Evergreen

Once a quiet mountain town 45 minutes from downtown Denver, today Evergreen is a tony community filled with upscale to extravagantly designed homes. The core of this mountain—where Colorzado Highway 74 and County Highway 73 meet—remains rustic in feel, however, and on warm-weather weekends is filled with tourists and Denverites escaping the city heat. Visitors browse the eclectic mix of shops and mingle with locals walking their dogs on the path, which circles Lake Evergreen. The annual multiday Evergreen Jazz Fest in July features musicians from around the country.