Hike the Manitou Incline, in Manitou Springs. Good news: it's only one mile to the top. Bad news: you'll gain 2000ft in elevation

quote:

Originally posted by E26R-40-BSE:
Hike the Manitou Incline, in Manitou Springs. Good news: it's only one mile to the top. Bad news: you'll gain 2000ft in elevation

The Incline is for masochists. It is literally a staircase made of railroad ties about 10-15 feet apart. It is brutal.

The Barr Trail starts at the same place, and goes all the way up to the top of Pikes Peak. One day, I keep telling myself, I will climb it to the top. Barr Trail is MUCH better, IMO.

Cripple Creek if you like to hit some small casinos. There is also a gold.mine tour there.

We're taking an in-state vacation in June that will take us to Durango, Montrose and Salida. We're adding the Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center to our trip. Pricey but one of a kind I am certain.

The Wolf Refuge is only really expensive if you want the 'wolf encounter' - where you go in and get photos WITH the wolves.

You can go on a regular tour for $15; where they show you all the enclosures/wolves. For about $5 more (not sure if prices are current; they have all this info on their web site) you can go on a feeding tour. This is MUCH better, as the wolves all come to the fence (4-6 feet from you) and you can see/hear them eat chunks of meat. . .


This is me with one of the 10-month old Arctic Wolf pups; I think this one is Rakshaw. . .

drive 2 hours north and have lunch with LBJ.

Yet another vote for Garden of the Gods - beautiful!

I've enjoyed the Pikes Peak Incline Railway tour, too, but would love to drive to the summit and back.

A good way out from Colo Spgs proper, but we got a kick out of Bishop Castle in Rye several years back.

Pikes Peak is mandatory. No other view like it. Garden of the Gods is beautiful as well. History? Their is a nusmatics (money) museum downtown, very interesting. You will find no shortage of other things to see and do.

quote:

Originally posted by Hound Dog:
Oh, Peterson has a really nice museum. All their stuff has to do with Air Defense/Norad, so they have interceptors, missiles, and some local stuff.

Also, since I assume you have a govt ID, check out the Stanley Canyon Trail. It's accessible from USAFA, but only if you have an ID card. You park near the USAFA clinic and hike UPHILL to a beautiful reservoir. It will kick your butt (your calf muscles will hate you for it), but it's a great hike with a fantastic view. It takes about 1.5 to 2 hrs to make the hike, but you can, of course, turn around anytime you like. It's somewhat extreme - you have to scramble over rocks at times, and it is NOT 'handicap friendly.'

For extra credit, you can go swimming in the reservoir. I did it once, and once only. It's COLD (mountain stream-fed and it's at 10,000 ft altitude. . . ).

If you want more info, I can give you detailed directions.

Thanks We are in the planning stages right now if we have some detailed question I give you a shout.

quote:

Originally posted by Valpo Fz:

Thanks We are in the planning stages right now if we have some detailed question I give you a shout.

I guess it's not too complicated. Go to the med clinic, then head West (towards the mountains) and you will pass through a sentry post (you need an ID to get through; this separates the 'public' areas from the 'restricted to ID holders' areas). Head South about 1/10 - 1/4 mile, and there is a dirt road to the right. Follow it about a half mile towards the mountains and there is a parking spot there, with a porta-john and trail map. The trail is clearly marked and easy to follow.

It will kick your butt. I'm not in the greatest shape, but I am acclimated to the altitude, and it is always strenuous (I did it about 4 times last year; I plan to do it much more this year to help me get in shape). I also hiked it with about 80 Prep School students, and many of them were struggling, too.

It's about a 2 mile hike to get to the reservoir, but it seems like a LOT longer. Of course, you can turn back any time, but it's a great view at the top.

IF you do go swimming, take sandals or deck shoes, as the rocks there are SHARP. The worst part of the swimming was the extreme pain of my feet; not the actual frigidity of the water. . .

You will be on a military installation, so firearms aren't allowed. So, I always make sure I have at least a hatchet with me. There are critters around, but I've only ever seen some really big grouse. There are always others hiking there, so it's not like you will be out in the middle of the wilderness all alone. . .

quote:

Originally posted by tanner:
Eat lunch here...

http://solosrestaurant.com

YES!! Solo's may be worth the trip to the Springs all by itself. Still have a pic of myself in the cockpit of the KC97 tanker drinking a Bloody Mary looking out over the runway. BTW, they make great Bloody Marys.

Thank you! We have a trip planned now! we will be doing one activity planned a day:

Pikes peak (driving)
Manitou Springs
Garden of Gods
Wolf Center
Mollie Katheleen Gold Mine
Stanley Canon Trail
Royal Gorge
Air & Space Museum
and Four wheel rentals or white water rafting

We are excited after hearing all you had to say!

There is a very nice air museum outside Pueblo, Colorado--the Pueblo Weisbrod Aircraft Museum. (Photos here: https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157630949052874/ and https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157630993691138/ -- latter also has Seven Falls)

The Peterson Air and Space Museum, of course (Photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157630998438104/)

Near the entrance to the Air Academy is the Western Museum of Mining and Industry (Photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157631004992440/ including some of the Academy Chapel and Garden of the Gods)

North Pole, Colorado and Cripple Creek (Photos: https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157631009229676/)

Lots to do around Colorado Springs. (One of the famous Colorado Springs

DSC_2206.jpg by David Casteel, on Flickr, and no, that is not me)

flashguy

quote:

Originally posted by Hound Dog:

quote:

Originally posted by Valpo Fz:

Thanks We are in the planning stages right now if we have some detailed question I give you a shout.

I guess it's not too complicated. Go to the med clinic, then head West (towards the mountains) and you will pass through a sentry post (you need an ID to get through; this separates the 'public' areas from the 'restricted to ID holders' areas). Head South about 1/10 - 1/4 mile about 20-30 feet, and there is a dirt road to the right. Follow it about a half mile towards the mountains and there is a parking spot there, with a porta-john and trail map. The trail is clearly marked and easy to follow.

I drove by there the other day, and the trailhead road wasn't as far away as I first remembered. Once you go through that sentry post heading south, it is the very first right turn, onto a dirt/gravel road. If you even go a tenth of a mile past the sentry, you will have gone too far. . .


And that photo above this post has a spring from the Cheyenne Mountain complex. All the buildings are built on these springs; designed to absorb the impact/shock of nearby nuclear strikes. The Mountain is an amazing place, but as far as I know, isn't open to tourism any more (if it were, I would go in a heartbeat). That museum at Peterson is the closest you will get (they have some consoles from in there, a nice 3-d model of the complex, a beautifully-restored P-47D, a Minuteman missile launch control center simulator, and some other neat stuff).

Dragonmans, Cripple Creek, and Cave of The Winds Terror Dactyl swing come to mind. Enjoy your time in Colorado. It's easy to take all there is to do for granted in my home state.

Hound Dog, this is for you: https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157679433228513/ (per your location).

flashguy

Here are some pictures from our trip in 2015. We spent most of our time in "The Springs".

http://s280.photobucket.com/us...vels/Colorado%202015

quote:

Originally posted by flashguy:
Hound Dog, this is for you: https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157679433228513/ (per your location).

flashguy

Nice

I have a friend who actually was able to visit there. She said she wanted to run down that sidewalk yelling "I'm going on an adventure!" . . .

I've always wanted my very own hobbit hole. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: I want a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.

quote:

Originally posted by Hound Dog:

quote:

Originally posted by flashguy:
Hound Dog, this is for you: https://www.flickr.com/photos/...s/72157679433228513/ (per your location).

flashguy

Nice

I have a friend who actually was able to visit there. She said she wanted to run down that sidewalk yelling "I'm going on an adventure!" . . .

I've always wanted my very own hobbit hole. Not a nasty, dirty, wet hole, filled with the ends of worms and an oozy smell, nor yet a dry, bare, sandy hole with nothing in it to sit down on or to eat: I want a hobbit-hole, and that means comfort.

(thread drift) One of those Hobbit holes was open and could be gone into (I didn't):

DSC_2838.jpg by David Casteel, on Flickr

flashguy

If you really feel ambitious and in reasonably good shape you can hike the Barr trail to the top of Pikes Peak. If you leave early enough you can make it up and down in a day.

They keep the trail well maintained, but the hike can be exhausting if you don't pace yourself and are not used to the altitude.