Denver might be the Gateway to the Rockies, but that really means good views of the mountains, in the distance. There are easy itineraries to get you into the mountains and see some of the spectacular scenery, mountain scapes and big sky country Colorado is known for, only an hour to hour & half off the I70. There are two great routes (the Lariat Loop or stopping down a few mountain towns down the I70 corridor) to feel like you are in the middle of the forest and still in Denver’s backyard.
Lariat Loop
The Lariat Loop is a National Scenic Byway, described as “40 miles of western adventure.” There are two Lariat Lodge restaurants on the loop, the first one is off 470 at the Ken Caryl exit, you’ll see it looming above the highway. The second lodge is located in Evergreen, at the end of the loop. Head to Golden, Colorado to get started. Golden played a huge role in the Gold Rush and was once the capital of Colorado, until it changed to Denver in 1867. One of our favorite pizza & Italian restaurants is right off the highway, before you even get into downtown Golden, called Lil’ Ricci’s NY Pizza & Pasta. It’s perfect to have a casual dinner watching a football game or get take out.
Downtown Golden is a quintessential Western town, with the Coors Brewery sitting next to it. You can take tours of the Coors Plant and see exactly where they “Tap the Rockies”. The Colorado School of Mines college campus is right in the town of Golden. Visit their Mines Museum of Earth Science to get the full academic effect. There are both a Golden Railroad museum and Golden History museum to explore, neither will take more than 1 hour and are located close to Clear Creek. A walking path runs near the creek and in the summer, you’ll see people tubing down the river. There are lots of great restaurants in the few square blocks of downtown, including our favorites:
- Buffalo Rose
- Old Capitol Grill & Smokehouse
- Golden Diner
- Woody’s Woodfired Pizza
Golden has a few souvenir shops and an old fashioned general’s store selling toys, puzzles, sodas and old fashioned candy. There are other cute shops including an ice cream parlor and a cupcake bakery. In February, each year, the city of Golden holds a “Golden’s in Golden Day” where hundreds of golden retrievers and their owners show up in solidarity of the best family breed. We hope to bring our new golden retriever puppy, Bella, next year… once she’s a little better on long car rides.
Moving out of downtown Golden, stop at Beverly Heights Park for some great views. This would be a perfect spot to stop if you have kids, they can enjoy the playground and you can get some great scenic pictures. You may have the park to yourself, it’s never too crowded. I think it’s tucked away just enough in the neighborhood that only locals know about it. Hubby and I used to go on coffee dates here during the pandemic. Follow the Lariat Loop on Lookout Mountain Rd and drive it up to Lookout Mountain park at the top of the mountain. Driving this side of the mountain is an intense drive, with only partial guardrails, hairpin turns and bike riders to contend with on the road. When we first moved to Colorado from Florida our cars (or tires) were not prepared for the winter conditions and dirt roads with steep grades we’d be faced with on our mountain trips. After upgrading hubby’s car to his beloved Durango SRT, we don’t have anymore concerns driving on these crazy roads. As long as we both have our glasses, especially at night (I feel so old saying that, eye-roll). Arguably, there are two very different ways to drive to Lookout Mountain, on the east side and on the west side. The Lariat Loop takes the east side and it certainly requires some driving skill and nerve, but the views can’t be beat and why it’s on the scenic byway. If you want a much calmer, yet still scenic drive, go up the west side. The sweeping views will be at the top of the mountain in this direction, but it’s worth it for the nervous driver.
At the top of the mountain there is a large parking lot for Buffalo Bill’s Grave site and museum. This is a great spot to take pictures with amazing mountain views, plus there is an observation station off the side of the parking lot. Go up the back pathway to the gravesite of Buffalo Bill. There is a great story of conspiracy between the two grave sites of Buffalo Bill Cody. He died in Denver, had a public funeral in Golden and is said to have been buried here, but there are stories of his friends switching bodies and bringing him home to Cody, Wyoming. You can learn all about the story in the museum or pick up a sweatshirt or souvenirs in the gift shop.
Once you leave the top of the mountain and head back toward the highway, you will see two areas where there is a buffalo lookout. There are 2-3 dozen buffalo in a herd that hang out in Genesee Park, which just happens to be seen from the highway. There is a scenic lookout off the highway so you can get some pictures. Back in 1914 the first two buffalo (American Bison is the correct term) were brought to live there from the Denver zoo, then a few more were relocated from Yellowstone National Park and have grown to what you see today off the highway. Only in Denver will you see Buffalo off the highway on your way to hit the slopes.
Soon the loop will bring you into Evergreen from the north. Stop to have a picnic lunch at Elk Meadow Park or take a private hike. For a busier area, turn off once you reach Evergreen Lake. You could stop for coffee, hot chocolate or even lunch at Everbean Lakeside coffee and provisions. An elk herd is often hanging around the golf course or park, so look out for them, but keep your distance. They are wild animals and known to charge when they feel threatened. When they are in the rut (mating season) you’ll hear the males make this sound called a bugle and it sounds exactly like the instrument, just off pitch. You can easily park at the lake and have a walk around it throughout most of the year. In the summer people will be kayaking, paddle boarding and fishing on the lake and in the winter there will be ice skating and ice fishing in cute little tents on the ice. Stop at one of these restaurants along the main route out of Evergreen:
- Keys on the Green
- Murphy’s
- Switchback Smokehouse (lunch hours, until sellout)
- Lariat Lodge Brewing Co (Evergreen location)
Passing through the town of Kittredge, take some time to stop at the park here if you’re visiting in nice weather. The Kittredge park is great for the playground, picnic tables and grills, sand-play area and the small river entrance in the back of the park. On the rest of the loop, you will see a natural arch off the side of the canyon, a rare sighting in Colorado. Keep an eye out for eagles. We haven’t seen them often, but once (at the right time of year) and it was amazing! One side of Mount Falcon park is also located close to Red Rocks, another great park for picnics or wine & charcuterie date nights.
The final stop on the Lariat Loop is the historic Fort Restaurant, which is a full scale adobe replica of Bent’s Old Fort (a fur trading fort). The restaurant claims to take a modern twist to popular 19th century recipes. They specialize in bison, elk and quail calling their menu New foods of the old west. This completes the loop and leads back to Littleton, near the 470 highway.
I70 Corridor
Instead of taking the scenic byway, you can head straight out I70 as if you are going to the ski towns of Breckenridge or Vail. But don’t go that far, rather stop in Idaho Springs, Black Hawk or Georgetown for the mountain air without the skiing, but close by car. The Chart House restaurant is located in a tucked away spot just off the highway before getting to Idaho Springs and offers great meals and views. The Indian Hot Springs is the closest hot spring to Denver, but keep in mind that this is a rustic and historic hot spring and mainly indoors. Now that hubby and I have been spoiled by the hot springs in Glenwood and Iron Mountain we only come to this one if we book a private hot tub. Which we often do for date nights in the winter. We will book the last hot tub slot of the night, pack a charcuterie picnic and a bottle of champagne (shhh, don’t tell… we’re not supposed to have alcohol, but it’s just a little champs). The relaxing hour runs out quickly and we love having dinner after at the Cidery and Eatery right in town. There are lots of fancier places in the small town, including a MTN Prime, but we like being casual after the hot springs and this place has the best burgers and cider flights.
Black Hawk was originally a mining camp that became a city, which now brings in 85% of Colorado’s gaming revenue. When driving through the narrow roads and parking in garages that are just inches from the mountainside, with chains covering to prevent avalanches. Central City and Black Hawk are like twin gaming cities with lots of casinos from large and modern to small and local. All casinos are smoke free environments, but still have lots of patios and lounges that are smoker friendly and located on all levels and sides of the gaming floors. Casinos are for the 21 and over crowd and some entrances must be avoided with children, but the average age the day I went was about 65-70 years old. Let’s just say there are far more scooters and wheelchairs than strollers in this small gaming city.
I checked out four casino hotels all in the southern part of Black Hawk, where the newest and most luxurious casinos are located. There were a few things I noticed they all had in common. All of the casinos had complimentary drink stations with soda and coffee machines and tons of bathrooms located in every corner of the casino. The hotels and casinos were all easily accessible for those in wheelchairs, with covered walkways from the parking garages and lots of elevators to make all areas accessible. You can tell all of these features are intended to keep gamblers there as long as possible. Then, when they get hungry, the bars and restaurants are all located around the perimeter of the gaming areas, in hopes of players coming back after refueling.
Black Hawk has a downtown Las Vegas feel to it. Horseshoe is the only Caesar’s property in Black Hawk, so if you are a Caesar’s loyalist this will be your casino. Self parking is free and easily located just an elevator ride from the casino floor. There were lots of slot machines and each had their own sports book areas that were comfortable with amenities and cocktail waitress service. There were a few table games open, but the weekend evenings are known for having lots of high energy table games and the high rollers gaming areas are visited more frequently. The Lodge Casino felt the same way, opulent on the outside with lots of glass windows and lights to attract players. When inside, there were 3 floors of gaming to choose from with a forest theme and lots of wood and nature surrounding the neon colors and loud ringing of the slots. In the middle of the atrium there is a beautiful tropical fish tank. It seemed out of place being that our Colorado rivers are filled with trout and bass. But at the same time it was my favorite part of that casino, I’m partial to tropical fish.
There are two hotels in Black Hawk that are resorts, casinos & spas that are trying to emulate the big Vegas hotels. They both are more like Atlantic City, not quite the size, scale and grandeur of Las Vegas resorts. The Ameristar is located in the middle of the Black Hawk strip, it’s too large to miss. On the inside, the casino was not as large as I expected, with just two levels of gaming in a circular lobby-like area. A huge sports book was located in the middle with a few table games and slots all around and tucked into quiet corners. Keeping in mind that Black Hawk, Colorado is cold for most of the year, especially in the windy gorge it’s located in, the large fireplaces at the entrances really lure you in from the cold weather. This resort had a bit more of the old Vegas feeling, with cocktail waitresses walking around in traditional uniforms getting drinks. This hotel also has a highly ranked spa that I was hoping to get an appointment at, however was not early enough in my booking. Disappointing, since all the resorts felt very empty, even for a weekday. Arguably, this is a lower time for tourists and there are lots of cheap room deals for $150 or lower at the nice hotels. I’ve looked into rooms at high times and those same rooms were going for three times that rate. So pack a sweater and come off season.
The Monarch was my obvious favorite of all the hotels, with its dedication to the butterfly theme. The hotel lobby was small, but elegant with their light fixtures and fireplaces to keep the warm cabin feeling going. Monarch boasts about having the only 24/7 restaurant in Black Hawk and they have many other restaurants including a bistro called Mariposa (butterfly in Spanish), the traditional casino steakhouse and a fantastic buffet to give off that old Vegas feeling. I was at the lunch buffet, from 11:00-2:30 and even though it did not have all the seafood the advertisements promised for the dinner and brunch buffets, I was quite impressed. This buffet had a large salad bar, charcuterie station, and some fish & shrimp in addition to a fried seafood station. I spied the dessert station and had a peek to see if I needed to swipe something extra special early in the meal. On my second plate I spotted lots of asian fusion selections like poke, stir fry stations, Mongolian BBQ and pho soup. There were carving stations with steak, prime rib, ham and some kind of sausage with all the condiments you could dream of using followed by a baked potato bar and hot sides. This would be the perfect place to bring my kids where everyone would be so happy to get their favorites. I could look past my daughter still eating chicken fingers, french fries and ice cream to enjoy a tomato & mozzarella salad with balsamic vinegar caviar. I’ve never seen caviar like this before, but there were three types of vinegar caviar, to keep the liquid from running all over the plate. The area has many other buffets that open for dinner only, in the other hotels. I’d love to try Monarch again, but at night for the full seafood offering. Black Hawk could be a quick half day trip for a good lunch and a few hours of gambling on the way out to the ski towns further west on I70. For those looking for a gambling destination, you could spend your whole trip in this tiny town.
Georgetown is known for railroads and its historic Christmas cheer that the town puts on for two weekends out of the season. You’ll feel like you’re walking through a Dickens Novel. The Georgetown Loop Railroad takes a scenic ride to neighboring Silver Plume and back. There are five or so types of trains you can experience on the Georgetown Loop, including steam and diesel-electric locomotives. This loop was Denver’s first tourist attraction after it was completed in 1884. This stretch of three-foot narrow gauge railroad was considered an engineering marvel at the time and a great way to experience how the old west must have felt all those years ago. There is also an old mine tour and a panning for gold experience so you can have full exposure to the time period and history.
During bad weather, Downtown Georgetown has a few small museums to explore during the day, the Georgetown Valley Candy Company or you could check out the Guanella Pass Brewing Company or 511 Rose Saloon & Restaurant. But when the weather is nice, everyone is outside in the fresh mountain air. There are 5 hikes outlined on the town’s official site or just explore on your own and forge your own path. Fishing is big in the area, including fishing tourism and simple cabins. Fly fishing, boat fishing and even ice fishing keep the activity popular all year round. White water rafting tours can be found all along these rivers in the summer months, even though the water is still pretty cold. ATV tours are fun to get you off the trails, but by far the most original thing I’ve seen in Georgetown is ice racing on Georgetown Lake in the winter! A group called Our Gangs Ice Racing hosts competitions for all licensed drivers to test their 4×4 skills or schedule a private event. This is definitely going to be the next adventure I give to hubby for a gift or winter date night activity.
Either of these routes into the foothills surrounding the Rocky Mountains is close enough to Denver that it can be a great day trip. Additionally, spend a few days to see why Coloradans are always hiking, biking and trekking across our great state and experience a few adventures yourself. The next blog will push you a little further out, and possibly to the top of Rocky Mountain National Park, depending on the time of year.
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