It is hard to believe that this enormous 300 foot slab of sandstone was once the site of an ancient sea bed. Evidence of tropical plants pressed into the sandstone and other geological phenomena tells of dinosaur skeletons etching their imprint into fossils found all around the area. Later on, tribal ceremonies conducted by the Native Americans were the norm in this nature-made amphitheater. With this kind of early history, it is no wonder that everyone feels a certain magic coming to Red Rocks.

From 1906 to 1910, concerts began to be held on a wooden stage that was built within the amphitheater. After one famous opera singer sang here, she claimed she had just experienced the best acoustics of anywhere in the world.

The city of Denver bought the land in 1927, designating it as a park area. Burnham Hoyt, the well known Denver architect, designed the amphitheater to harmonize with the natural surroundings, with materials provided by the Works Projects Administration and the Federal Civilian Conservation Corporation. With the involvement of these government programs, many unemployed people were given jobs working on special projects like this one.

With its rock pinnacle rising up to the sky joined by another colossal chunk of red rock cutting its own powerful figure, just this sight alone is enough to bring throngs of visitors to the area. Add the backdrop of Denver and you will understand why Red Rocks was once named one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Higher than Niagara Falls, Red Rocks is more than an ideal setting for some of the most amazing concerts the world over. With rock seats overlooking the stage below, Red Rocks has hosted performers such as The Beatles, The Grateful Dead, U2, Bruce Springsteen, Sting, and many, many more.

Red Rocks is not just about music. There are many trails leading through the 816 acre park. Bring a picnic lunch, wander about, and enjoy the magic.

Address: 18300 Visitor Center Drive, Morrison, CO 80465
Phone: 303-697-6047
Directions: From I-70 take Morrison Rd. Exit 259, south on Hwy 93, follow signs to entrances
Admission: Free
Hours:
Visitor Center: May – Sept 8 am – 7 pm. Oct – April 9am – 4 pm
Park and Amphitheater 5am – 11pm daily
Performance days, visitor center and amphitheater close in early afternoon hours.

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There’s hardly a person who isn’t mesmerized by the sound of a train whistle blowing in the distance, suggesting the romance and freedom of travel. One of the best places to enjoy the nostalgia of the old railroad system is the Colorado Railroad Museum in Golden. Whether you are a child or an adult, the allure of trains will always stand as something apart from other forms of transportation.

Located at the foothills of the Colorado Rockies, the museum is the perfect place to bring the family. Visit the five stall roundhouse where you will find the machine shop complete with original woodshop and welding tools. Here you will see the D & R GW Locomotive #318, the oldest Colorado train along with an authentic drop pit and an inspection pit. Take a look at the long turning pole on the half-draw lead track that was pushed by one person in order to rotate a locomotive on a 4 rail turntable.

Other trains include the Adolph Coors Company refrigerator car, which was part of the original group of “billboard reefers” that were used once Prohibition was repealed in 1934. These self-advertising cars held bricks of ice to keep the beer cold while they were being transported during the summer months. Ice refills went through the hatches in the roof of each car. In the winter, heaters were placed in the bunkers to prevent the beer from freezing. Today you can still see three of these trains pulling 50 cars leaving the Golden station to deliver beer throughout the U.S.

Bring a picnic lunch and enjoy your day at the museum where you will get a true sense of locomotive history.

Address: 17155 W 44th Ave., Golden, CO 80403
Phone: 303-279-4591/800-365-6263
Email: info@crrm.org
Directions: Take I-70, Exit 265 westbound, or Exit 266 eastbound
Admission: Adults $12, Seniors $10, Children $5, Family $25
Hours: Daily 9am – 5 pm

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Only one hour outside of Denver, Colorado sits one of the area’s most famous mountains, Mt. Evans. Over 14,000 feet high, you can reach the top of Mt. Evans even if you’re not the fit climber you wish you were.

The adventure begins by driving up Mt. Evans Road, the highest paved road in North America. With its two lanes and many switchbacks, it’s almost as exhilarating as having climbed the mountain on foot. Park in the lot at the end and you will have reached a height of 14,130 feet. You now have only to hike the remaining 130 feet to reach the peak.

Once graced with a restaurant and gift shop at the top, the top of Mt. Evans now boasts an excellent observation platform where you can see as far as downtown Denver and beyond. Gazing at the alpine lakes fanning out below and the cascading mountain peaks piercing the sky above, you will be glad you brought your camera to capture the awe-inspiring beauty of big nature.

On your drive up Mt. Evans, open your windows to feel how the temperature drops by 5 degrees with ever 1,000 feet you cover. Where it may be 80 degrees F in Denver, on the top of Mt. Evans it could be a mere 50. Set out early in the morning and watch for the beautiful white mountain goats, big horned sheep, mule deer, marmots, pikas, and Golden Mantle squirrels that make the mountain their home.

On your hike to the peak, walk only on the worn paths so you don’t trample the precious alpine plants and flowers. Watch for the signs that say “alpine flowers grow by the inch and die by the foot” and you’ll get the message.

Only five miles down Mt. Evans Road you will come to Summit Lake, where there are many trails to choose from, as well as a parking lot and bathrooms. If you arrive during the springtime, you will see the abundant wildflowers that lead to the lake. The lake is surrounded by mountains on three sides, with a permanently frozen area just across the road, a truly unique find in the United States along with similar areas only in Alaska.

Coming down the mountain, stop at the Mount Goliath Natural Area where alpine tundra and sub-alpine forests merge. The awesome Bristlecone Pine trees make this area their home. They are the oldest living trees on earth, with some boasting over 1,700 years old! Take the time to listen to a nature talk given by one of the knowledgeable rangers who will educate you on the phenomenal ecological development of the region.

Don’t forget your picnic lunch for your afternoon at Echo Lake where you can also set up your rod and reel for a relaxing day of fishing. Bring your easel and paints like some of the locals do. There are plenty of inspiring sights to ignite your creative imagination. Roam the trail that rings the lake and then explore the woods that ring with birdsong.

With the clear, clean mountain air, the awe-inspiring mountains, and the still clear lakes, visiting Mt. Evans and its environs is sure to bring you the feeling of peace and well-being that you deserve.

Address: Clear Creek Ranger Station in Idaho Springs (manages area)
Phone: 303-567-3000 8 am to 4:30 pm
Directions: Off I-70 to Mt. Evans Exit #240, Idaho Springs. 15 miles on State Hwy 103 to Mt. Evans entrance gate. 15 miles from Mt. Evans entrance to summit at 14,264 feet
Admission: Admission Pass valid for 3 days.
Passenger per vehicle fee $10
Annual fee $25
Motorcycles Bicycles & hikers $3
Golden Eagle, Golden Age, National Park Pass (with hologram sticker): no charge
Mechanical collection machine for after hours: $10 – bring exact change
Hours: Open daily 24hrs from Memorial Day to until the first significant
snowfall, usually mid-September

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One of the most stunning pieces of architecture in west, the Hotel de Paris Museum stands as a testimonial to Adolphe Francois Gerard, a wealthy Parisian who came to America looking for adventure in the early gold rush days. After enlisting in the Army, he deserted soon after, changed his name to Louis Dupuy, worked as a reporter for the Rocky Mountain News, and then became involved in the mining industry in and around Georgetown, Colorado. After receiving an injury from a mining explosion he bought the Delmonico Bakery with the remains of his inheritance, transforming it into the famous Hotel de Paris.

Nostalgic for his home, Dupuy created his fashionable hotel with beauty, style, and many amenities that were a rarity in the American west at that time. With modern indoor plumbing and heating, sinks with both cold and hot running water, electric lights, and luxurious furnishings, the Hotel de Paris was the place to be if you were Denver’s elite traveling to Georgetown. Eating off Limoges china, sipping imported French wines, and chatting with the knowledgeable and charming owner, Louis Dupuy’s hotel was considered high style, attracting wealthy patrons from far and wide.

The museum has retained all of the original trappings that made the Hotel de Paris so famous. Visit the dining room with its floors made of silver maple and black walnut, its iridescent green walls with frescoed borders, and an exquisite fountain in the center. Take a gander at the luxury bedrooms up stairs, the large kitchen with an open skylight over the stove, the basement wine cellar, and of course Dupuy’s private quarters with its library of books in the many languages that he was privileged to speak.

When Dupuy died of pneumonia, his French housekeeper, Sophie Gally, inherited the hotel. Only four months later, she too died. Both she and Louis Dupuy are buried next to each other in the Georgetown Cemetery where their site is marked by a pink granite obelisk that says “Two Good Friends” in French.

Visit this unique museum and you will feel not only a sense of early Colorado Rockies history, but also the presence of Louis Dupuy, one of Georgetown, Colorado’s truly notable personalities.

Address: 409 6th Street, Georgetown, CO 80444
Phone: 303-569-2311
Directions: Exit 228 ff I-70; turn right at stop sign to 6th St and then left. Museum is 3 blocks down on the right.
Admission: $4 adults, $3 seniors age 60+ and AAA members and National Trust members, $2 children, under 6 free
Hours: 10 am – 4:30 pm daily.
Handicapped access main floor only.

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Back in 1914, Denver, Colorado took seven buffalo from a wild herd in Yellowstone Park and placed them on a new game preserve in Genesee Park, just 30 miles from downtown. Since then the herd has grown in numbers and it is easy to see these buffalo grazing on either side of the freeway. These great beasts are reminders of a far earlier time when 30 to 60 million buffalo or bison were roaming the western plains.

What happened to these opulent herds that roamed the land west of the Mississippi? Initially settlers and soldiers killed the buffalo as a way to fight the Native Americans. By getting rid of their food supply, the Native Americans might be less of a threat to new societies in the making. In the latter half of the 1890’s, buffalo were being slaughtered for sport, which wreaked havoc with the herds, bringing the number down to a mere 500. Once the government intervened, buffalo were able to survive once again, with about 1 million buffalo found on public and private lands in Canada and the United States to date.

Call them buffalo or call them bison, these majestic animals are related to the European Bison and the Canadian Woods Bison and belong to the Bovidae family of mammals, which relates to the cow. Watching them graze on the wide open planes is a way to connect to the majesty of the old west when land was vast and the buffalo roamed free.

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There’s hardly an American who hasn’t heard of Buffalo Bill Cody, born William Frederick Cody. With his eternal love for the Colorado Rockies, Cody originally worked as a scout for the military, helping to find food resources for the troops. His amazing buffalo hunting ability earned him the name Buffalo Bill along with an enduring relationship with the Native Americans who populated the region.

Later in life, Buffalo Bill created his Wild West show, which not only entertained, but educated people in the ways of the cowboys and Native Americans he knew so well. Filled with sharpshooting, bronco riding, roping, and other wild west favorites, Cody’s show lasted for 30 years, touring all over Europe, Canada, and the United States.

Cody’s wish was to be buried on a mountain top overlooking Denver, Colorado, and it is here that the Buffalo Bill Museum sits. With white-capped pinnacles all around and downtown Denver below, the vista is enormous, with the vast plains reaching to what seems like the ends of the earth to the east. The museum is a treasure of the Wild West, with testimonials to cowboy and Native American lifestyles, great western art, and a host of artifacts including antique firearms and photos of luminaries such as Annie Oakley.

Get a feel for the time by trying on true western garb, jumping on the life-size horse, or roping a stationary calf. Step inside the Native American teepee where you will see beaver skins hanging and feel what it was like to rest on the open plains in these original mobile homes.

A trip to the Buffalo Bill Museum is a wonderful way to get a sense of American history and its illustrious past along with the man who made a name for himself as the emblem of the Wild West.

Address: 987 ½ Lookout Mountain Road, Golden, Colorado 80401
Phone: 303-526-0747
Directions: Exit 256 off I-70 – follow signs to the museum
Admission: $3 adults, $2 seniors 65 and older, $1 children 6 – 15, children under 6 free
Hours: Open daily May 1 – October 31: 9 am – 5 pm.

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