So, right about the time that Kate was going to be heading to The Badlands with the girls, I was going to take Junah on his first trip involving an airplane. The girls’ trip was postponed (and the destination may even change), but ours was not!
I chose Colorado because there’s a direct flight to Denver from my nearest airport (and it’s not Florida, like most of the other direct flights). I’d contemplated a layover at ORD on one leg, because that’s a whole experience, but nixed that in the end. Originally, it was to be a surprise destination, but I slipped up & spilled the beans a few days prior.
We left on Saturday, Sept 26 — an early morning flight, so Junah stayed overnight on Friday. And returned on Tuesday — a later flight that didn’t land until around 9 pm. That basically gave us two full days & two half+ days, and we did a lot!
We arrived in Denver around mid-morning & by the time we picked up the rental car, it was time for lunch! Junah chose Culver’s, which is hilarious because they’re everywhere in Wisconsin.
Our first stop was MEOW WOLF — and immersive, interactive art experience covering many rooms & floors. There were lots of people, and plenty of kids (all ages). It’s crazy & a little overwhelming, but there were some very cool things (many of them hard to photograph, mostly due to light!). I don’t think I need to go again, but I’m glad we experienced it.
We stopped at Safeway for groceries on our way to the hotel for snacks, beverages & a few eat-in options, and that night we had pasta!
On Sunday, we took a downtown tour on e-bikes. We were the only two in our group, so that was nice. It was about a 10-mile ride & we learned a lot about Denver’s history… some of which Junah actually found interesting. The weather was amazing!
Nearing the end of the ride, we had to navigate a couple of hairpin turns on an incline… and I biffed it! I’m not so great at turning in the best of circumstances, and I should have known better & just walked up. Instead, I crashed into a roughly textured concrete wall at about the mid-thigh area. Yes. The hip replacement side. It hurt like hell, but luckily, I had my phone in that pocket & that’s what took the brunt of the impact. It left an imprint on my thigh a few inches below the incision site, but barely broke skin & there was no blood (only a not-too-bad-considering bruise). The phone screen & protector were badly cracked… and from that point on, my camera would only work in selfie mode! My pants got pretty ripped up, too, and it would have been pretty ugly (w/blood) if it hadn’t been for my phone. I was OK, really, and able to complete the ride (and the rest of the vacation) with no other problems.
We went to Wally’s Wisconsin Tavern, in the heart of downtown, to regroup over some fried cheese curds, Shirley Temples (for him), a hazy IPA for me, and some chicken wings.
Maddy was the one who suggested Wally’s — and if I was ever in Denver* & there was a Packers game on TV, that’s probably where I’d be! We loved these visitor maps right inside the entrance, and there was lots of other stuff to look at.
Our last stop of the day was Little Man Ice Cream. Super cute, really yummy.
Monday was a big day. We drove up to Estes Park & rode the tram — had a little look & a snack up top.
Those view things still only take a quarter.
From there, armed with my new Lifetime Senior Parks Pass & National Park Passports for us both, we headed to Rocky Mountain National Park for the day. It’s elk season! We saw so many — the first was spotted just hanging out in Estes Park, at a park!
I was able to snag a $2 timed entry + Bear Lake Road ticket, so we got in at a pretty good time & had a nice walk around Bear Lake, then continued through the park on Trail Ridge Road. I only got lightheaded navigating those hairpin turns a couple of times. Whew, heights, y’all! We stamped our passports at Bear Lake Visitor Center, the Fall River Visitor Center, and Alpine Visitor Center; would have at Sheep Lakes Information Station & Holzwarth Historic Site had they not been closed, and at the Kawuneeche Visitor Center if we’d had just five more minutes! It was all so beautiful. And BRRRRR!! Chilly!! Only 41F in the middle of the day at Alpine!! We lucked out that the forecasted rain mostly held off — just a little misty sprinkle a couple of times.
It was a long day & we arrived home a little after dark, so we cooked up the rest of the pasta for dinner!
Tuesday was departure day, but our flight didn’t leave until 5:45 pm — not knowing how traffic would be, etc., we planned to be at the airport around 3 to return the car, etc. We had most of the day, though, and I decided (planned ahead) to go to the Denver Zoo. I also booked a “Giraffe Encounter,” because giraffes, and…
…because I’d had an encounter with giraffes at the Denver Zoo about 65 years ago with my mom. It seemed like a good idea.
Fascinating & cute creatures! Zoos have changed a lot… I’m pretty certain that it’s the same giraffe house, but it is much less sterile now.
The woman who led our bike tour told us that there was a baby orangutan at the zoo, so we made a point to visit the primates section. We even spotted the 3-month-old baby clinging to its mother. And then mom put on a show! Walking the “tightrope” things, swinging around on stuff & basically relocating to a whole different area of their enclosure. Boy, that baby clings! Apparently, they’ll be “joined” like that for another 5 months or so, before the baby starts to venture on its own. No photos because a) really hard to photograph that kind of thing and b) even worse in selfie mode! haha.
Junah’s really been into bikes lately, and has been working on a mountain bike at home. Cycling is very popular in Denver & there are lots of shops, so stopping at one became a thing that Junah wanted to do. It wasn’t fitting anywhere else on the schedule, but we found one quite close to the zoo & headed over for a quick stop before we went to the airport.
Z Cycle Shop, formerly Collins Bicycles (which opened in 1934), was amazing. The building still has the old signage, and I had to double-check that were were in the right place. We walked around on wonderfully creaky wood floors & browsed a bit, and then Junah found a bunch of used parts for sale. Oh boy! There’s a happy kid right there. He sifted through everything — I had no idea what he was looking for, but he did. One of the guys in the shop — an owner, I believe — talked to Junah about what kind of bike he had, what he was looking for, what would work, and offered a few tips. It was a wonderful thing to witness! And I’m pretty sure this was the highlight of the trip for Junah! I carried around his wallet, which had a nice amount of spending money inside, for the whole trip, but he didn’t buy a single souvenir anywhere (mostly poo-pooing high prices) (he’s not wrong). Instead, he spent it on used bike parts & a few things from their sale bin! Ali said that he got everything installed & working the next day (he’d have stayed up all night to do it, if allowed).
*Kate just accepted a part-time position as Communications Director for a gallery in Denver, so it could happen!
