Estes Park/Rocky Mountain National Park

If you love the mountains, then Rocky Mountain National Park is the place for you.  I’ve traveled a fair amount, and this is still one of the most beautiful places I’ve seen.  The majesty of the place just makes everything right in the world.  I can’t promise it will affect you the same way, but I can promise you there is something very special about this place.

The town of Estes Park is the gateway to the park.  It’s changed quite a bit since I was there 20+ years ago, but it’s still a great little place to visit.

The main drag, Elkhorn Avenue, is full of little shops and restaurants.  Most are pretty tourist-y, but there are some gems as well.  Estes Park is also home to the Stanley Hotel, which was Stephen King’s inspiration for The Shining.  Not exactly a kid-friendly place, but definitely worth a look.  In addition to the park, there are some local attractions that are lots of fun.  We didn’t have time for all of them, but we did enjoy these very much….

Horseback Riding

Since our kids were a little too young for rafting or kayaking trips, we decided to go on a family horseback riding trip.

There are literally a gazillion stables to choose from, and you probably can’t go wrong.  We chose Cowpoke Corner Corral based on a cousin’s recommendation, and were not disappointed.

I don’t know if they always do this, but our group consisted of only our family of four and the guide.  She took us up into the mountains, so this was no ordinary trail ride.  We even stopped for a photo with the Continental Divide in the background.

It was a beautiful and fun way to spend two hours.

Tips:

• Our two-hour ride cost us about $50 bucks per person.
• They try their best to match the person to the horse.  Our kids’ horses were smaller and gentler than ours were.

The Tram

Estes Park Aerial Tramway

The tram in Estes Park has been a family owned and operated business since 1955.  The Heron family knows how to do it right.  The views of Estes Park and the surrounding mountains are spectacular from the top, and the trip up and down are pretty cool too.

But if you have kids (and even if you don’t), the views aren’t the best part.

The best thing about the tram is the chipmunks.  Okay, so the chipmunks are sort of tame, and it’s not the most authentic experience.  But when a chipmunk takes a peanut from your child’s hand, you won’t care about authenticity.  It’s the cutest thing you’ve ever seen.

Tips:

• Adults are $10, kids are $5, and the little ones under age 5 are free.
• Just do it.  Buy each kid a bag of peanuts in the shell.  It’s hours of fun watching them find the chipmunks, and watching the chipmunks take the peanuts from their hands.
• Bring your camera!

Yay, hiking!

Hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park

Since this was our first hike with the kids, we wanted to take it fairly easy.  Turns out my husband and I were the ones who needed the breaks to rest and catch our breath.  The kids were fine and not even winded at all!  We ended up hiking somewhere between 4 -5 miles and climbed 745 feet in elevation to around 10,000 feet.

We stuck to the trails near and around Bear Lake.  These are fairly popular trails, so you’ll see lots of people, but they aren’t overcrowded.  All said, we hiked up to four lakes that day – Bear, Nymph, Dream, and Emerald Lakes.

Each of the lakes was spectacular in their own way, though I think Dream Lake might have been the family favorite.

To quote my son, “I know why they call it Dream Lake.  Because it’s just so beautiful, Mommy.”  I had to choke back tears on that one.

Tips:

• Leave no trace.  You pack it in, you pack it out.
• Take lots of water and some light snacks if you plan to hike up to Emerald Lake and back.  You’ll be gone a few hours.
• In the summer, it rains most every afternoon.  Bring a windbreaker.
• It’s pretty cool in the park anyway – even at mid-day.  But if/when it rains, the temperature drops dramatically.  We got caught in the rain wearing shorts and t-shirts.  Let me tell you, temps in the low 50s, rain, and shorts are not a good combination.
• It will cost you a mere $20 per car, which lasts for 7 consecutive days.  You can’t find a better value.

So despite being back in the Texas heat, we’ve gone hiking twice since our vacation.  We invested in some nice camelbacks from REI in Round Rock, and are hitting some of the trails in the area.

I’m already busy planning our next national park vacation.  Yosemite anyone?

Check out all of our vacation photos in our Colorado set on Flickr.

(Thanks very much for telling us about your family’s Colorado favorites, Sarah!)

Our Rocky Mountain High, Family-Style

My love for Colorado began well over 20 years ago in high school and college, and on vacations with my cousin and her family several times during the 1980s.  My cousin Robin worked at the YMCA of the Rockies for a couple of summers, so we spent lots of time up in Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park.  That area (and the whole state of Colorado really) quickly became one of my favorite places.

So when we began talking about where to go on our family vacation this summer, the decision was a no-brainer for me.  My husband had only been to Colorado on ski trips and the kids had never been at all.  It didn’t take much convincing, actually.

To get to do things outside?  In the summer?  During the day?!  Tell me where to sign up!  If you’ve ever spent time in Texas in the summer heat, you’ll understand.

Being back in Colorado with my family was just as good – if not better – than the time I spent there in college.  The best part was watching my kids (ages 8 and 6) discover what I’d known all along.

With that in mind, here are some of the highlights of our favorite kid-friendly places to visit and things to do from our trip.  These are the places we enjoyed the most, and where our kids had the most fun.

Colorado Springs

Pike’s Peak and the Pike’s Peak Cog Railway

The best way to see Pike’s Peak is a trip up the mountain on the Cog Railway.  Someone else drives, so both parents are able to enjoy the view.  The tour guides do a great job pointing out interesting things to see and telling funny stories.

While we didn’t see any wildlife, they say it’s not unusual to see elk, bighorn sheep, and marmots at the upper elevations.  Marmots?!

Once at the 14,115 foot summit, the views are breathtaking; so gorgeous in fact that the song “America the Beautiful” was inspired by the views.  The elevation is breathtaking too; we all felt some effects of the high altitude, but they went away quickly as we made the descent.

On top there are decks and other platforms to help you get the best views.  Visitors can walk around, do a little climbing, visit the café and gift shop, and take lots and lots of pictures before it’s time to head back down.

Tips:

• The ride up is 1 ½ hours and there are NO bathrooms on the train, so make a potty stop before boarding.
• To help combat the effects of the altitude, bring and drink lots of water.  Keep your empties and refill them from the fountain in the gift shop.  The water is delicious!  Please refer to the tip above.
• Plan for at least a half day.  It’s a 3 ½ hour round trip, plus you’ll probably want to add in a breakfast and/or lunch.
• Manitou Springs, the place where you board the train, is a cute and funky little town.  There are lots of fun shops and eateries, and most are family-friendly.  There are also lots of equally cool and funky lodging options.
• Make your reservations a couple of weeks in advance.  This is a very popular attraction that tends to fill up quickly.  Adults are $33, kids are $18, and children 2 and under are free.

Garden of the Gods

This free park is definitely worth a stop, even if all you do is drive through and marvel at the views.

If  you have the time, stop and take in the sights up close on some of the many walking and hiking trails throughout the park.  In the park you’ll see sandstone rock formations, many of which are over 300 feet tall.

The hiking trails are beginner level, so they’re great for young children.

Our 6-year-old son discovered a new-found love for hiking and climbing during our visit.  He’s now a self-proclaimed expert hiker!

Tips:

• It’s always a good idea to have water along with you on a hike.  Even though it’s fairly cool in Colorado in the summer, the dry air makes you thirsty quickly.
• Most of the trails are a mile in length or shorter – great for hiking with kids.
• You can even tour Garden of the Gods on a Segway!  Call the park to make sure your kids are old enough.
• The Visitor and Nature Center is worth a stop.  It has lots of great hands-on exhibits on the geology and cultural history of Colorado.  The gift shop is also quite nice.

Celestial Seasonings Tour

I know, I know.  A tea factory doesn’t sound like anything your kids would want to see.  Trust me.  They will.  Before the tour starts, you (and your kids) can sample tea to your heart’s content.  A teabag is your ticket to begin the tour, which starts with a short video about the company’s history and mission.  Then it’s on to the tour!

This is one of the only factory tours I know of where you actually get to walk on the production floor.  In most cases, you’re just a few short feet away from the machinery or the people doing their jobs.  You get an up-close and personal look at how the tea is produced and packaged.

The coolest part of the tour, though, has to be the mint room.  If you have a stuffy nose, you’ll be breathing clear by the time you leave!

Tips:

• Since you’re on the production floor, a hairnet is required at all times.  Men with beards must wear “beardnets” too.  My husband sure did look cute!
• Due to the close proximity of the machinery, make sure the kids keep their hands and fingers to themselves.
• No photography is allowed on the tour.
• You’ll want to bring along some extra cash.  The gift shop is amazing!

Denver

Hammond’s Candies Tour

There should be no arguments from the back seat about stopping for this tour.  Our two kiddos were practically out of the car before we had it in Park!

Hammond’s has been around since 1920; it’s probably best known for its candy canes, but they also make chocolates, toffees, taffy, and lollipops too.

And they do it the old-fashioned way.  I mean really old-fashioned.  When they use machinery, it’s equipment they’ve had since the ‘30s and ‘40s.  Most of the time, the candy is made and cut by hand.  Even though you can’t go on the production floor, the huge plate glass windows make it possible to see everything very well.

The various work stations are well signed and often have large mirrors to help you see the detail work.  You won’t be able to resist the candy store at the end of the tour.

It’s no use – your mouth is already watering before you even get there.

Tips:

• The Hammond’s Candies building is right off IH-25 and is pretty easy to get to.  It’s in a fairly industrial and warehouse-y part of town, which could be off-putting to some.  But don’t worry, it’s safe.
• This will take much longer than you expect.  The video and tour last about 45 minutes, but you’ll spend at least that long trying to get your kids out of the candy store!
• Take all the pictures you want!
• The tour is free, but sadly, the candy store is not.

Check back on Wednesday, September 1 for Part Two, covering the fun in Estes Park/Rocky Mountain National Park. Horses are involved!

(Guest poster Sarah Page also blogs about technology, social media and tourism at Tourism Tech, where she tells the real story behind my startup project, Tourism Currents.)

This is the flamingo area at Homosassa Springs Wildlife State Park in Citrus County, Florida (south of Tampa.)

It’s a wonderful place for the kids to see West Indian manatees year-round.

Nope, no oil spill problems there as of this writing, so check it out!

Coterie has kids in many of the productions, kids in the audience, kids learning from professional actors in acting classes, and they stage works written by teens during their young playwrights festival. This is a truly impressive facility and a real treasure in the Midwest; I particularly like how they tackle a lot of plays for tweens and teens, who are often left behind after the typical “Charlie Brown” school musical experience.

Raise your hand if you wanted to be Snoopy. I thought so.

The 2010-2011 season at Coterie includes a sci-fi triple feature (Flowers for Algernon is one of the three) a 13-and-older Sorority House of the Dead horror play around Halloween, Alexander and The Terrible, Horrible, No Good, Very Bad Day, the Bridge to Terabithia, a Greek Mythology Olympiaganza that sounds amazing, Ben Franklin’s Apprentice, the young playwright festival and a new version of the musical The Wiz.

The quick video clip below is from one of their latest performances, “Lucky Duck.” Here is the direct link to the Coterie video on YouTube if you can’t see the box below, and don’t forget to say hello on the Coterie Theatre Facebook Page.

My own parents took me to the theater – all sorts of plays – at every stage of my young life. I am forever grateful to them for that, so get yourself to Kansas City and give your kids the gift of a live theater experience made just for them.

There have been all kinds of work-related opportunities and good news for the adults under our roof – extensive teacher training for my husband, speaking gigs for me, oldest daughter moving into her freshman college dorm – but kinda bupkis for the typically fun “summer stuff.”

THIS was supposed to be the summer we paid at least a short visit to friends down on the coast.

THIS was supposed to be the summer that we took short 2-3 day trips to a few of the major cities in our state, as fun urban getaways with something for everyone in the family.

THIS was, er, NOT supposed to be the summer where Mom’s workload and OCD tendencies (plus dealing with a newly diabetic cat) were going to keep us housebound and s’mores-deprived.

OK, dear readers, you have 3 weeks until the US Labor Day holiday to salvage a few shreds of summer goodness.

Go get some!

The thought of camping with kids in the August heat in Texas is simply not appealing, unless we were to drive a bunch of hours out to someplace like Alpine in western Texas, where it is cooler in the evenings and there are neat places to go nearby….

• The McDonald Observatory for a Star Party
• Historic Fort Davis in the Texas Pecos Trail region
• Spring-fed swimming at Balmorhea State Park

We’ve always said to ourselves that we “ought to be more hikey and campy,” but we never get around to it.

Whether some consider it camping or not, I am perfectly happy to stay in park cabins like the ones in Bastrop State Park near Austin or Osage Hills State Park in Oklahoma, but the whole tent thing? Meh.

We’ve bought outdoor gear for kids in the past – items sized for them, that encourage bug-chasing, exploration, etc. – but it usually ends up at Goodwill.

Anyone out there want to try to get us motivated for camping, maybe in the fall?

I’ll be waiting over here in the air conditioning….

We met many of them during the So Much More Hawaii bloggers tour, when they served as our hosts and guides.

**  Oahu – we spent a memorable day in and around Honolulu with Russ the ParkRat, who writes ParkRat’s Playground. He took us to eat chilly delights at Waiola Shave Ice, we all toured the USS ARIZONA Memorial and we spent the evening at the beach crabbing with him and his kids by flashlight.

He also spends a lot of time thinking about food (a man after my own heart) so he and I both like Melissa and her Urban Mix Plate blog. So ono!

**  Maui – Liza authors A Maui Blog, and she and her family were fantastic hosts.

They took us all around the island, including a drive up the Haleakala volcano (ooh, silverswords) a scrumptuous meal at the Paia Fish Market (where my picky son actually ate seafood,) a delightful afternoon at the Maui Ocean Center and then some boogie-boarding and bodysurfing at the neighborhood beach.

You can also read Nathan Kam’s Kam Family Blog, Homespun Honolulu and watch videos on Beach Walks with Rox.

For more local flavor, turn to Alltop’s list of Hawaii blogs.

In it, I wrote about taking the kids to visit places that seem crummy, but really aren’t, and how you can’t have an opinion about seemingly crummy places unless you’ve been there yourself.

I wrote….

“Let’s take Lubbock, Texas, for example.

The city that Buddy Holly and Waylon Jennings got the heck out of. Sights include, hmmm, the National Ranching Heritage Center (exhibits of spurs and bits!) and ummm, the American Wind Power Center (windmills!)

“Lubbock or Leave It,” sing the Dixie Chicks.

The legendary folk/country Texas vocal group the Flatlanders (Butch Hancock, Joe Ely and Jimmie Dale Gilmore) didn’t name their group “Guys from a Nifty Place,” they named it “Flatlanders.” ‘Nuff said.

OK, so why am I whipping up on poor Lubbock? Because I just don’t think you can designate a place Yuckyville until you have physically been there to investigate.

Ergo, I need to travel to Lubbock before I can pop off about it.”

What was amazing about that post was that people showed up to leave comments on it about how much they liked Lubbock, including someone from the Buddy Holly Museum. I was touched and even more intrigued after that.

Well, I’m pumped to announce that my chance to investigate has finally arrived – I’ll be speaking with my Tourism Currents business partner Becky McCray in Lubbock, Texas on August 12 at the annual conference for TACVB (Texas Association of Convention and Visitor’s Bureaus.)

Our topic is blogger fam (familiarization) tours and press trips with today’s wired writers and content creators.

Before and after we speak, though, I get to explore Lubbock and its environs, plus check out what’s between Lubbock and the Austin area when I drive there (like a museum about women pilots during World War II who flew from Avenger Field in Sweetwater, Texas.)

Yes, I’m psyched to finally see Lubbock. Really.

Welcome to the July 28, 2010 edition of the Carnival of Cities, where we tour the world in a single blog post.

Hope you enjoyed the previous Carnival edition on my tourism and social media blog, Sheila’s Guide to the Good Stuff, and the next one will be held August 11 on the Travel with Teens and Tweens Blog.

If you’d like to host on your blog, please contact me at Sheila “at” sheilascarborough “dot” com. Thanks!

Off we go….

Cities in Europe

Milan, Italy Laura presents Milan. Where Nothing Is What It Seems posted at Travelocafe Travel Blog.

Shropshire, England, United Kingdom Anne-Sophie Redisch presents Ironbridge Gorge posted at Sophie’s World, saying, “Ironic almost, that the symbol of the Industrial Revolution is also the most charming little town.”

Derry, Ireland Kerry Dexter presents Derry: healing through the arts posted at Perceptive Travel Blog.

Cities in the Americas

Washington, DC, USA Jon presents All You Need Is (Beatles) Love posted at PlanetEye Traveler – Washington DC, saying, “Join 50 Beatles tribute and cover bands at Abbey Road on the River in Washington, DC.”

Lima, Peru Emily Harley-Reid presents Lima’s Best Food, Coffee and People-Watching posted at IETravel.com Blog, saying, “This blog was originally written for the company I work for after spending 11 days in Lima with my Mom.”

Los Angeles, California, USA Jack Norell presents Exposition Park Rose Garden, Los Angeles posted at Eyeflare – Travel Articles and Tips, saying, “This park is a flower enthusiast’s delight as it has over 190 rose varieties along with 20,000 separate rose bushes. Even those who aren’t huge flower lovers will find the Exposition Park Rose Garden relaxing and rejuvenating.”

Cleveland, Ohio, USA Dominique King presents Lake View Cemetery in Cleveland, Ohio, recalls grand European memorial gardens posted at Midwest Guest, saying, “Planners developed Cleveland Ohio’s Lake View Cemetery in the late 1800s with the idea of creating a memorial garden to rival grand Victorian cemeteries in France and England.”

Honolulu, Hawaii One Family presents Flora and Fauna in Oahu – A Trip Report posted at One Family’s Blog, saying, “A Trip Report to Oahu, HI with a focus on the flora & fauna.”

Denver, Colorado, USA Byteful Travel presents Where can you find a surprisingly good Elvis impersonator? Denver People’s Fair, apparently. posted at Byteful Travel, saying, “Sometimes, you wander right off of one street only to wander onto another one just as compelling. And I’m so glad that I happened to wander through Denver People’s Fair because it was overflowing with MUSIC. And to my great delight, a surprisingly good Elvis impersonator was performing “Suspicious Minds”, and he was a lot of fun to watch (short video included.)”

Los Angeles, California, USA Shelly Rivoli presents Cheap and Free Los Angeles: A stroll through the Venice canals posted at Travels with Baby Tips, saying, “When you’re finished with lines at amusement parks, and doing the drive on 5, take a time-out on the quiet corridors of this off-the-track gem in L.A.”

Cancun, Mexico Timothy Scott presents Cool Cancun & Isla Mujeres Travel App posted at Luxury Latin America Blog, saying, “Can Cancun be cool? Really? This inexpensive app from guidebook author Zora O’Neill shows it’s possible – and there’s a category for kids.”

That concludes this edition, and thanks for visiting.

Please submit your (one, non-spammy) blog post about any aspect of ONE, single city to the next edition of the Carnival of Cities using our carnival submission form. Past posts and future hosts can be found on our blog carnival index page.

It’s happening in August 2010.

It fills the center of the magnificent Grand Place with the most gorgeous, colorful carpet of painstakingly arranged real flowers.

You can read more about it on the Brussels flower carpet website.

There are fun things for kids to do in Brussels….plus everyone gets to eat lots of frites, mussels, chocolate and naturally there is great Belgian beer for the adults.

You should go!