sun
Set behind the zoo and those massive crenelated stone gates, on a cliff about two-thirds of the way up Cheyenne, is this tower named for Spencer Penrose's good friend Will Rogers, who died in a plane crash coincidentally around the time of its construction. There are busts of both men out front and the best Colorado Springs views in town.
Plaques on the outer wall are oriented and labeled to landmarks below. You'll see the Broadmoor, Fort Carson, Cheyenne Lake and the Garden of the Gods peeking above the trees. There are black-and-white photos of Rogers in the tower's rooms off the narrow cylindrical stairwell. We like the one with Ty Cobb.
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US Olympic Training Center
Fans of Olympic sports will enjoy a free guided spin through one of three official United States Olympic training centers. This is, or has been, the chief training facility for most winter sports, and summer sports such as cycling, weight lifting and volleyball. It begins with an inspirational up-to-date highlight reel.
Afterward you'll stroll through the 37-acre campus, glimpse weight rooms and gyms, and hear legends of athletes past. The tour ends at the US Olympic Hall of Fame in the lobby. Recent inductees include the spectacular sprinter Michael Johnson, volleyballer Karch Kiraly and the great marksman Lones Wigger.
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Cheyenne Mountain Zoo
Layered high up on Cheyenne Mountain, the largest private zoo in the country was launched with holdovers from Penrose's private animal collection. These days it takes conservation more seriously and is proud of its giraffe breeding program. The habitats are decent with instructional elements built in. There are some nice play areas for kids.
And the cast of characters (gorillas, Komodo dragons, orangutans, tigers, Siberian snow leopard, hippos and elephants) will keep you interested. The Mountaineer Sky Ride, a brief chairlift experience, will give you a bird's-eye view of the whole zoo.
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Pikes Peak
At 14,110ft, Pikes Peak may not be one of the tallest of Colorado's 54 14-ers, but it's certainly the most famous. Maybe because it's the only one with a road and a train to the top? That's where you'll find an observation platform and a kitschy gift shop in the Summit House selling Pikes Peak sweaters and hackeysacks, and homemade fudge is for sale in the cafeteria.
Down slope are seven reservoirs - Pikes Peak is the water source for this entire region, and from the summit you can see Kansas, the Oklahoma panhandle, the Wyoming Continental Divide and the Spanish Peaks in New Mexico.
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Naropa University
Founded by Tibetan Buddhist master Chögyam Trungpa Rinpoche who escaped Tibet and climbed over the Himalayas into India as a young man. In 1970, at just 30, he began presenting teachings in the US and founded the Naropa Institute (which became Naropa University) in 1974. It offers a contemplative education in psychology, environmental studies, music, performing arts and more.
Naropa is also home to the Jack Kerouac School of Disembodied Poetics, co-founded by his fellow Beat Allen Ginsberg, and poet Anne Waldman.
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Central Park
Spanning from the northern edge of downtown to the Contemporary Art Museum at 13th Street, and encompassing the public library, a twice-weekly seasonal farmers market, and a large swatch of the Boulder Creek bike trail, it's hard to avoid this park. And really, why would you want to? It's a nice spot for a picnic and a nap.
Here is a long blade of lush lawn, ample shade and sun and a ramp leading to the Boulder Creek trail and the creek itself.
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Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art
A historic brick house divided into three galleries filled with evocative modern art. Mixed-media exhibits can include such whimsy as neon installations and life-sized cards, while strange fashion concepts are displayed in the costume and wardrobe gallery upstairs. All exhibitions are temporary and rotate every three months. Admission is free when the farmers market blooms out the front on Wednesdays and Saturdays.
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Flagstaff Mountain Trailhead
A trailhead and parking area just below the summit (elev 7283ft) and a short drive from downtown Boulder with great Boulder and Denver views to the east and spectacular Continental Divide Views to the west. From here you can access a handful of fun hikes to even better vistas. There's a reason people get married up here.
If Flagstaff Summit Rd is closed for winter, park on Flagstaff Mountain and hike 0.6 miles to the top.
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Boulder Reservoir
When you're this far from the ocean, the reservoir is where folks come to suntan, swim, boat, and wakeboard. Unfortunately there were no boating or wakeboarding concessions open at research time, so you may have to settle for a dip. And on the right day at the right time, that will be good enough, we assure you.
Dogs are not allowed into the park between May 15 and Labor Day, but are allowed in during the off-season.
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Cornerstone Arts Center
Colorado College's striking, $30 million LEED (Leadership in Energy & Environmental Design)-certified arts complex across the street from the Fine Arts Center. You'll see sculpture on the front lawn, and there's a free gallery inside and frequent guest lecturers and film screenings. Past guests have incuded filmmakers, prominent feminists, Buddhist masters and big-time video-game producers.
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Holzwarth Historic Site
When prohibition was enacted in 1916, John Holzwarth Sr, a Denver saloonkeeper, started a new life as a subsistence rancher. This site houses several buildings kept in their original condition, and hosts historical reenactments and ranger-led programs. The Heritage Days celebration happens in late July.
The site lies at the end of a graded ½-mile path, easily accessible with strollers.
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Acacia Park
The home of the Monday farmers market and the much loved Uncle Wilbur's Fountain, a lifeguard-monitored pop jet fountain with over 200 water jets, 52 of which are part of a play area where kids run and try to stem the unstoppable streams with their pitter patter. It's a good time, but remember this is also something of a downbeat gathering place for the road weary and lost among us.
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Boulder History Museum
History buffs will want to breeze through this simple but informative museum, home to a substantial collection of old photos and documents that offer glimpses into Boulder's past. It also hosts special exhibitions on such subjects as the 'History of Flight in Colorado,' 'Influential Women in Boulder's Past' and, gulp, 'Pocketbook Anthropology: The History of Handbags.'
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Memorial Park
Set just off downtown, with Prospect Lake surrounded by wide green lawns and ball fields, and Pikes Peak and the rest of the southern front range looming to the west, this is the city's biggest public park and the site of the Colorado Balloon Classic, held on Labor Day and one of America's biggest and best hot-air balloon festivals.
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Cave of the Winds
Set on the rim of a craggy canyon is this developed cavern concession. You'll forgive the cheesy entry and elevator music because here are the stalactites and stalagmites of your dreams. Most opt for the 45-minute Discovery Tour, but the Lantern Tour goes twice as deep, gets twice as dark and lasts twice as long.
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Pioneers Museum
Colorado Springs' municipal museum is set in the old El Paso County Courthouse, built in 1903. Their collection and exhibition of some 60,000 pieces sum up the region's history. Particularly good is the Native American collection, which features hundreds of items from the Ute, Cheyenne and Arapaho nations.
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Butterfly Pavilion
With four indoor exhibit halls and acres of outdoor gardens fluttering with over 1200 butterflies from all the jungles and rainforests of the world – not to mention furry tarantulas, armored scorpions and fuzzy millipedes – this spot is a whirl of color, excitement and joy for the kids and mom and dad too.
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Money Museum
Yes, museums dedicated to coin collecting do exist. Or maybe it's museum (singular). We're not sure. But this museum, operated by the American Numismatic Association has gold coins from the early 19th century, Early commemorative coins from the turn of the 20th century and a few vintage greenbacks too.
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Bancroft Park
There's a small historical display in leafy Bancroft Park, which is set smack in the middle of Old Colorado City. The centerpiece is the Old Pioneer County Bank. Built in 1859, it became, 10 years later, the first county office building, then became a Chinese laundry and antiques shop.
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