June 22, 2022

Kids Hike – Lily Lake RMNP

One of our favorite hikes is up in Rocky Mountain National Park called Lily Lake. It’s a very easy to navigate hike with great accessibility. It’s one of my go-to trails when it’s just me and the kids because I know it’s safe and I won’t have to carry Emmy.

The main loop is just shy of a mile and can be navigated with a stroller.

Back in 2018 Cory made it around with our double stroller and a busted Achilles in a boot.

Now the kids hike on their own!

We brought lunch to enjoy while watching all the wildlife. I LOVE summer in the mountains so much.

We choose to add some elevation and distance by going up over the ridge. There are many other trails that connect to the main Lily lake trail so you can add distance if you like. You can also paddle on the lake and the kids want to bring our boards next time.

If you are in the Estes Park area we can’t recommend this trail enough! We have also visited in the fall and winter….all beautiful!

Previous years:

June 12, 2022

Rifle Falls, John Denver + Raspberry Cake

We started our day with breakfast riverside.

Can’t beat the views of this campsite!

We decided to drive over the Rifle Falls State Park to enjoy the falls, caves and a little hike.

Luckily all the dogs are allowed on the hikes as well.

This is our third time visiting Rifle Falls and I love it every time, a great hike for kids and adults.

We went back to camp for lunch with my entire family.

My parents decided to stay in camp to relax and stay out of the 90+ degree heat. We took the kids and met my brother up in Aspen to visit the John Denver Gardens.

It was a nice visit but I do wish we could have stayed longer visiting, I love Aspen. I already asked for a visit to Aspen for my birthday this year.

We went back to camp to enjoy father’s day dinner and raspberry cake with my Dad.

Emmy approved of it all!

June 6, 2022

Colorado Day Trip – Bishop Castle

I could sum up our trip to Bishop Castle in one sentence it would be: Cool, wild, would not actually recommend.

Bishop Castle is in Rye, Colorado and we visited on our way home from the Great Sand Dunes National Park. I had wanted to visit for years because the pictures online look so cool.

Walking up the kids were SOOOOOO excited, they though it was the best thing ever.

The story of this place is wild, one man has built most of this castle all on his own. Also I don’t think it meets a single code. I was a little (a lot) nervous climbing all the iron stairs high up on the castle. There were broken stairs, walkways to no where, and low (or no) ledges. It blows my mind that no one has died there.

We did climb all the way to the top, but I had a death grip on Emmy’s hand, afraid at any moment that she would slip or fall through something. I would not have been quite so nervous if I didn’t have littles with me.

The place is very interesting and worth a visit if you don’t have littles and you aren’t afraid of heights.

Have you been to Bishop Castle? If so what are your thoughts?

February 21, 2022

A Visit to Pueblo

On Sunday we played at our campsite on scooters and visited the lake a bit.

I don’t think it’s the most picturesque place in Colorado but I am glad we visited!

Our campsite had a good view of the lake.

On our way home we stopped in Pueblo to visit the river walk.

Normally this area is full of water and boats but it was empty when we visited. I would love to come back and see it like above.

We did find a fun little playground and a cute patio to have lunch that allowed us to have our three dogs with us!

It was fun visiting Pueblo and I would love to go back!

February 20, 2022

Weekend Trip – Lake Pueblo State Park

We are loving winter camping, getting out in nature makes everything better. We tend to camp in very different locations in the winter than the summer since the high country is way too snowy and cold for us this time of year. I do prefer summer camping in the mountains, but it is fun to see parts of the state we wouldn’t visit in the summer.

Like Lake Pueblo State Park! We joined my parents for a little weekend camping.

The drive is only a little over two hours and very easy.

We did some hiking and playing, the weather was cool but comfortable.

After our hike we went to Pueblo to visit the zoo.

It was tiny but perfect for an afternoon and the kids liked it.

Then it was back to our campsite for dinner and stargazing.

Do you ever go camping in the winter?

January 31, 2022

A Winter Day Trip To Breckenridge

I was so excited to get back up into the mountains and spend the day in Breckenridge. We go often in the summer but avoid it more in the winter given ski traffic.

We started with a visit to the Breckenridge Troll which is just a short walk down an snowy path to see Isak Heartstone.

We then took the (free) bus into downtown Breckenridge to visit the International Ice Sculpture Competition.

It was so fun seeing all the different sculptures, they really are works of art. The kids enjoyed it as well.

We then went on a mission to find lunch.

We wanted to find a restaurant with a patio open since we still aren’t eating inside restaurants.

Kenosha Smoke House and Grill was exactly what we wanted. Their deck was open, it was a beautiful day, the food was good and view was amazing. We have gotten to the point where eating out is fun again with the kids.

We then stopped at a Railroad themed playground to play before heading home. We would have loved to hit the sledding hill that is supposed to have great tubbing. We had to save that for another trip because we didn’t want to leave Humphry home alone too long.

Some of our past favorite visits to Breck:

A SUMMER WEEKEND IN BRECKENRIDGE

DAY TRIP TO BRECKENRIDGE + TROLL SPOTTING (Fall)

January 24, 2022

A Day Trip to the Paint Mines

We had the best day yesterday exploring the Paint Mines , the Paint Mines are a natural feature south of Denver.

“The Paint Mines Interpretive Park is one of El Paso County’s most unique open spaces. The Paint Mines are named for their colorful clays that were collected by American Indians to make paint. Brightly colored bands, caused by oxidized iron compounds, are found in varying amounts throughout the many different layers of clay.

The Paint Mines Interpretive Park is located in the northeast section of the County near Calhan with approximately 750 acres. The paint mines have evidence of human life as far back as 9,000 years ago. The park features fantastic geological formations including spires and hoodoos that form through erosive action that creates incised gullies and exposed layers of selenite clay and jasper. The park includes a restroom facility, four miles of trails, interpretive signage, and many natural wonders.” – SOURCE