Mountain Peaks and Mountain Towns

6 Of Our Favorite Hiking Decisions

News to no one, the hiking in Colorado is incredible. Having spent the prior month in Salt Lake City, we were feeling pretty confident in our hiking game. I mean, we're not expert level hikers.. I still rock my first ever pair of hiking shoes I've ever owned. To this point we typically fell in the range of 3-6 miles and really hadn't done much hiking above 10,000 ft. in elevation.

The hikes we went on in Colorado were a level up, including our first couple peaks at 14,000+ ft. During these hikes, while staring down at my apparently pathetic legs, I'd often wonder to myself "Why are we doing this?", nearly accosting passing hikers with an aggressive "Why are you doing this??!". What were we trying to prove here? But, a strange sense of pride washes over you when you're looking out at what seems like endless peaks and valleys from the top of that hell trail you punished yourself with. Suddenly, my legs seemed masculine again. Any-who, here are our 6 favorite hikes from our time in Colorado:

1. Mt. Bierstadt Trail

• 7.8 miles
• 
• Out and Back
• 
• 2,765 ft. elev. gain

A toughie for our last hike before we left. 7.8 miles and a 2,765' climb to the top of this 14er will leave you with some shaky legs and possibly regret for the language you used getting to the top, but spectacular views and a sense of great accomplishment.

2. Mt Evans & Mt Spalding:

• 5.2 miles
• 
• Out and Back
• 
• 2,112 ft. elev. gain

This is where Ashley cried. It was our first 14er and it was hard, especially when we found out we can see people just drive straight up to the peak. Us? We took the hard route over Mt Spalding and it was epic. It's pretty much un-marked for a good portion of the journey, but you can pretty much see the peak the whole way. Leave yourself a good amount of time. Say hi to magical wizard mountain goats!

3. Echo Lake to Idaho Springs Reservoir:

• 4 miles
• 
• Out and Back
• 
• 761 ft. elev. gain

This is a beautiful area on Mt Evans, the drive itself is worth the trip. The hike is moderate with essentially all of it's elevation gain in one set of switch-backs. The reservoir at the end is glorious! (see hero image at top)

4. McCullough Gulch:

• 6.4 miles
• 
• Out and Back
• 
• 1,607 ft. elev. gain

If you're in the Breckenridge area and looking for a hike, do this one. It's a whimsical trail through the forest with lakes, rivers, waterfalls, and loverly views at the end. We got lost and nearly panicked, I think insults were thrown. Forgive and forget.

5. Griffin Memorial:

• 3.7 miles
• 
• Out and Back
• 
• 1,177 ft. elev. gain

In the tiny town of Silver Plume, this hike goes up to a memorial that I wouldn't mind having for myself after my days are over.. The hike goes through some spooky remnants of old mining facilities and ends with a lovely view of the canyon surrounding Silver Plume.

6. Silver Dollar Lake and Murray Lake Trail:

• 4.1 miles
• 
• Out and Back
• 
• 1,066 ft. elev. gain

This was the first hike we did when we got to Colorado. The drive up Guenella Pass from Georgetown is worth it in itself, but do the hike for some awesome views of Bierstadt and the surrounding vastness from 12k+ elevation.

5 Tasty Decisions We Made in Denver

Maybe it was the altitude, but my tastebuds were flying high in Denver. Does altitude affect taste? We only spent four days in Denver, but it's clear eating and drinking is a priority just as much as all the healthy activities outside the city are.

French fare, South American delights, delicious brews, and train station cocktails, here were the highlights of our gastronomic experience in Denver:

1. Brasserie Brixton

A wonderfully understated brasserie with an open kitchen and a lovely bar on the outskirts of town serving up unpretentious French fare. I would highly recommend for people to take a stroll through the RiNo district on their way to have a dinner here, I hope to go back someday.

2. Comal Heritage Food Incubator

Delicious for a good cause, what's better? Comal Heritage Food Incubator is a multi-purpose kitchen that serves as a platform for aspiring immigrant and refugee women entrepreneurs to hone in on their skills and get their break in the industry whether it be in an established kitchen or with their own business. The day we went they were serving up tacos and they were some of the best I've had in our journey.

3. Northside Eatery + Market:

Part restaurant/part cafe/part bodega. I love places like this. The food was realllly good, particularly the spicy fried chicken, and they had a great selection of beer. After you eat, peruse the market and find some fresh and thoughtful groceries to bring home with you.

4. Terminal Bar:

Waiting for a train is much more pleasant with a nice Martini in hand. Well, depending on the time of day I guess, and actually I just went for the bar, no train to catch.. Anyway they have great cocktails and the station itself is beauty.

5. Bierstadt Lagerhaus:

I love a good pils, and this place goes hard with their slow-pour pils. It's a huge open space with games and outdoor seating, and the glassware is on point.

5 Towns Near Denver We Decided to Visit

Yes, everyone goes to Colorado for the great outdoors. To get away from society, get in touch with your inner-animal and make human sacrifices miles and miles away from the nearest McDonalds. But, we like society. Particularly small societies nestled into the mountains, rich in history and ripe with hidden gems. We opted to set our base in one of the small towns after considering staying in Denver for the month.

I'm sure Denver would've been awesome and there's definitely a good chance we spend more time there someday, but we couldn't be happier with our decision. That isn't to say Georgetown is the most remote town in Colorado, but an hour away from Denver did offer a different vibe. More about this below with 5 of our favorite towns we decided to visit:

1. Georgetown:

Our mountain oasis for the month. It's a tiny town about an hour west of Denver, nestled along Clear Creek at the southern end of the Rocky Mountains. The former mining town made an excellent base for us with easy access to some wild scenery and hiking as well as cities and towns like Denver and Breckenridge. It was also easy to imagine yourself in the beginnings of this town during the gold rush, getting beat up and robbed by a bandit with a cool nickname or something, so that's cool. . Three things:

+Guenella Pass: A sweet scenic drive that leads to all sorts of wonderful hikes and outdoor recreation.

+Georgetown Loop Train: Sure, seems like it's for kids and it mostly is, grow up and just have fun with it.

+Eat (and drink): We ate well in Georgetown. Some spots that need mentioning:

• SweetEasy: Great Cocktails, service, and sweets. The owners are awesome people who were very welcoming to us when we got to Georgetown.
• 511 Rose: Live music, great food and drinks inside a beautifully historic space.check this place out and there's a good chance the owner will be there to tell you its story.
• Mountain Mamas' Needful Things: Cool name, cooler reuben.

2. Crested Butte:

Prettiest town in the US? Haven't been to them all, but I'd vote for this place. The drive alone made us hallucinate. We were lucky enough to have friends drive us all around and show us cool stuff while we were there. Unfortunately, the hike we had planned was sidelined by puppy injury, but driving out into the pristine wilderness, taking pictures and jumping into lakes made me feel like a small child filled with hope again.
We also enjoyed just walking through the town. Walking down Elk Ave checking out numerous shops, restaurants, bars, and cafes protected by massive peaks overlooking the town is an idyllic way to spend a day. This place is an island in the middle of the country.

3. Silver Plume:

Hey! Another mining town, can you believe it? This one was tiny. Blink and you might miss it, as they say (I think?). Unfortunately, we went during COVID times and one of the only restaurants there (Bread Bar) was still closed down, so we didn't get to try it (sad). BUT, there's an old timey jail still in tact from whenever ago and it was fun to peer between the bars of the window and image the type of outlaws who might've been locked up there before. The town also has access to some great hiking, more on that below!

4. Idaho Springs:

Just a quick shot down the road from Georgetown is Idaho Springs (an old mining town!). There was a fun vibe here the day we visited, patrons of the bars were spilling out into the street where the bars and restaurants provided roped off outdoor areas and games like corn hole. We particularly enjoyed Westbound & Down brewery, great beer in a nice clean and sleek space. the town has great access to the outdoors, pretty much on the doorstep of Mt. Evans, the first 14er me and Ashley went to the top of.

5. Gunnison:

This one is real close to Crested Butte, but wanted to include anyway. We were lucky again to have ANOTHER friend drive us around while we visited this town, meaning we have more than one friend. He drove us out to some spectacular nature ranging from a high desert (Hartman Rocks), to a lord of the rings looking castle rocks at Mill-Castle, and finally creepy Aspen forests.