Colorado 2017

I would move to Colorado in a heart beat!  I cannot get enough of this state which explains why we go once a year.  We have great friends that live here but I think what really calls us back year after year is our favorite band (STS9) does a few night run at Red Rocks Amphitheater.  If you have never seen a show at Red Rocks, do yourself a favor and go.  Seriously, go!  Flights from Minneapolis are very fair right now which makes it all the more sweet.

The past two years, Tom and I have taken some time off of work to explore more than just Denver, and every where we go just seems to get better and better.

Our trip started in Fort Collins where one of my dear friends from college, Katie, lives.  We met while working at Chili’s on the West side of Madison and the next year, she lived in the house right behind me.  We had lots of concrete back yard bbq’s and are still the closest of friends.  She’s been with an amazing man named Adam for about five years, and they are so nice to not only let us stay with them while in Fort Collins but always take us to see some cool rocks.

This year was all about the Poudre River.  They took us into the mountains on the first day where we went into a canyon to the Mishawaka Amphitheater.  There was no show, but we sat and had lunch and enjoyed views like the ones above and below.  I really hope I can make it out that way for a show one of these days because seeing music there looks like it would be very special.

We spend the next day in Fort Collins walking around and made our way to a nature reserve that was on the outskirts of downtown.  We followed the Poudre, hiked around, then went to a cider brewery for drinks.  

The final hike we did in Fort Collins was Horsetooth Falls.  We unfortunately did not see any falls and we are unsure if it was because we ran out of time or if it was too dry.  Either way, getting high up in the mountains has to be one of my favorite things of all time.  

We spent four nights in Denver with friends seeing music at Red Rocks.  It was, as always, the best time ever, and our last day we ended our Colorado vacation by hiking around St. Mary’s Glacier.  This was by far the best hike of my life. It starts on a steep hill full of rocks and goes up hill for a while.  I hurt my foot before we left, so being a gimp and also a bit hungover from all the Red Rocks fun made this a real challenge.  Luckily, we didn’t give up or turn back, even after we got lost a few times, and made it to see the snow on the glacier.  The view from the top was well worth the hike and if you have 4 hours, this is the place to go.

Fingers crossed that next year we will be back.  It keeps getting better every year —- I love you, Colorado!