Colorado is an incredibly beautiful state that will throw
your head through loops with all the mountains and rock formations.
Unfortunately, I was only in Denver for a few hours, so I don’t have anything
to tell you about the capital city. However, I spent a whole week in Manitou
Springs (Colorado Springs) at a family reunion with some family that lives in
Nebraska, and it was amazing.
First off, we stayed in a log cabin, because there were like
20 of us. It was really cool, as all log cabins are, but I’m sure there are
probably some cheap places to stay in the area. Manitou Springs is a decently
small tourist town, so you want to stay where everything is. There’s a little
town below the mountains where our log cabin was. (We had a car, so that made
it easier for us to stay a little ways up the mountain from the town, but if
you stay in the town, you should be able to walk most places.) However, the big
things to see in the area might require the use of a bus or taxi. I don’t
really remember how long it took us to drive to all of the places that we saw,
which is why I wish I had started writing my travel blog when I started
traveling, rather than years and years later. Anyway, as for the town, there
are a lot of really neat shops and “Ma & Pop” restaurants. However, I can’t
think of any specific restaurants to send you to, since I think we mostly ate
groceries while we were there. My sisters, cousins, and I loved playing all
over the town décor, especially the giant metal bicycles… Yes, we were very
young. I was 18 and had just graduated from high school. That would have put my
sisters at 14 & 15 and our cousins at 17 & 19. There are kiddie rides
in the town if you have small children… Or teenagers that like to play on things
they shouldn’t. The town is so adorable and fun to play around in when you have
nothing to do but can’t go far. Hiking up the surrounding mountains is another
way to enjoy this town, since it’s literally surrounded by gorgeous mountains.
It’s a beautiful area. This would even be a good area to camp out. I know that
we roasted some marshmallows, made S’mores, built bonfires, and relaxed in a
hot tub in the backyard of the cabin we stayed in.
Now let’s get to the real stuff. The most amazing thing I
saw in Colorado was the Garden of the Gods. The rock formations are outrageous
and huge, and I’ve really never seen anything quite like it. The “Balancing
Rock” was the coolest rock formation I saw. It’s a huge rock that literally
balances perfectly on the rock platform below, and it is a natural formation.
Any slight change in the shape/size of the rock, or any slight movements of the
rock could make it topple over. Now, also, in a nearby town there are the
“Cliff Dwellings,” which are notches that Native Americans carved out of the
side of a cliff, and that was their home. They literally lived in notches that
they carved out of the side of this cliff. They are pretty neat. The other
“must-see” place in the area is Pike’s Peak. We drove almost all the way to the
top, but security wouldn’t let us make it all the way to the top due to some
climate issues that made it dangerous. It was so bizarre to drive from the heat
below all the up a mountain that was covered in snow toward the top. It was
freezing up there but hot down below, and I know that’s how really high
mountains work, but it was still bizarre. We got to have a snowball fight
during the summer! Who knows how long it had been since we had seen snow, so
that was fun.
Apart from that, the weather is a little all over the place.
It’s warm during the day, but it’s a bit chilly at night. And then, of course,
if you decide to drive up Pike’s Peak, which I recommend that you do, then I’d
recommend bringing winter clothes for while you’re up there. Remember Manitou Springs
is all about nature. There aren’t a ton of tourist attractions, or at least
from what I experienced, there. It’s all about spending a secluded week (or
weekend) in the mountains with loved ones and getting back to nature. So if
you’re looking to party or go to amusement parks, then Manitou Springs might
not be the place to go. I do highly recommend it for nature lovers, though!
The "Balancing Rock" in the Garden of the Gods.
My cousin and me playing on one of the metal bikes I was talking about.
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