Colorado Summer Vacation 2015

Rodger and I went to my 44th state for our summer vacation (looking forward to reaching those last five states before I turn 50).  The girls had a vacation of their own at Grandma and Grandpa's farm.  Our trip to Colorado was a wonderful five days of sightseeing, relaxing, and great food.  The first two nights were spent at the Broadmoor Resort in Colordao Springs, one of the best resorts that we have ever stayed at in our lives.  From the service to the food to the excursions and amenities, we thoroughly enjoyed our time at the Broadmoor.

View from the front of the hotel down Broadmoor Lane

Our view from the Ristorante del Lago

Enjoyed a nap at the pool, something that doesn't normally happen with two kids.

Waterfall along our Jeep Tour of Cheyenne Canyon

Me and my husband

Praying Hands Monument at Garden of the Gods

Rodger took over 350 photos on our trip of the beautiful Colorado landscape

On day 2, Rodger woke for sunrise photos of the Garden of the Gods

Another gorgeous sunrise

Balance Rock at Garden of the Gods

The Broadmoor on a sunny day

...and a little fisheye photog fun...

Pike's Peak, elevation 14.110 feet

Cog Train Ride up to Pikes Peak

On the train, we met some nice locals who told us all about Colorado Springs

Rodger climbed the tower, I'm not into that after Italy!!

A view of the Broadmoor resort from the tower

Vail... the cutest mountain town ever! We stayed at the Arrabelle Resort at the base of the Eagle Bahn gondola

Gueberts atop Vail Mountain

A glimpse of the wildflowers on Vail Mountain

This bowl is wide open black diamond skiing in the winter time

While in Colorado Springs, we took a Jeep Tour of the mountain and Garden of the Gods and learned a lot of geological history of the area.  At our first night at the resort, we dined lakeside at Ristorante del Lago on Italian food like monkfish and fresh tuna.  Rodger woke at dawn to take photos of the sunrise while I opted for a water aerobics class at the spa (with all of the old ladies... it was awesome!)  Despite the warnings, we did not feel any altitude sickness at the top of Pike's Peak on the cog train, though I would tell you that I did feel some lightheadedness on our first day in Colorado Springs.  The temperature at the top was in the 40's and there was still snow on the mountain, but it didn't feel that chilly from the sunshine.  We couldn't resist dining at the Penrose Room, which is the resorts' top restaurant.  What an event to see each course!!! But some of the most fun we had was at the Golden Bee singing along at the piano bar to songs.

The most difficult part of the trip for me was driving along Highway 24, which was the "scenic route" through the mountains.  I don't know why I've become afraid of things as I have gotten older, but I was holding on to the door handle and couldn't look down the cliffs for a good part of that ride.  Rodger loved it though.  The route took us to Vail, where we spent the next two days.  Vail is such a great town in the summer time.  Live music (happened to be the NY Symphony that night), great sushi at Matsuishu, the best ice cream this summer, and beautiful walking paths is why we loved Vail so much.  The next day, we rode the Eagle Bahn gondola up to the top of the mountain for a tour of the area and finished off our trip with lunch at the base of the mountain. 

The final part of our trip was a night in the city of Denver.  We stayed at the historic Crawford Hotel at Union Station and ate dinner blocks away at McCormick's Seafood.  There was a lot of crowds and festivities in town for a soccer tournament and that made the night a lot of fun.  All in all, Rodger and I had a wonderful trip in Colorado.