Critique my Colorado trip plan!

[Sicks_Ate]

@SmellMyWort

Yes, they do, but Fat Tire is an ale There are many other good breweries to check out in FC if the OP is interested. A few blocks from NB is Odell, which is right next door to Snowbank Brewery (formerly Ft. Collins Brewing). Equinox downtown is really good and it’s just a couple blocks from a German style brewery called Prost, which I think is based out of Denver. I also liked the offerings at Maxline and Intersect. Plus many others.

Oh man, I’m going to have to go to O’Dell. That is my favorite IPA.

[RickG]

@Sicks_Ate

Wife is GF, so we will stop in that bakery for something or other.

In Boulder, there’s Kim and Jake’s GF bakery, which is excellent. Also Shine, which is an entirely GF upscale restaurant. We are not GF, and we go there now and then, because the food is actually pretty good. So are the cocktails :).

For GF drinking, there are also a growing number of cideries about. I’d highly recommend going to Acreage in Lafayette (15 minutes east of Boulder). Excellent food and ciders, and, if you can score a table out on the patio, some of the most outstanding views of the Boulder Valley and the Front Range around. If you’re lucky, they’ll have the Jalapearno available–pear cider with jalapeño. So good.

[ThisSpaceForRent]

@kayaker

New Belgium brews many fine beers in addition to the nondescript lager Flat (sic) Tire.

I agree about the Flat part…but Fat Tire is an Amber Ale, not a lager. And yes, NB does make some other fine adult beverages.

[ThisSpaceForRent]

@Sicks_Ate

Oh man, I’m going to have to go to O’Dell. That is my favorite IPA.

Another vote for Odell Brewing Co (note spelling, no apostrophe). One of my faves by them is Myrcenary. I have “Myrcenized” myself a few times.

[Sicks_Ate]

Well poop. Due to a miscommunication, we are down to 5 days total for our trip, including a 9-10-hour drive each way. That only leaves 3 whole days for fun.

I think we’ll just go straight to RMNP and spend it all there. 3 good long day hikes should be a perfectly fine vacation, anyway.

[Telemark]

Your first day is going to be tough at altitude. With a trip that short there’s almost no time to acclimatize. Estes Park is 7500’ all the hikes above there will be challenging coming up from Kansas. Take it very easy that first day, drink lots of water, little or no caffine/alcohol, and plenty of sleep. Plan for fairly short hikes until you’ve had at least one full night’s sleep above 7000’.

[Chefguy]

Try to get over to Mesa Verde. That’s all I’ve got.

[Sicks_Ate]

@Telemark

Your first day is going to be tough at altitude. With a trip that short there’s almost no time to acclimatize. Estes Park is 7500’ all the hikes above there will be challenging coming up from Kansas. Take it very easy that first day, drink lots of water, little or no caffine/alcohol, and plenty of sleep. Plan for fairly short hikes until you’ve had at least one full night’s sleep above 7000’.

Ok, the plan NOW is:

Day 1: Drive.
Night 1: Sleep at 5k’.
Day 2: Drive through RMNP on Trail Ridge Road, take time looking at stuff and hiking a mile or two here and there. Breathe lots of thin air.
Night 2: Sleep at Grand Lake, 8k’.
Day 3: “Easy” day hike in RMNP. (Open to suggestions)
Night 3: Sleep in Estes Park, 7.5k’.
Day 4: Hike to the top of something. Looking at possibly Flattop Mountain. Again, open to suggestions.