Things to do in Rocky Mountains
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Boulder Running Company
Boulder's prime center for all the gear and specialty shoes you'll need for running track, street and trails. In fact, there are more trail runners here than we thought possible. They even video analyze your running stride on a treadmill before the fitting, which helps make sure you aren't injury prone in your new shoes (and probably don't hurt the in-sole sales either).
If you want to know when the next foot race or triathlon is on, come here.
reviewed
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Ska Brewing Company
Big on flavor and variety, these are the best beers in town. Although the small, friendly tasting-room bar was once mainly a production facility, over the years it's steadily climbed in the popularity charts. Today it is usually jam-packed with friends meeting for an after-work beer.
Despite the hype, the place remains surprisingly laid-back and relaxed. Ska does weekly BBQs with live music and free food. Call for dates - they are never fixed.
reviewed
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Mimi's Fried Pies
These pies are a cross between Aussie meat pies and Southern-style pot pies, but being handheld there's an empanada influence, and they were dreamt up in long-ago Oklahoma by Mimi's grandmother, who most likely had never seen an empanada, so there's that.
Sweet Mimi fills the flakey dough with cherry, apple, chocolate, coconut cream and pecans, but also gets savory with chicken and broccoli, spinach and mushroom, cheese and pepperoni and more.
reviewed
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Grand Canyon and Rocky Mountain Trails
15 days (Jackson (Wyoming))
Explore Yellowstone, the Rocky Mountains and hike the Grand Canyon.
Not LP reviewed
from USD$3,190 -
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Buckskin Booksellers
This excellent bookstore exemplifies the passion locals have for their town and area. Buckskin carries a huge amount of books on local history, mining and geology, as well as birding books, guidebooks and hiking and camping information. There are antique books and collectibles, old photographs and ephemera, as well as a great range of fiction titles.
There are also plush armchairs where you're invited to sit and read a while before you buy.
reviewed
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Trimble Spa & Natural Hot Springs
For a pampering massage or just a post-hike soak in natural hot springs. Phone or check the website for last-minute specials, which sometimes include two-for-one deals and other discounts. It's 5 miles north of Durango.
reviewed
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Hunter-Fryingpan Wilderness Area
- Aspen, USA
- Activities › Hiking
From Lone Pine Rd in Aspen, the Hunter Valley Trail (USFS Trail 1992) follows Hunter Creek northeast about 3 miles through wildflower meadows to the Sunnyside and Hunter Creek Trails, which lead into the 82,026 acre Hunter-Fryingpan Wilderness Area.
Less visited than other slices of Central Rockies wilderness, you can find some stunning campsites and rugged peaks here, as well as the headwaters to both Hunter Creek and the Fryingpan River.
reviewed
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Wheeler Opera House
Built in 1887, one of Aspen's oldest and finest examples of Victorian architecture has been a working theater since it first opened – with the exception of the 30 or so years things were interrupted by fire, depression and reconstruction. The point is, this place is historic and was definitely part of Aspen's postwar revival. It still presents opera, films, concerts and musicals.
During summer the Aspen Music Festival holds concerts here.
reviewed
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Molly Brown House Museum
This outstandingly preserved house, designed by the well-known architect William Lang, was built in 1889 and belonged to the most famous survivor of the Titanic disaster. Having survived the ill-fated voyage she became active in progressive politics and women’s organizations, and was a keen theater performer. She died in 1922, a woman ahead of her time.
Molly Brown House offers educational workshops, residencies and scholarships.
reviewed
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Phantom Canyon Brewing Co
In an old exposed warehouse building saved from the wrecking ball in 1993, this local brewery serves a variety of pints and American cuisine in a casual atmosphere with wood floors and furnishings, and an antique bar.
The appetizers can be large enough for a meal, happy-hour pints of house-made blondes, IPAs and stouts are just $2.50 and the downstairs dining room is family-friendly. Locals flock to the upstairs billiards room at night.
reviewed
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H BurgerCo
Sure, the formidable burgers at this futuristic diner get raves – especially the Angus beef, chili-infused, cheddar-crowned H Burger – but the visionary milkshake menu might be worthy of skipping the main course altogether. The Nutella Marshmallow variety, topped with roasted marshmallows and infused with liquid nitrogen(!) is an icy, creamy wonder. If you're into something with a bit more kick than a milkshake, fear not; there's a full bar.
reviewed
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Denver Firefighters Museum
Fire Station No 1 was built in 1909 and in 1978 was turned into a museum that explores the history of firefighting in Denver. See the old steam equipment, slide down a pole and get kitted out in some firefighting gear. The upstairs section is the old quarters where the firefighters slept.
The galleries include a dedicated children’s section with interactive displays based on fire-safety education. Great for kids and fascinating for adults.
reviewed
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Syzygy
Tucked into a basement on Aspen's restaurant row, this elegant dining room showcases the considerable talents of a local chef who's been feeding Aspen Jazz Festival VIPs for years (through his catering company). Think truffle-and-potato-crusted turbot, elk tenderloin, veal cheek with sweetbreads, and buffalo carpaccio.
Yes, this fine-dining house is for the carnivorous gourmand. Translation: beloved by the AARP set, but still a find.
reviewed
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Dobson Ice Arena
- Vail, USA
- Activities › Skating
Located at the entrance to the Lionshead ski resort, this aging yet more than adequate rink is where local freestylers, aspiring competitive ice dancers, and bruising pick-up hockey jocks come for a good skate. The rink is available for time-block rental and hours are set aside for public skating, along with classes and organized activities and events for all ages.
Visit the website, grab a schedule at the door, or call for details.
reviewed
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Oxbow Bend
One of the most famous scenic spots in Grand Teton National Park for wildlife-watching is Oxbow Bend, with the reflection of Mt Moran as a stunning backdrop. Early morning and dusk are the best times to spot moose, elk, sandhill cranes, ospreys, bald eagles, trumpeter swans, Canada geese, blue herons and white pelicans. The oxbow was created as the river's faster water eroded the outer bank while the slower inner flow deposited sediment.
reviewed
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The Butcher & The Baker
Two veterans of upscale local catering started this heartbreakingly cute cafe, and no one beats them for breakfast. The to-go sandwiches – a daily rotation that includes turkey and cranberry on crunchy multi-grain bread – are the best bet for a gourmet meal on the trail.
It's the kind of place that represents the new, smart trends in simple, quality food: the ethos here is local, organic and perfect. We're simply head over heels.
reviewed
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Rickshaw
Sick of steak? This hippy-ish shack just off Main St does Asian fusion tapas – creative, fresh small plates inspired by the cuisine of Vietnam, Thailand, China and Indonesia, which the chef refers to as 'ethnic street food.'
reviewed
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Rio Grande Trail
In 2008, more than 10 years after this former railroad corridor was initially slated to be converted to a contiguous bike trail, the Rio Grande Trail was completed. It rambles for 41 mostly paved miles (there's still a gravel section near Aspen that requires road bikers to ditch the trail for a heartbeat), from Aspen through Basalt and Carbondale, and into Glenwood Springs. You can download a map from the RFTA website (www.rfta.com).
reviewed
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Augustina's Winery
Augustina's is a one-woman show. She drives an old 1979 U-Haul to Palisades and Grand Junction every autumn to fetch her grapes then goes about the happy, messy business of crushing, fermenting and aging the wine all on her own. If you're looking for a bottle with a story for the campfire, grab one here.
Launched in 1997, this was also the first winery in Boulder and among the first of a handful now sprinkled about the state.
reviewed
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Old Faithful
You can feel the tension build as you wait for an eruption of Old Faithful - not the biggest, not the most frequent, but easily the most iconic geyser in the park. Erupting every 90 minutes, Old Faithful spouts some 30,000L (8000 gallons) of water up to 55m (180ft) in the air. Tip: the first thing to do when you arrive is to check the predicted geyser eruption times at the visitor center and then plan your explorations around these.
reviewed
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Draft House
Another of boulder's popular microbreweries. This one brews six handcrafted beers, including an IPA and a Big Bella Brown, which owes it's deep tones from honey and Blackstrap molasses. Food here is pedestrian pub grub, but the open interior, with glassed-in brew tanks, exposed rafters and three gleaming HD flat-screens, offers a touch of class.
There's live music most nights: salsa night is Tuesday; Reggae rocks Wednesdays.
reviewed
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Black Cat Books
Set in an old 1890s dairy, this is a special, cozy stonewall basement bookstore with new hardcover books, used paperbacks, and all tasteful literary titles. Authors from Hawthorne to Franzen to Kingsolver are represented. They have young adult lit and children's books, and there's a progressive political bent here, which, while unusual in Colorado Springs, is standard issue in Manitou. Check the website for upcoming author events.
reviewed
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Grand Canyon of the Yellowstone
This is one of the park's true blockbuster sights. After its placid meanderings north from Yellowstone Lake, the Yellowstone River suddenly plummets over Upper Falls and then the much larger Lower Falls, before raging through the 300m-deep (1000ft) canyon. Scenic overlooks and a network of trails along the canyon's rims highlight its beauty from a dozen angles - South Rim Dr leads to the most spectacular overlook at Artist Point.
reviewed
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Kemo Sabe
It would be tough to find a more distinctly Western store in all of resort-land Colorado. It specializes in two things: Stetson hats and Lucchese boots. All are handmade. The boots are crafted from hide and leather, and the hats from rabbit, steer and beaver fur.
Staff will shape your hat and even distress it to make it look like you rode hard and worked hard with it. Listen for the country music and enjoy the hospitality.
reviewed
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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.
reviewed