In 3 weeks, I’m flying out to Colorado Springs to meet up with an old Danish buddy who’s there on business. We’ll have all Friday, Saturday and half a Sunday…
So, what should we do? We used to be decent skiers, so something in that vein would not be amiss, for Friday and Saturday - but I’ve no clue as to where to go, where to rent gear, what it’ll cost etc. etc. Anyone with experience in that area?
Other ideas are of course welcome. Any particularly good microbreweries, perhaps.
Also, how’s the public transportation in the area? I’d love not to have to rent a car.
The Teeming Millions tend to know where the fun is - what’s the good word?
((((((((((((((((((SPINY and SHAYNA))))))))))))))))))
We miss you two soooooooo much! I wish I could give you some information but I’ve only driven through Colorado Springs and that was years ago. I really know nothing about it. I just mapquested for the heck of it and you will be approximately 703 miles away from us whereas you are only about 408 miles when you are at home. So what kind of drugs am I on??? I was just thinking it’s kinda maybe slightly remotely possible you might fly over us and my suggestion is to feel the hugs coming your way.
Have a great time my friend. Know you both are sorely missed and I wish there was some chance of giving you both hugs in person. Until that time, please hug each other for me. Oh, and have a fantastic reunion with your friend!
Colorado Springs? Hmmph! I don’t know about microbreweries, but you can visit the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association Hall of Fame and Museum iff’n y’ant too. Colorado’s good skiing is up north, out of Denver. All the big names are scattered along the I-70 corridor, a couple of hours’ drive from the Springs.
If you’re an ultra-conservative fundamentalist wing-nut, on the other hand, Colorado Springs is your kinda’ town!
Colorado Springs and skiing don’t work together. If you really wanted to go skiing you’d have to rent a car and drive up to one of the resorts, a couple hours each way. You’d probably have to decide if you wanted to get a room near a resort and spend the night or if you want to get up early and drive there Saturday morning. Personally, I’d find a cheap place to stay and rent a car to drive to Breckenridge for the day. You could probably drive up Friday, go to the Breckenridge Brewery and get sloshed, spend the night and ski all day Saturday and drive back to Colorado Springs that night. Shouldn’t be too terribly expensive.
You will probably want to rent a car, as public transportation in Colorado is in its infancy. There is some natural and some man made snow at the resorts, but it would be a couple of hours drive each way.
If you want to hang around Colorado Springs, there is small stakes gambling in Clear Creek county, and some old pubs in Manitou Springs.
There’s not much snow in Colorado right now, but tomorrow and the next day should change that. I’m in Colorado Springs (just north, actually). If you want to rent equipment here, try Christy Sports. there are two locations - one on South Academy Blvd. and one at the Chapel Hills Mall on the north end of town. I’ve rented for the season for my kids this year, so I don’t have pricing in mind. Should be more than $15 and less than $50 for the weekend. You can call ahead and get current pricing. For any other gear needs, Mountain Chalet is the best. You’re about two hours from any skiing when you’re in Colorado Springs. Eldora near Boulder and Loveland Valley are the best best for short travel time and avoiding the I-70 corridor, which will be crowded on a Friday in ski season. They are lower altitude, family-oriented ski areas, so if you’re looking for the apres-ski bar season, look elsewhere. I think you can buy lift tickets for some areas at the King Soopers grocery stores and get discounts. If cross country interests you as a less-travel-intensive option, that opens up the options a lot. Are you flying into Denver or Colorado Springs? I’ve lived in the area off and on since I was eight years old. Let me know if I can offer any other info. or help.
Looks like there are good times to be had in Colorado, although perhaps one will have to get out of Colorado Springs…
So a rental is going to be necessary - no biggie. I’ll be sure to look up Eldora, Loveland Valley and Breckenridge - a couple of hours on the road won’t really hinder us. A rental would come with snowchains if needed, right?
cadolphin, we miss you guys too!
Again, thanks for all the replies - I knew the Dopers would come through!
Right now there is only man made snow, but that can change rapidly. My favorite ski resorts within a 2-3 hour drive are Copper Mtn and Vail. Take the “back way” (24) instead of going up to Denver and taking 70, because traffic on 70 can be a nightmare. Breckenridge, Monarch, and Loveland are the closest ones, which is closest depends on where you stay.
Someone already mentioned Garden of the Gods, but Pikes Peak is pretty popular, also. Depending on the weather, you can drive, hike, run, or take the Cog Railway up. There are many good hiking and trail running spots around. Many people also like to visit the Air Force Academy and the Olympic Training Center, also. Manitou Springs also attracts a lot tourists, for the shopping, I guess.
And then there is the beer. Like Denver, we have lots of good microbreweries, and even a 5 star restaurant (The Penrose Room, I believe is the name). For my money, the three best microbreweries are Phantom Canyon, Bristol Brewery, and a newly opened one named Trinity.
And yes, Focus on the Family has its headquarters hear, and you can tour that.
And personally, I think a skiing trip may be trying to cram too much in for 2 1/2 days. But that’s me.
I live about 14 miles south of Breckenridge. A mapquest direct route puts that at 2 hours and 22 minutes. That would take you on HWY 24, and HWY 9. And finaly over Hoosier Pass (where I’ve lived for 16 years) and down into Breckenridge.
Hoosier is very well maintained. Better than I-70 (IMHO) and it’s rare for the chain law to go into effect. And when it does, it’s only for commercial vehicles. I really doubt that chains would be available in a rent a car (liability concerns). You shouldn’t need them in any case.
Breckenridge is a very pretty and holiday orientated town. It’s also a party town. The lights that the town and businesses put up are great. Main street is a mile long. A nice walk. It’s active year round.
I used to live in Colorado Springs back in the 80’s, and I learned to ski right there in town, at the Broadmoor. I know it isn’t a huge place, but isn’t it still there and operating a ski slope? It was perfect for just spending a few hours on an easy slope close to town.
That’s a bummer. Seems like everything fun about the Bro[sup]a[/sup]dmoor has changed in the zillion years since I was there (1974 to be exact!). That’s where the Olympic skating rink used to be, and we could paddle around in little boats on a lake in front of (or perhaps behind?) the hotel. And man did their chocolate milk kick ass!
I really appreciate you guys helping my hubby figure out what to do so he can have a great time, even for the limited time he’ll be there. He needs this get-away so bad, and I know he’ll love Colorado!
The Broadmoor used to be owned by El Pomar, a charitable foundation. In the late 80s/early 90s, some law changed such that charitable foundations could only have so much of their activities tied up in for=profit ventures not directly related to their charitable mission. So, El Pomar had to divest itself of The Broadmoor. Some purely for profit resort management company bought it and shifted its emphasis from grand old institution to money-making venture. Keeping the wealthy neighbors and their entitled riffraff of teen offspring (of which i was one in the late 80s) happy was no longer a high priority. Hence, buh-bye to the ski slope which was a money-loser because of liability insurance and served locals more than hotel guests. They tore down the ice arena to make room for more rooms for paying guests. Learned to skate there, etc. The paddleboats and canoes are gone now and the lake has been divide by a pathway and bridge to make the main hotel more rapidly accessible from Broadmoor West. I think the old marble soda fountain in the drugstore is still there, but I don’t know if they still make the chocolate milk with syrup.
the thread is a little old, but I felt the need to pop in and thank everyone for their suggestions. We ended up in Breckenridge, where two days were spent pretty much non-stop on the slopes. The snow was pretty close to perfect, the ski rental place friendly and efficient, the lift lines were short - it was great.
The city itself is truly nice, although we had to face the grim truth that while we could hit the pistes like it was 5 years ago, we weren’t in quite the same shape for bar-hopping as we were back then.
We made the drive to Breckenridge along the scenic route, the drive back was on freeways. No problems whatsoever - my buddy had wisely opted for the “one-step-up-from-the-smallest” rental car. (And Danes can drive in snow, of course…)
Thanks, one and all, for input and suggestions. And thanks to Shayna for pushing me out the door.
