 It is so weird to look back and realize that it has already been three years since I took my senior spring break trip to Breckenridge. Now, my little sister is a freshman in college, and she decided to spend her spring break week with my parents visiting me in my new home in Colorado! Colorado Springs: Broadmoor's Seven Falls, Garden of the Gods, and Air Force Academy We started our week together by meeting up in Colorado Springs bright and early Sunday morning at The Broadmoor’s Seven Falls parking lot. We said our hellos, hoped on the bus, bought our tickets, and set off on our wonderful week together! Starting at Seven Falls was a great idea, because the park was practically empty, but it did mean that it was still a little icy and chilly.  The hike started with The Pillars of Hercules's epic orange slot canyons. It's just short of a mile to the falls, but it took us quite a while to walk while we were taking pictures and gawking at the massive rock formations. We followed the South Cheyenne Creek to the end of the hike where a platform with a little gift shop, restaurant, and, of course, the falls were waiting for us.  Overall, it's a short hike, but you might end up walking quite far depending on how many flights of stairs you climb or which trails you take at the top. We chose to climb the stairs leading to The Eagle’s Nest, because the other stairwell was very icy. After 224 steep steps up, we made it to the overlook to take in the panoramic views of the falls and the incredible Pillars of Hercules that surround it.  Most of the falls were frozen, but we could still hear water gushing under the tunnels of ice that were hiding it. It was stunning to see, and the views were great, but we were very chilly at that height. We decided to head back down the stairs and the trail toward the car after only about five minutes at the top. (You can see and read more about this quick hike in my seperate blog post, here!)
 When we got to the car, we decided that our next stop would be The Garden of the Gods before heading into town. It was a 15 minute drive from the Broadmoor to The Garden of The Gods. We drove through the park stopping along Ridge Road to take pictures at every viewpoint or pull off available. We, mystified by the vibrant red rocks, spent a couple of hours stopping and walking through the park. We all wished that we had gotten there earlier to do a hike and grab a parking spot so that we could have spent longer exploring around.
 After my sister and I got an up-close and personal experience with some Mule Deer, we were ready to see what else Colorado Springs had to offer. Our next stop was a tour of The Air Force Academy from a family friend and current cadet. We met him at The Cadet Chapel at the front of campus to start. It was the easiest building to find and meet at, and it’s pretty famous for its stained glass, so we wanted to be sure that we saw this first.  After the chapel, we wandered clockwise around the large courtyard that surrounds the Air Garden and the Spirit Hill in the middle of campus. Our first stop was Arnold Hall. We then attempted to get into the library and a few similar buildings with no luck, since it was Sunday. We drove over to the sports facilities to see the lacrosse, baseball, softball, soccer, and rugby fields. We parked and walked inside to see some of the training facilities and wrapped up by driving to the overlook above the fields. It was a great view to end the wonderful day we had enjoyed together. Golden and Morrison:The next day, my family woke up early to visit the town of Golden and see my sister’s friend who attends the Colorado School of Mines. After grabbing breakfast and strolling through the shops, they stopped by Red Rocks Amphitheater on the way back to Denver.
Denver:Later on, we all met up and were ready to go to a Denver Avalanche hockey game at the Pepsi Center. My family loves sporting events, so we had a blast together getting rowdy at the game and hoping for a good fight!  Estes Park: Rocky Mountain National Park and The Stanley Hotel Unforeseen in our plans was a “bomb cyclone blizzard” that was set to hit Colorado Wednesday and drop feet of snow. My family had to be flexible and cancel their plans in Breckenridge which was difficult, but it led to two days of board games, snuggles, and watching movies while we were snowed in. Finally, the storm cleared up just in time for us to head north to Estes Park and check in at The Stanley Hotel. Before we dropped off our luggage, we decided to take the long route and drive through Rocky Mountain National Park.  We started at the Beaver Meadows Visitors Center and continued up Highway 36. Only certain roads are open during the winter months limiting where we could go, so we made a big loop on 34 heading toward the Fall River Visitor Center. We stopped every with chance we had just as we had done at Garden of the Gods. We stopped for wildlife in the middle of the road, mountain views, a lake overlook, and other random stops along the way.
 When we were out of the national park, we kept driving to Elkhorn Street and checked out the little downtown area. Every store had cute displays in the windows. Most were candy shops, so there were brightly colored, eye-catching arrangements everywhere we looked. When we reached what looked like the end of the street, we decided to check out the Wapiti Colorado Pub. After filling our bellies with bison burgers and local brews, we finally went to check in and explore around The Stanley Hotel.   We, of course, went to the bar and ordered, “the hair of the dog that bit me,” (but actually ordered shining inspired cocktails and beers). We tried to get on a ghost tour, but they were unfortunately all booked up. We still got to see where the haunted tunnels were and where a lot of celebrities had been, but we didn't see any ghosts or spirits during our stay.  We woke up the next morning to incredible views of the Rocky Mountains out our window and from the front steps of the hotel. It was the perfect view to have while saying our goodbyes to each other and the week we had spent together. We parted ways hugging and planning when our next vacation will be. We are very excited to see what else Colorado has for us explore! 
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Talkin' 'bout Tacos:
I'm Taylor, aka Tacos! I am sharing my journeys and experiences from across the world hoping to inspire travel and adventure in all who read. Archives
June 2024
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