City: Boulder, CO

Category: Tours & Attractions

Telephone: (303) 442-3282

Description: At the turn of the 20th century, sites across the nation became gathering spots for summer cultural and educational institutes, all named “Chautauqua” after Chautauqua Lake in upstate New York, where the first such gathering was held. Dozens of Chautauquas once existed, but few remain. Boulder’s was one of the rare Western locations. The Chautauqua Auditorium and Dining Hall (303-440-3776; www.chatauqua.com), built in 1898, and a charming nearby colony of wooden cottages comprise the last original site west of the Mississippi.Chautauqua’s main buildings, decked out in crisp gray, would still be a perfect setting for banjo-strumming gallants in flat-brimmed hats, but summer offerings now draw modern crowds with contemporary interests. There’s a nod to the past with July’s silent films, accompanied by live piano. The Colorado Chautauqua Association Forum is a lecture series dating from 1898, but today’s speakers address topics such as health issues, transportation, and world affairs.The Colorado Music Festival (303-449-1397) has a full orchestra of musicians invited here for the summer and features internationally renowned guest artists as well as rising stars with promising futures. The vast majority of classical performances are instrumental, for the wooden auditorium tends to swallow voices. An orchestra or a powerful soloist can make the wonderful barn resonate with great sound. For ticket events, call the Box Office, (303) 440-7666, between May and September, or visit their Web site at www.coloradomusicfest.org.Chautauqua Park has 60 cottages for rent from June through August and 16 year-round cottages. They vary in size, but all have a kitchen, bathrooms, living area, and one or more bedrooms. For the 2008 summer, rooms range from $104 to $194 per night, depending on the size of the cottage. The cottages fill up fast, so make your reservation as soon after November 1 as possible. The renovated and award-winning Missions Lodge is available for between $1,089 and $1,143 a night. This eight-bedroom, nine-bathroom facility is perfect for wedding groups or family reunions. Rent the whole place. Built in 1911, it’s the only accommodation of its type in the entire state. To rent a cottage, call the Chautauqua Association, (303) 442-3282, or visit www.chautauqua.com.Children like the Chautauqua Park playground, especially after they discover low-branched trees for playing hide-and-seek. (Only kids can scamper through. Moms and Dads have to hunch.) The Chautauqua Ranger Cottage (720-564-2000), near the big meadow on the west side of the park, is generally open 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. daily. Its small garden displays native plants, and the rangers dispense plenty of hiking information. The rangers can answer questions, and they’re trained to handle emergencies. They also lead free interpretive hikes that depart from the Ranger Cottage at 8 a.m. Saturday mornings in summer.Trails lead everywhere. The Boulder Mountain Parks trail system includes everything from short, nearly flat strolls to steep hikes. One of the easiest, and shadiest, is the McClintock Trail, starting southeast of the Chautauqua Auditorium. You can head west on the Chautauqua Trail, cross the big meadow, and watch rock climbers. Or head west and south to the Mesa Trail. It’s 3 up-and-down miles to the next major attraction, NCAR (see subsequent entry), and twice that far to the Mesa Trail’s southern terminus just off the Eldorado Canyon Road.