Here’s Our Best & Worst Things From Colorado

Shae, Truffles and I spent all of June and July and a little bit of August and September 2021 (with an international trip in between) in Colorado while on our 50 state road trip.

This was our third time visiting Colorado on our road trip though. We stayed a few weeks in Denver for Christmas and New Year in the first year of our road trip, although Shae got pneumonia and so we didn’t get to explore much then. We then returned to Colorado at the start of the pandemic to shelter in place at an Airbnb in Pueblo. COVID meant that we didn’t get to experience much of Colorado that time either.

Back in 2017 – before we set off on the road trip – Colorado was one of the states I was looking forward to the most. I really enjoyed it there, although it’s been overtaken now by other states that we’ve visited like New Mexico and Vermont.

There was still a lot to like about it though, so here’s a list of our favorite – and not-so-favorite – things from our two months in Colorado.

Favorite Accommodation We Stayed At

Stephen – We only stayed at four hotels in Colorado and two of them (this one and this one) weren’t great stays. Our stay at the Hyatt Place Denver Tech Center was perfectly fine, but my favorite hotel was the Holiday Inn Express & Suites Montrose.

It was in a good location for visiting places we wanted to see in that part of the state, they had a full hot breakfast (which a lot of hotels still weren’t offering due to COVID), a large indoor swimming pool and their staff members were friendly.

Shae – I loved our Airbnb in Pueblo. We stayed there for 7 weeks at the start of the Covid-19 pandemic and I loved having our own space in a nice neighborhood with lots of bunnies and tumbleweed to watch to pass the days.

Favorite Meal

Stephen – I’ll have to go for GQue BBQ in Lone Tree (just outside of Denver). They had some of the best BBQ I’ve had so far on the road trip, with their brisket in particular being incredibly tender and delicious.

Shae – My favorite meal is hard to pick but I loved the food at Smokin Fins Arvada. So much amazing sushi and great drinks make it a winner in my book.

Most Disappointing Meal

Stephen – I can’t remember having any disappointing meals in Colorado – all the food we tried was great. The only thing I can think to put here is our meal at Edelweiss Restaurant in Colorado Springs.

The meal itself wasn’t at all disappointing – the food was tasty and the service was fantastic. The reason I’m mentioning it here is because I’m disappointed in myself for only managing to drink just over half my boot of beer!

Shae – I too wasn’t disappointed with any of the food or service but I have to pick the Rocky Mountain Oysters at Buckhorn Exchange. I really thought it would be no big deal to eat them. Brittany did great with our service and the atmosphere was really fun, but I just couldn’t choke down the “oysters.”

Favorite Free Activity

Stephen – I’m going to have to pick two as I can’t settle on just one. One of them is the Telluride & Mountain Village Gondola. The fact that it was free was fantastic, but it was made even better by the fact that Mountain Village had fun stuff to do. It was also pet-friendly which meant that Truffles got to join us which meant we all had a wonderful day.

The other is Garden of the Gods – it’s incredibly beautiful there and doesn’t cost anything to visit.

Shae – At the risk of just repeating everything Stephen is saying… The Telluride Gondola was also my favorite free thing. I loved being able to take Truffles with us and just enjoy a day out as a family without a lot of pressure to “do” stuff.

But I think tubing in Golden is a very close second.

Favorite Paid Activity

Stephen – The sunset helicopter tour Shae got my for my 40th birthday last year. Her plans for my birthday fell through due to COVID and it then looked like we were going to miss out on the helicopter ride too. Thankfully they were allowed to reopen just before we left Colorado to head back east, so we got to take our first ever helicopter ride and it was incredible.

Shae – I mean, how can you pick anything other than a helicopter ride? We saw two bears from above (a mother and cub) and it was extraordinarily beautiful.

But for me an honorable mention also goes out to paddle boarding in the Curecanti Recreational Area.

Favorite Pet-Friendly Activity

Stephen – The Telluride & Mountain Village Gondola simply because that’s not something you’d expect to be pet-friendly.

Shae – Again, the fact that the Telluride Gondola was pet-friendly was just another reason to love it. Honorable mentions go to South Park City in Fairplay, the Broadmoor Seven Falls, and all the great breweries and wineries that were dog-friendly, like Yellow Car Country Wines in Cortez.

Least Favorite Activity

Stephen – Visiting Manitou Cliff Dwellings. It was overly touristy and having been treated by all the Ancestral Puebloan locations in New Mexico earlier in the year, these particular cliff dwellings weren’t worth visiting in my opinion.

Shae – Yes, absolutely the Manitou Cliff Dwellings and I wasn’t overly excited about Mesa Verde… sorry! *awkward face*

Favorite Hike

Stephen – In terms of the most beautiful one, our hike up to Mills Lake and Jewel Lake in Rocky Mountain National Park was pretty special. I feel like the hike Truffles and I went on to Panorama Point at Lair O’ The Bear Park near Denver is worth a mention too seeing as that was beautiful too, plus it was pet-friendly whereas the one at Rocky Mountain National Park wasn’t.

Shae – I loved a trail that my friend Chile, and her pup Fin, introduced Truffles and me to early on at William F Hayden Green Mountain Park. I then took my friend Monica and her pup, Hershey, and finally Stephen joined me and Truffles a final time to see the wild flowers in bloom.

Favorite Quirky Thing We Did

Stephen – Eating Rocky Mountain Oysters for the first time. It certainly wasn’t my favorite thing to eat, but it was a fun experience and eating bull balls sure is quirky.

Shae – “Favorite” is a stretch, but yes – eating the “oysters” was the most quirky thing we did, although there are some pretty cool and quirky ice cream flavors at Smith+Canon in Denver that you should check out and can combine with coffee if that’s your thing.

Favorite Memory

Stephen – Our day out in Telluride – it was the perfect road trip day.

Shae – There were a few really special memories from Colorado but I loved seeing friends and meeting new ones. Shout outs to my Potterhead Running Club fam of Melissa, Chile and Nicole (and Stacia) and their pups! I also loved seeing Monica and Hershey on our hike as well as our “dog moms gone wild” night out in the sweet town of Old Colorado City which is so walkable and has great wine at the Sweet Elephant. I loved meeting Chris, Steve and Kelly as well as Annette and John through the Go With Less nomad community. Finally, getting to meet in person with a fellow Outschool teacher, Rachel and her husband, really rounded out a lovely time.

I also would be remiss if I didn’t include the magical time we spent Christmas in Colorado in Year 1 when mom and I answered the phone for NORAD to let children around the world know where Santa was and ringing in the new year downtown in the snow.

Funniest Moment

Stephen – Trying Rocky Mountain Oysters, particularly Shae’s creeped out face 😉

Shae – Yes, the “oysters” were really funny but I laughed and loved every second of answering the phones for NORAD back in 2018 which was still on the road trip and in Colorado. I had a 4 minute (which is really long in Santa Tracking time) with a cutie who didn’t know what kind of cookies to leave Santa and if he’d be ok with water (I said yes, because most people only think of milk and Santa probably needs the hydration) since that’s what they drink exclusively in his family.

I’d also say that trying 40+ different wines/meads at Yellow Car Country Wines was a pretty fun/funny memory that will not soon be forgotten.

Thing We Most Regretted

Stephen – Not spending more time in downtown Denver. Despite spending so much time staying in the Denver area, we spent very little time exploring downtown.

Shae – I regret not riding some of the railways, going up Pikes Peak and missing the evening event I was due to go to at the Ute Museum in Montrose.

Something We Missed And Want To See

Stephen – Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve

Shae – Bears. I didn’t see a single bear. You let me down Colorado. You kind of made up for it with seeing moose by the roadside but no bears? Gasp.

And yes if you read above you saw that we *technically* saw bears from above in the helicopter but I want an “on the ground” bear encounter. I was promised bears in trashcans and never saw a one.

Our Biggest Surprise

Stephen – How much we enjoyed Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. It’s a hidden gem in the National Park system and I thought it was even more beautiful than the Grand Canyon.

Shae – I was surprised how much I didn’t care for Mesa Verde. Maybe it was an off day for me. But I was sad that I didn’t love it like others who said I should go seeing how much we loved other indigenous sites like Chaco Culture National Historical Park.

My Colorado Drinking Game Would Be…

Stephen – Take a drink every time you’re stuck behind a slow Subaru driver. I don’t know why, but Subaru drivers seem to be the polar opposite of BMW drivers.

Shae – Take a drink every time you explain the difference between a chipmunk and a ground squirrel to someone who is also looking at them. Maybe that’s just a “me” thing.

Summary Of Colorado In 10 Words Or Less

Stephen – Beautiful scenery, great hiking and lots of other outdoor activities.

Shae – Good state, not top of my list and not bottom.

Colorado Cities We Visited In Order From Favorite To Least Favorite

Stephen – This is tough because all of them had great things about them. I guess I’d go Montrose, Denver, Colorado Springs and then Pueblo, but the first three could be jumbled and I’d have a hard time arguing against a different order.

Shae – Colorado Springs, Montrose, Denver and Pueblo.