Running December 2 until January 1, is one of Denver’s most anticipated events, which is a great opportunity for folks of all ages to enjoy the holidays or kick off the New Year with family, friends and colleagues. Zoo Lights will span through 70 acres of Denver Zoo’s campus, with nightly entertainment, animal encounters, Santa meet-and-greets and, of course, illuminated animal sculptures that swing through trees, jump across lawns hide in bushes and appear in places where they’re least expected.
Special Friday nite preview, day after Thanksgiving – timing couldn’t be better, 4 tickets please 🙂 20 minute drive to Westminster; piled into Ash & Tom’s SUV for my first-ever evening trek to the Denver Zoo. Christmas tunes, festive lights & hot chocolate. Notta lotta animals visible in the dark, however the Zoo’s indoors enclosures & aquarium were crowd-packed. Ice sculptures, elephants, giraffes, river otters, bats, crocodiles, birds, exotic fish & reptiles. Much to see & do.
Nite concluded with cards & board games (M/cards, Ash/Clue champ…yet again), tomorrow a.m. road trip.
Been 3 years since Tom ‘popped the question’ to Ash on Pikes Peak. May 2017, it finally becomes official – the kids have scheduled their Colorado wedding in Silverthorne, a mountain community just outside of Breckinridge (west of the Divide). M & I tagged along, as Ash & Tom reconnected with their event planner Saturday morning. Food, check. Bar, DJ, Lighting – check, check, check. Centerpieces, glassware, tables/chairs, discussion ‘bout the dance floor. Whole lotta details.
Only surprise centered around the couple’s outdoor ceremony – appears a large building will soon obstruct their natural Colorado 14er backdrop. ARGH! Plan B: wedding photos before the ceremony (mountain meadow per the bride’s request), vows exchanged river side. In the event of snow, an impromptu set-up will happen at the Pavilion.
MUCH appreciated the opportunity to see/hear/watch Ash & Tom finalize wedding details. Excellent way to end the long holiday weekend – yet another thing to be thankful for 🙂 my gift? the couple’s honeymoon. Stay tuned.
Denver Zoo Lights
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- holiday lights, animals too!
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- Colorado Christmas season
Silverthorne Pavilion
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- a family fave, the Happy Hooker
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- early a.m. kahlua & coffee
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- hearty breakfast – LOVE LOVE this place!
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- beautiful mountain location, just outside of Breckinridge
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- bride with a vision
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- details, details, details
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- view from above (2-story venue)
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- river to your left, mountains on your right
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- Memorial Day weekend, mark your Calendar! (no marathons allowed)
July 5 2013 (Pikes Pikes proposal)
I am in love with Montana. For other states I have admiration, respect, recognition, and even some affection. But with Montana, it is love. — John Steinbeck
Original plan was to run not one – but TWO marathons back-to-back in Montana. Roped Ash & Tom into helping with the long drive north & scheduled a family vacation ’round Yellowstone & Grand Teton National Parks. Unfortunately an unexpected health issue caused me to drop from both events – but didn’t deter us from enjoying a couple days in the Rockies. LOVE LOVE this place!
After yesterday’s late check-in, slept ‘til 8 before heading west to Virginia City — Montana’s first territorial capital. Grabbed breakfast & toured a few historical Old West landmarks – but oddly, no Bonanza memorabilia…wrong state. Who knew?
Bonanza was a NBC television western series that ran from 1959 to 1973. The show is set around the 1860s and it centers on the wealthy Cartwright family, who live in the area of Virginia City, Nevada.
Boot Hill — fave day stop. Hilltop cemetery where 4 guys hung in Jan 1864. Not a vacation without a local cemetery stroll. LOL>
last Montana tourist destination before Day 2 park hopping? the Grizzly & Wolf Discovery Center in West Yellowstone. Safest way to see a bear, a wolf, a couple of bald eagles too 🙂 LOVED watching these massive lumbering giants scavenge under rocks & trees for food hidden by rangers. Whenever in Yellowstone, gotta add this [stop] to your itinerary. Highly recommended.
Quick lunch, second day of geyser trekking – then headed to the falls, Yellowstone Falls.
Lower Yellowstone Falls is the largest volume waterfall in the Rocky Mountains of the United States…308 feet (94 m) high, or nearly twice as high as Niagara Falls.
Hiked both upper & lower falls – a true butt buster, so pace yourself. Jogged back from Lower Yellowstone to retrieve our car (parked at Upper, a mile away), then drive-returned to our digs in Ennis. Watched a family of deer ford a local river. FAAANNNTASTIC!
Gorgeous pink sunset, followed by late nite nachos & live music at the Gravel Bar. Livin’ B-I-G in Big Sky Country 🙂
Day 3 plans? Grand Teton Nat’l Park – seeing these peaks on horseback. #noregretlife
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- a little Old West history
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- fave stop of the morning
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- these boys swung in Jan 1864
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- bald eagles too!
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- Gibbons Falls
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- Artist Paint Pots
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- Emerald Spring (stinkiest geyser in the Park)
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- Steamboat Geyser
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- Upper Yellowstone Falls
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- the Grand Canyon of Yellowstone
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- Lower Yellowstone Falls
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- ‘Big Sky’ Montana sunset — SPECTACULAR!
Yellowstone: Part 2 – Yellowstone Falls
Last day in St Lou-ie. Grant’s Farm – Sis pulled out all the stops.
…one time owned by Ulysses S. Grant and prior to that, by the Dent family. It is now owned by the Busch family, who owned the Anheuser-Busch Brewing Company for many years until it was sold to InBev in 2008. Grant’s Farm has been an animal reserve for many years and is open to the public for free. The farm is home to such animals as buffalo, elephants, camels, kangaroos, donkeys, goats, peacocks, the iconic Budweiser Clydesdales and many more. Most of these animals can be seen by visitors on a tram tour of the deer park region of the park, while the Clydesdales are found in their nearby barn and pastures. The farm also contains a cabin called “Hardscrabble,” which was built by Ulysses S. Grant on another part of the property and later relocated to Grant’s Farm. It is the only remaining structure that was hand-built by a U.S. president prior to assuming office.
Started off the day with a tram ride thru Deer Park – where deer, buffalo & native birds roamed the grounds free. Additionally, snapped a sweet shot of Grant’s Cabin, early home to our 18th President Ulysses S. Grant.
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- Grant’s Cabin
Disembarked in Tier Garten, where for a $1 the family got to bottle-feed baby goats.
Price was certainly right – everyone joined in the fun. Highlight of the day 🙂 From there, things turned animal-exotic. Grant’s Farm houses elephants, kangaroo, zebra, camels, llamas, lemur & multiple varieties of birds. Much to see.
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- Ash
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- Tom
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- brother James & nephew Jack
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- Michaela
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- Maddie
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- Mom 🙂
The Bauernhof
German for “farmstead”, The Bauernhof was built in 1913. It surrounds a beautiful courtyard typical of a 19th century Bavarian farm, complete with stables, a carriage house, and offices and quarters for those who lived and worked there. Today, it houses the Busch family’s world-renowned carriage collection and stables.
Sis’ husband (a St Louis native) provided historical facts ’bout the Busch family, as we stable-walked by horses & carriages of days past — all started with German-immigrants Adolphus Busch & his father-in-law, Eberhard Anheuser in 1879.
‘Over 21s’ paused at the Budweiser Brewery trailer – chilled in the cooler & free sample imbibed 🙂
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- look who’s 23?
Finished? Heck no.
No Anheuser-Busch trip is complete without visiting the world famous Clydesdales. MASSIVE creatures — WOW!
The Clydesdale is a breed of draught horse derived from the farm horses of Clydesdale, Scotland, and named after that region. Often bay in color, they show significant white markings due to the presence of sabino genetics. The breed was originally used for agriculture and haulage, and is still used for draught purposes today. The Budweiser Clydesdales are some of the most famous Clydesdales, and other members of the breed are used as drum horses by the British Household Cavalry.
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- MASSIVE!
Rain started falling as we began our goodbyes. Michaela’s trip ended first, home on a 3pm flight to Connecticut. The rest of us however kept adventuring – day’s last stop: Fitz’s Bottling Company.
[while waiting for a table] Watched a line of black cherry soda being bottled. Crazy busy joint. My food memory? the Mt Everest Special – Fitz’s famous draft Root Beer topped with vanilla & chocolate ice cream PLUS whipped cream. H-U-G-E!
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- soda factory known for its root beer floats
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- the Mt Everest special
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- 4th of July holiday brew
Sadly all great vacations come to an end – but for Team Colorado, still one more show to go.
Landed in Denver at 9-ish. On the 45-minute drive home, saw no less than 10 firework displays – brightly colored explosions from both sides of the Interstate. No exaggeration…most every Foothills community was celebrating the 4th under clear Colorado skies.
Happy Independence Day, USA!
St Louis Reunion 2016
Grant’s Farm (St Louis 2016)
