Alaska Airlines flies to a lot of cities!! I believe it’s close to 120 [I had to take a city codes test as part of my new job]. I’ve already been to many of the major ones like Portland, Los Angeles, and New York City, but my most recently self-imposed challenge is to go [over the next many years] #EverywhereAlaskaFlies. CRAZY much? Yeah… probably.
So why did I choose Denver first? Well, it seemed like a good summer destination, I had heard it was a pedestrian/bike friendly city, and it had some good options for cheaper accommodations. When I heard about the easy access to Boulder by city bus, that helped cement my decision.
In order to keep traveling as often as possible and reach my city goal, I need to keep my trips inexpensive. Thanks to public transportation [free because of “Zero Fare for Better Air” this month] and the option to grab a bunk at a hostel, this trip didn’t break the bank! I’ve dedicated a separate post to reviewing the three main hostels in Denver: Ember Hostel, 11th Avenue Hostel, and Hostel Fish. Click here for the post!! If you’re heading to Denver on a budget, maybe I’ll be able to help with your planning! 🙂
So, what were the highlights of my trip?
#1. Hiking to the Royal Arch, an out and back trail that spurs off the Flatiron Loop Trail, beginning at Chautauqua Park. I can’t tell you how many miles I hiked, because I took the less direct route, but I think you could get to the arch and back in around 3.5 miles. The Flatiron Loop Trail is very nice as well, and connects hikers to the First and Second Flatirons hikes [both out and back]. I really wanted to hike to the top of one of the flatirons too [and actually started up the trail, but turned around], but I knew I needed to save my energy to reach the Royal Arch. The hike is intense, with around 1500 feet of elevation gain [and remember, Boulder is already pretty high at 5320 feet above sea level. So yeah, I was breathing hard!
#2. Biking along Boulder Creek and imagining myself tubing down the little river! The Boulder Creek Multiuse Path runs along the creek for around 5.5 miles, but there are other paved trails that connect to it. I was wishing I had my own bicycle, because I only had 30 minutes on my bike share rental [BCycle: $7 for 30 minutes].
#3. I spent a little extra to participate in a guided tour of the Molly Brown House Museum. I would never learn as much by taking myself through the museum, and the docent was funny and very knowledgeable!
Other highlights include the Lodo Historic Denver walking tour, the Denver Zoo, and the dome tour of the capitol building. The Jelly Cafe fed me a massive veggie breakfast burrito that lasted me practically all day!
On a sadder note, there were quite a few homeless and vagrant-looking folks wandering around downtown. I didn’t feel particularly unsafe around them, just less comfortable. I noticed, on two occasions, groups handing out food — there was a line serving hot, home-cooked dishes in one part of the city, and a few young people were in a different neighborhood with two coolers, handing out bananas and drinks, etc. That was cool to see.
One thing I learned from this experience is that while there are sometimes more museums or other tourist attractions in the big cities, I much prefer to get out to the countryside where there are hikes and other outdoor adventures to participate in. I’ll try to plan my future trips with these preferences in mind! I just can’t ever get too far from a Trader Joe’s… : p
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