Boulder . . . there’s simply no other place like it. When first–time visitors gaze down upon Boulder from the scenic overlook on U.S. Highway 36, they know they’ve arrived someplace special. Snuggled serenely against the pine-covered foothills, punctuated dramatically with the red Flatirons and backed by the white snow-covered peaks of the Continental Divide, Boulder is truly a sight to behold.
In 1858, early settler Capt. Thomas Aikins peered at the Boulder Valley through his field glasses and remarked, “The mountains look right for gold, and the valleys look rich for grazing.” Aikins and his party did find gold in the hills above Boulder, and many have driven the highway over the hill and found their Shangri-la in one form or another.
A mere 29 miles from Denver, Boulder is sometimes considered part of the greater Denver Metropolitan Area for statistical purposes. But Boulder considers itself a world apart—and indeed it is.
This green haven at the foot of the Rocky Mountains is a unique enclave of science, education, research, outdoor enthusiasm, elite athletic training, health food, bicycling, recycling, the arts, and New Age culture—a kind of Berkeley of the Rockies, sometimes jokingly dubbed “The People’s Republic of Boulder.”
Boulder is home to Celestial Seasonings tea company, the Naropa Institute (started by Tibetan Buddhists), the Boulder School of Massage Therapy, the Rolf Institute (international headquarters), Ball Aerospace, the National Center for Atmospheric Research, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, the National Institute of Standards and Technology (home of the atomic clock, by which all U.S. time is set), and one of the four campuses of the University of Colorado (referred to throughout this book as CU-Boulder). The university’s student and staff population makes up more than one-third of Boulder’s total population of 102,569. The median age in Boulder is 30; Boulder County’s median age is 35.7. The Denver Post once described Boulder as “the little town nestled between the mountains and reality.”
Boulder’s top five, must-see attractions are detailed here, followed by a smorgasbord of other treats if time and taste permit. Also see our chapters Festivals and Annual Events, Kidstuff, Sports, and Neighborhoods and Nearby Communities.
I’m b-o-o-r-r-e-d!!!” If you have kids, it’s an all-too-familiar refrain. But what to do?
Here are ideas for when you get a little bored with your children’s boredom. (Also check the Festivals and Annual Events, Attractions, and Day Trips and Weekend Getaways chapters.)
From the mountains to the plains, the area around Boulder offers a wealth of possible day-trip activities, from cultural and historic sites to outdoor recreation, shopping, dining, and just enjoying the beautiful scenery. Among the places covered in this chapter are the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, the gambling casinos of Central City and Black Hawk, the ski resorts of Summit County and Winter Park, and the museums and other attractions of Denver. We’ve provided some history and vital information about each, along with details on special events, dining, and shopping opportunities. Among the popular activities in the mountains are skiing, Alpine-sliding, and sleigh-, hay-, and horseback riding. Athletes with disabilities can learn to ski, rock climb, and take on other challenges at Winter Park, site of the National Sports Center for the Disabled. For hiking, backpacking, bicycling, and cross-country skiing (and other participatory sports), also see our Sports chapter.
Denver’s Zoo, with its Tropical Discovery exhibit, and the Denver Botanic Gardens will cheer you with lush greenery and tropical creatures even during the cold winter months. Drive up Pikes Peak in the summer and you can say you’ve been on top of one of Colorado’s “Fourteeners”—the 54 mountains in the state that reach 14,000 feet or higher. Or take a leisurely sail across scenic Lake Dillon or Grand Lake.
Whatever your inclination, the area offers activities that are fun, challenging, inspirational, educational—or perhaps all of the above.
Estes Park (elevation 7,522 feet) lies 63 miles northwest of Denver and 34 miles northwest of Boulder at the eastern entrance to Rocky Mountain National Park and is the year-round home of more than 10,000 hardy souls (15,000 in summer). It exists primarily as a base camp and service area for visitors to the park, offering hotels, restaurants, shopping, equipment rentals, tours, and other diversions for tourists with a nearly endless choice during the summer months. Since more than three million visitors come to Rocky Mountain National Park every year—and most of them during summer—things can get a bit hectic along Estes Park’s main drag. But those visitors left the town with $7.18 million in sales tax dollars in 2008.
In winter, some of the shops close, and their owners head south, but many others stay open, particularly the art galleries. Some restaurants have abbreviated hours during winter. But winter and other “low-season” months may be the best time to get the flavor of this small town, which is beautifully situated at the base of spectacular Longs Peak and Rocky Mountain National Park.
Estes Park has quite an interesting history all its own. Joel Estes gave his name to the area—which he described as the most beautiful spot he had ever seen—when he topped a ridge and looked down on the valley that is surrounded by 54 peaks 12,000 feet and higher.
Another notable newcomer attracted by the beauty of the mountain valley was Thomas Wyndam-Quin, fourth Earl of Dunraven. Following a series of hunting trips, the earl in 1874 began acquiring land, through means legal and otherwise, with the intention of creating a grand estate.
In 1877, Dunraven built a hunting lodge in a beautiful setting, calling it the Estes Park Hotel. Locals, who resented the acquisitive foreigner, referred to it as the “English Hotel.” Estes Park homesteaders began to join forces against the earl’s purchases and eventually Dunraven moved on to more hospitable areas. The remains of the buildings he left behind have been removed from the park as it is returned to its natural state.
Victorian traveler and writer Isabella Bird wrote extensively and lovingly about the scenic beauty of Estes Park in the fall of 1873. For those interested in the area’s history and a fascinating glimpse of life for the first settlers, her book A Lady’s Life in the Rocky Mountains is required and entertaining reading.
Stephen King wrote more horrifyingly about the malevolent spirits inhabiting the fictional Overlook Hotel (actually the Stanley Hotel, where King lived when he wrote the novel) and their effect on a family hired to “winter over” in the empty hotel. King was so unhappy about the movie version of The Shining, starring Jack Nicholson, that he returned to the Stanley to film a television series closer to the novel.
On July 31, 1976, real horror came to Estes Park when the burbling Big Thompson River was transformed by mountain storms into a deadly gusher powerful enough to pick up and carry cars, boulders, homes, bridges, and trees as it crashed down on the tourist-packed town. At least 139 people were killed (7 were listed as missing), and 88 people were injured, making it the largest natural disaster in Colorado history. The flood destroyed 361 homes and 52 businesses. Estes Park has rebuilt, but the flood left as its legacy a heightened awareness of the inextricable connections between humans and the land on which they perch.
Indeed, the history of Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park are so deeply intertwined that one would probably not exist without the other. Major employers are the Park R-3 School District, the Estes Park Medical Center, the town itself, the Holiday Inn, the YMCA of the Rockies, the Harmony Foundation (a drug and alcohol rehab center), the park, and Estes Valley Recreation and Park District. The average age of residents is 45, 10 years older than the average age of Colorado residents. The average income is $49,422, with the average house selling for $339,288.
Some visitors enjoy connecting with the quieter, community side of an area. Others suddenly need a community service. These days, many visitors stand transfixed by the beautiful surroundings and decide to make Estes Park their permanent home. This chapter provides information for both tourists and newcomers, including details on medical care and worship, real estate and retirement, schools and child care, as well as information on accommodations, attractions, restaurants, and sports. The following sections are arranged alphabetically.
For information about almost anything in the area, call the Estes Park Convention & Visitors Bureau at (800) 443-7837 or (800) 44-ESTES or visit www.EstesParkCVB.com or www.estes-park.com. The area code for Estes Park is 970 and calls from Boulder are long distance.