The second leg of my 2016 trip included a flight from Las Vegas to Denver, Colorado. I landed in the early afternoon to perfect weather. This was a major relief from the Vegas heat.
I had been to Colorado the previous summer during my internship for 4 days where I got to explore during my downtime. The breathtaking views of the landscape captured a part of me that I knew I'd had to revisit soon.
I landed in Denver and began to drive toward Boulder where I was staying, roughly a 45 minute drive. Denver airport is basically in the middle of nowhere. Fun fact! Denver is the largest airport by total land area in the United States and third largest in the world. The total land area is an astounding 52.4 square miles. On my flight there I purchased wifi on the plane and researched the airport because I'm a level 10 nerd and fell in the rabbit hole. There is an abundance of conspiracy theories surrounding the airport, you can view a short video here.
(A controversial mural in the airport)
I went to 'Windy Saddle Open Space Park', which provides some of the best sights you'll see in this country, including an overlook of the city of Denver.
This is also where William Frederick Cody AKA Buffalo Bill is buried.
I did general sight seeing for the day and then came across a Sports Authority that was closing, 'Everything Must Go! 80% Off Retail!'. Their hook sunk deeply. Sports Authority was being acquired by Dicks Sporting Goods, so all stores were liquidating. Everything was truly 80% off retail.
(Sport Authority AKA The Purge)
The next morning I went golfing at Twin Peaks Golf Course, a nice course with some great views of the mountains. Being from PA, I had always heard that out west the ball will fly further due to the elevation. I can now vouch for this as a true statement. I noticed an increase in yardage for each club.
I then went to see Halsey at Red Rock Amphitheatre. THE COOLEST CONCERT VENUE IN THE WORLD. I have not ventured further than Mexico outside of the US, but I can assure there is no more unique music venue in the world. The amphitheatre is an open aired structure nestled in the 'red rocks' of the mountain 10 miles outside of Denver. I saw Red Rocks the summer before where I intended to see a concert only to find out the tickets sold out in 10 minutes about 8 months prior. I knew this time to get tickets 4 months in advance.
The next day I went to Golden, Colorado. It is one of the coolest towns in America and where my drum instructor throughout college had lived most of his life. I was well informed of the area through him and learned of the secret spots to visit prior to going. I toured the Coors brewery, a must do for anyone visiting the Denver area. The tour takes you through the whole process of how their beer is brewed and you get rewarded with the freshest beer you will ever taste in your life at the end.
I ate in Golden where there are a ton of mom and pop restaurants. From there I went searching for another closing Sports Authority. I went to literally 6 different ones during my time in Denver. This time I bought traction cleats for the bottoms of my shoes for the snow. Why? No idea, but it might be the best $5 I've ever spent.
I then went to this neat shopping plaza in downtown Boulder that was outdoors. It reminded me of an outlet mall set up, which confused me due to the amount of snow they receive in the winter. Other than the bars, there is just about nothing to do in Boulder after 9PM, an odd transition coming from Vegas, the city that never sleeps.
The next day, my last full day, I went hiking. I first hiked the Flatirons in Boulder and then a range in Golden. The sights in and around the Golden area are the best in the Denver area.
That night I went to see one of my favorite comedians, Chris D'Elia at the Comedy Works in the city of Denver. He has one of, if not the best stand up sets right now. We went to the 11:30PM show, which ended at like 1:45AM. We then drove back to the hotel (~45 mins), and then the airport for our 5AM flight (no sleep for the wicked).
Boulder/Denver is an awesome place to visit. The culture, food, views, people, air quality and scenery made this one of my favorite places to visit thus far. There's a reason that the price of housing is very high right now; it's a must visit.
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