Need help with Denver/Rocky Mountain State Park Trip
 

My husband and I are planning a trip to Denver and Rocky Mountain State Park. We are wanting to do a lot of outdoor type things. We like to walk, run, and are wanting to start hiking. We are both in decent shape and love being outside. We will be driving but we won't have our bikes or anything like that. Not opposed to renting if someone knows good ways to do that. Here is the plan so far:

Thursday - get to Denver stay Thursday and Friday night. Would like to find a great park (Cheesman?) and do some running after the long drive. Good eating advice would be welcomed as well as entertainment.

Saturday - Tuesday - Drive to RMNP/Estes Park. I have found a lot of trails but would love to know which ones are the best and what the difficulty is. Is the Estes Park Aerial Tramway a good use of time? We have never camped and wondering if this is the best place to give it a shot. Do places like this rent camping equipment? Are there places to stay around there that are rustic, but not too challenging for those who don't know how to camp?(We are both in our 40's so we are young enough to learn, but old enough not to want to sleep on the ground and think that we can get up the next morning!)

Wednesday - start back home (Houston) Drive to Boulder

Thursday - Drive to Colorado Springs

Friday - Drive to Amarillo - stay at Palo Duro Canyon State Park

Saturday - Drive to Houston

We appreciate any advice we can get. Any ideas on places to stay, things to see, where to eat, and anything else is welcomed. We don't vacation much and when we do it is usually for business and those trips are all planned for us. Thank you in advance for being willing to share ideas!

We've driven from Houston to Colorado a few times, but I'm only going to be of limited help. Can't help with the camping or trails RMNP/Estes.

Suggest Guiseppe's in Colorado Springs for lunch/dinner. It's in the former Denver & Rio Grande RR Depot. Food was quite good and the atmosphere is interesting with lots of RR memorabilia.

If you have the time, Garden of the Gods is a nice visit as well as drive up to summit of Pikes Peak.

I suppose you're aware that the drives on Fri and Sat are going to be VERY long (about 9 and 10 hrs, respectively with decent traffic and no delays).

Not sure how flexible you are, but we ususally try to break up the trip with stop in Santa Fe. A little out of the way, but always worth it IMO.

Hope this is some help.

For running in Denver your best bet would be to stay near the Cherry Creek trail as it goes for miles in either direction and is a beautiful place to run,walk,bike,whatever. Any of Denver's downtown hotels would be fine. They range from the very expensive to more a moderate price range. Downtown Denver would also give you easy access to about any kind of entertainment you wanted as well as numerous restaurants.

As to the camping part of your question, it's been too long, so I'll let the more knowledgeable answer those questions. Suffice to say, with a few exceptions, I'm always a bit leery about recommendations regarding Estes Park. Renting bikes won't be a problem but camping equipment...I have no idea.

The Cherry Creek trail has a major detour about University and Spear. For you interests I would opt for downtown Denver and the Platte Valley trails would serve you interests just as well.

Years ago REI rented camping equipment -- assume they still do but you should check directly with them. Their flagship store at the confluences of the South Platte River and Cherry Creek. However, this may not be the time to learn. Camping in the mountains can have additional risks that you might not recognize. Also, you did not indicate the time frame for your trip. That can make a lot of difference.

Bike rentals are available there and elsewhere. We have about 500 miles of bike trails in the metro area. You should bring your bikes with you.

There are so many hiking trails of various levels that I suggest that you hit the Colorado section of the Tattered Cover book store in LoDo (Lower Downtown) and buy one of the many trail books that are available. Best has no meaning and difficult is relative. You are coming from Houston and even if you are in great shape you could have problems with altitude sickness so I would stick to trails in the foothills and avoid the higher mountain trails.

LoDo has a very wide range of restaurants and some of the other neighborhoods like Highlands, Gaylord, Cherry Creek have interesting places. Without a price range or preference for type of food, it is difficult to make a recommendation. The leading restaurant guide for the area is Gabby Gourmet. When getting the trail book you can check out her book.

Good luck -- Frank

Thanks for everyone's input. Will definitely take advice on running in foothills- dt Denver. Still looking to get someone advice on good place to stay 2-3 nites once we enter RMNP area. Also DFR4848 when you make drive from Houston do you primarily take hwy 287 or do you go another route based on going directly to Denver area from Houston, with possibly driving over to CO. Springs first. Any suggestion would help on best driving route and also RMNP info...place to stay, things to do. Thks again.

Have you ever done running etc at altitude? It can be quite different than what you might be used to - so take that into consideration. You might need a day or more to acclimate. I am assuming you are doing this in summer. Water, sunscreen are critical. Also, if you are going to be camping overnight, temps drop quickly once the sun sets here.

Hiking also has it's own considerations.

Have fun, but be smart, be prepared and be informed.

Deb

I forgot about the glitch ( construction) on the Cherry Creek trail as I usually don't get that far but as fmpden mentioned the Platte River trail continues from Cherry Creek at the Confluence.

There are only campsites available inside RMNP, and they are limited. You will need to book. If you want something other than a campsite, you'll have to stay in Estes Park.

I suggest you go to the RMNP website www.RMNP.com for information.

Just west of Denver is Red Rock Park, if there isn't a concert or something it would be a place to get a good work out with fantastic views. It is a natural outside amphitheater.

cjrey - if we want to drive straight through with only overnight stops and no diversions, we usually take 287, then north of Amarillo cut over to 87/64 to Raton and connect with I25. If we can take a couple of extra days, we prefer to take 287, then take I40 at Amarillo over to 285 to Santa Fe. Then I25 if we're going to be in the Denver area or north. If we're headed to the mountains west of Denver, we'll often take 285 from Santa Fe north through Colorado to I70 or wherever we're going. 285 isn't a spectacular drive scenery-wise, but prettier than I25 IMO. [Obviously you can do the reverse].

I cannot comment on the running. But, for camping with some frills, you might check out the YMCA of the Rockies. It is used for summer accommodations.
www.ymcarockies.org
It is used for fancy conferences and summer camp - all kinds of things.

dfr, thks for response. I'm looking to do trip to Denver in one day, so yes I was looking for possible way of getting on I-25 and where was best to cut over. Were leaving very early on thur-july 2nd and I think counting about 3 hrs for stops we can make it in about 16 hrs total, is that doable. I have kind of lead foot..suv toyota sequoya-v8. Were doing 10 days, so was looking @ doing Sante fe / Amarillo on way home maybe and any other stops that may be interesting. we have hotel- denver thur/ fri nite and Estes pk cabin lodge reserved for Sat - tue nite so starting Wed. till Sat. morning headed home is open for suggestions from you or anyone else on forum.
Thks again.

hearing quite a bit about CRESTTE Butte and mesa verde can someone give me insight as to where they are and points of interests. We have 7-8 days not counting from & back to Houston but trying not to cram to much so we can enjoy places that are planned....denver - 1-day, estes/rmnp - 3-days, boulder - 1 day, Co. Sprgs - 1-day... so we have 1-2 days open for suggestions.

Crested Butte is a very nice area (though we've only been in winter to go skiing). But it's an end destination, not a place you go through. It's at the end of a road about 35 mi. north of Gunnison, somewhat in the middle of the state. With your schedule, I'd pass on this trip.

Mesa Verde is a fascinating place with it's cliff dwellings and well worth a trip. It's in extreme southwest CO near Durango and the NM border. It's out of the way with the other places on your itinerary and you'll be spending a lot of time getting there and back. You'll have to decide whether you can squeeze it into your schedule. I think I'd leave it for another time and spend more time in places on your current list.

Mesa Verde NP is 3.5 hours from I 25, just north of Albuquerque{exit at Bernalillo, SR 550}. Add in 30 minutes to get to visitors center; then time for tours etc. 1/5 days here will work.

You could also go to Cahco Canyon, which is 2 hours from the same point on I25. Then drive in time. There are no scheduled tours so how long you spend is up to you.

Chaco and Mesa Verde are quite different, both awe inspiring.

If you can't do them this trip, do come back for them.

Deb

This is in response to your answer to my other post. This was our first time out there so it is just my observations/opinion. I did have a hard time trying to figure out the different hikes in RMNP also. We hiked in the Bear Lake area. I think you probably have to take a shuttle right outside that area during the summer because it gets so crowded parking is limited. We didn't have that option during the week the first part of June -- the parking lot at Alberta Falls always said full, but there were places to park. People come and go. The nice thing about the hikes beginning at Glacier Gorge trailhead (we took this to Alberta Falls) is that you can go to Alberta Falls (which was a great short hike) and if you want continue on. The trails at Bear Lake (walking around the lake was nice also) do the same. You can hike up to Nymph Lake (which was gradually, but steadily uphill) and continue on to Dream Lake and Emerald Lake if you want. You can also access the Alberta Falls hike at Bear Lake (it's only slightly longer there). I would do these hikes first and see what other ones you want to do after. They do start at a high elevation and it will give you a better idea of what they mean by "strenuous" and "easy" and what you feel capable of doing. We've found in different parks that strenuous sometimes means that you are walking on rocks and across tree limbs, not necessarily that it is steep elevation.

As far as going to Grand Lake, you should definitely travel over Trail Ridge Road. Grand Lake is one of a couple of lakes over there that are very pretty to see, but appear to be a destination for fishing, boating, etc. in themselves. It is about 5 minutes outside of the west entrance to RMNP so if you want to see it, it wouldn't take you long to get there. I know some people we met said they never went past the Alpine Visitor Center on TRR and some others were going to the west side to try to see moose (which apparently is the only place to see them). We were coming up from the southwest so it was a good option for us to stay there the first night. I probably would have travelled over to see it anyway.

You were asking about places to stay. We don't camp so I can't help you there, but there were plenty of what appeared to be lodges and cabins right outside the park entrance on 34 and the setting there is very similar to being right in the park.

http://www.rmnpforums.com/forums/index.php?act=idx

Here's another great forum site I found when I was headed out there last year. Very good recent reviews of lots of things including trails and camp sites.

If you go back by way of Santa Fe, not far from there is Bandelier NM which has neat ancient dwellings carved into the side of the mountain (really hardened volcanic ash). These are very interesting and there is a neat undeveloped area called Tsankawi which is part of the park but about 5 miles closer to Santa Fe. It is less developed but has a nice trail up onto a hill that you can walk in grooves carved into the hill over years of hiking. There are some pictures of our trip there on www.flickr.com/photos/emalloy2009/sets in the 2008 set.

My family has vacationed in Estes Park / RMNP for years. I recommend the Bear Lake trailhead. Hike to the Loch and Dream Lake. It is a relatively easy day hike. If you are ambitious continue the trail up to Sky Pond. The trail from Bear Lake to Dream Lake is absolutely beautiful. Also, drive up the old fall river road to the alpine visitors center. (old fall river road is not open until July4th). We have not camped so I have no info, but we have stayed multiple times at the Castle Mountain Lodge located along hwy.34. Castle Mountain Lodge has real nice cabins/cottages. They also have a few motel rooms. The property is located about half way between Estes Park and RMNP entrance. Good Luck, you will have a great time. RMNP is a wonderful place to visit!!

Ok we are slowly but surely getting our itenerary in order. Thks to everyone's help. So far we get to Co Springs on 7/2, arrive denver 7/3 late afternoon, drive to estes/rmnp arrive early eve sat.--- doing driving into rmnp, lots of hiking, site seeing--staying thru wed. nite, heading to boulder thursday-- sleep over in boulder, drive fri to great sand dunes and visit. Any opinions are appreciated. Is staying 5 nites in estes/ rmnp too long of stay for area. Either way wea re e xcited about our upcoming trip.

IMO if you are planning on doing lots of hiking, 4 full days (which is what I figure you will have)is not too long to stay. I still would start with the Bear Lake hikes and see how you like them, then ask the rangers (plenty of them at Bear Lake trailhead) or at the visitor centers about the other ones they would suggest. We went by Longs Peak trailhead and the parking lot was packed. (a little longer than we wanted, but we have hiked up to mountain passes before and there is nothing like it) Natural Born Hikers have detailed descriptions of a couple of longer trails in RMNP.
http://www.naturalbornhikers.com/Lon.../longspeak.htm

Have fun and let us know how your trip turns out.

This one describes the trail that starts at Bear Lake, past Nymph Lake etc.

http://www.naturalbornhikers.com/And...ewsGlacier.htm

Camping - try it out at home for the first time, not on this trip. It's much easier to figure out what you're doing on a quick overnighter rather than on an extended vacation.

Estes Park is pretty busy on the 4th of July. I would suggest you try to get there before early evening, especially if you want to settle in and go see the fireworks.

Don't bother with a guidebook for RMNP trails. The park's website, newspaper and rangers have enough info to last you 4 days. If you get there and decide you want/need a guidebook after a couple days, the visitor centers have some for sale.

You can pick up the newspaper at any entrance station. The park website has a list of most trails in the park. Mileage listed in one-way. Trails are pretty well marked so getting lost takes some effort. http://www.nps.gov/romo/planyourvisi...ing_trails.htm

As beginning hikers, you're best off sticking with the easy/moderate trails until you figure out your fitness level at altitude. A good first hike is to Emerald Lake, starting at Bear Lake then passing Nymph and Dream. You can always abort and head back before Emerald if it's too much. Also starting at Bear Lake, you can hike to Bierstadt (some uphill but mostly downhill).

The hike to Mills Lake and/or the Loch is a must do. You *could* combine that with Lake Haiyaha and make a long loop, passing Dream/Nymph and ending at Bear Lake but it makes for a long hike.

Another long loop starts at Bear Lake and ends at the Fern Lake trailhead, passing by Odessa and Fern Lake on the way. I believe it's about 8-9 miles total and is all downhill less than halfway in - about the time you spot Odessa in the distance.

Absolutely drive Old Fall River Road and go over to the west side. On the way back to Estes Park (on Trail Ridge Road) stop at Rock Cut and hike to the Toll Memorial. The west side has been somewhat decimated by pine beetle damage but a hike along the Colorado River or to Big Meadows might be OK.

The hikes on the west side tend to be longer with less scenic views than the east side. Likewise, the Wild Basin area has less bang for the buck than the Glacier Gorge/Bear Lake area, but it would be quieter down there. Wild Basin would probably be a good place to hike on your way to Boulder on Thursday. You could also pick a trail in the Indian Peaks Wilderness Area that day.

Always, plan your day to get an early start. That will help you beat the crowds and hopefully the afternoon thunderstorms. Do not plan on hiking above treeline in the afternoon unless you want to take your chances with lightning, and take some sort of rain gear with you. The best part of Trail Ridge Road is above treeline, so if the weather sucks come back in the morning and see it when the skies are clear.

I would suggest using hiking poles. They are most helpful in taking some of the stress off your knees on downhill sections. The Warming House in Estes rents them (I think). http://www.warminghouse.com/

Search around the park website for info. Check out the park maps, newspaper, shuttle routes and times, visitor center locations and hours, etc. http://www.nps.gov/romo/index.htm

We had lunch in Denver at a great Middle Eastern place on Grant and Colfax, across the street from the state capitol. It's called Shish Kebab Grill or Grant Street Kebabs or something like that; unfortunately, I can't remember the exact name, but their food is outstanding and reasonably priced.

Lee Ann

Maj & WhereAreWe great info, it is really appreciated, it gives us a great starting plan...definitely start hike @ Bear lake Sun a.m., after arriving and settling in sat afternoon.

WhereAreWe,
Lastly was wondering if we were to drive up to TRR & around TO Grand Lake, to get back to Estes Pk, do you have to go back same way or can you keep driving South from Grand Lk to get back to home base- Estes and how long does it take to get to grand lake if you started at RMNP entrance.
We thank everyone again for helping make our trip the best possible.

does anyone have suggestion for hotel/lodging in Boulder
and place to stay near great sand dunes,
thks

cjrey - what type of accommodation are you looking for in Boulder? We've always had people stay at the Quality Inn ( http://www.qualityinn.com/hotel-boul...?promo=gglocal ) as it's affordable, comfortable, includes breakfast and free internet and is in a really convenient location. If you're looking for something more upscale\historical the Boulderado ( http://www.boulderado.com/ )is very nice. The Bradley Boulder Inn is meant to be lovely - http://www.thebradleyboulder.com/

hez, doesn't have to be anything special- although we're both picky on cleaniness. After being in estes/rmnp for 5 nites - 4 days, were just looking for an easy day of visiting Boulder, after drinking water water water probably want something stronger/ heavier, understand they have some nice restaurant/ bars.IS Quality Inn or Bradley boulder in vicinity of dt where we could walk around and get to most places--shops, bars, eats ? Thks for suggestions.

The Bradley Boulder is much fancier than Quality Inn and the location is better being right behind Pearl Street. Quality Inn will be between $100-$140 where Bradley Boulder is $195-$225. Quality Inn is about 5 or 6 blocks. My 75+ inn-laws have stayed at Quality Inn and walked all around without any problems. In fact we've had lots of people stay there and everyone thought it was good so we've never really considered putting anyone anywhere else.

If I was looking for somewhere for a nice, romantic weekend I would choose the Bradley though.

I just noticed this thread; I live in the Denver area, and have hiked and run a lot in the area. I would suggest, honestly, that you skip Denver, and spend more time in Boulder and the mountains. We've spent several "grownup weekends" in Boulder - amazing how far somehow feels when you want to take a break from your usual life.

The Bradley Boulder is a good place to stay. Boulder is a fun little town, with a huge amount of restaurants and outdoor activities; it's a great town to walk around in. My favorite place to run there is the path along Boulder Creek - it goes for miles. There are a number of local hiking trails; not found so much in guidebooks, but they make for great day hikes. (Boulderites use them for the daily exercise!) Because Boulder is in the foothills, those day hikes can be challenging, and some provide fabulous views, especially north to RMNP.

I'm not a big fan of RMNP, primarily because we have many other places we can visit in the mountains that have fewer people, and to which we can hike with our dog. If you get tired of the crowds in RMNP, there are many great hikes just outside the park, too. There used to be a ranger station in Estes Park; I remember getting info about those outside-the-park hikes there.

You've already gotten great advice about hiking and thunderstorms. It's so dry here, always carry water, use sunscreen, and enjoy!

lexma, thanks for info., we actually made reservations for Bradley Boulder earlier today..so good to hear you reccommended it.Boulder does sound like a fun town, even though both of us are in our 40's we like to get out and socialize, shop, and being able to walk to many places is very appealing to us. We live in Suburbs of Houston, Tx so we cant walk anywhere, only when we take golden retrievers for walks and run..which we do often, so that will be nice. Our first day is in Denver..need to adjust to altitude so we'll take it easy..any suggestions for Denver ?..staying @ Warwick downtown. Thanks again for input.

You sound like me - in my 40s, live in the suburbs where we have great biking/running paths, but can't walk to many places. I only have one Golden, though (but he definitely goes running with me!).

We actually stayed at the Bradley Boulder Inn to celebrate our 25th anniversary (we had to stay close because our holdest was starting junior high the following day, so we wanted to be home for that). You'll like it, and it's very convenient.

I can't help a huge amount with Denver. Even though I used to work downtown, any place we went out for dinner was either in Boulder or places not within walking distance of downtown. In Denver, I like Mizuna a lot, and its sister restaurant, Luca d'Italia. There's another sister restaurant on Larimer (a downtown street) that's supposed to be good, Osteria Marco. Larimer has other nice restaurants and shops. Another place to eat, which was me and my friends' favorite lunch spot, is Earl's, it would be good for dinner too. Rock Bottom Brewery has outdoor seating, though not really a view of anything but the street. Those are all west of your hotel, off the 16th street mall. There are a bunch of little restaurants east of your hotel; the hotel should be able to tell you more about them - I've seen them when driving through the area, but never stopped at most of them. Mizuna and Luca d'Italia are about a 10-block walk from your hotel.

I'm a litte too dismissive, probably, of Denver's attractions. I view Denver as a great lifestyle place to live with lots of access to outdoor activities, but not so good for cultural activities (for a point of reference, we lived in downtown Chicago and Boston before we moved here, so my viewpoint is a bit skewed). The new modern museum is striking architecturally, but I haven't been, so I don't know much about the collection. The Museum of Nature and Science is about average for a city of Denver's size.

You may not need to adjust much to the Denver altitude - some people do, some don't. My parents have never had a problem with that altitude; they don't start to feel it until we get up to Summit County (9,000+ feet).

we have notated the restaurants for Denver, wife loves Italian so she tahnks you.

cjrey, I lived in Denver for 13 years until about 18 mos ago.
you've already made some great choices! you're very smart to stop in denver first and adjust to the altitude. most people do feel it to some degree. i'll echo that the key is to drink tons of water.
Warwick's a decent choice as it's central. someone recommended Cherry Creek trail & Confluence Park and I'd wholeheartedly agree. 1 of the cool things about denver is that you don't have to run around in circles in a park - the trails go all over the place. that said, city park is a nice place to run & it's just east of your hotel. washington park is nicer but is further. just ask at your hotel the quickest way to the cherry creek trail. if you go south/east it takes you to the cherry creek neighborhood which has lots of great shops & restaurants. if you go north/west it will take you thru the edge of downtown, near larimer square (more cute shops & restaurants) to the confluence with the platte river. that neighborhood has seen some cool development lately and it's where the flagship REI store is that was mentioned above. Livestrong has some good routes at http://www.run.com/city.asp?dest=Denver+CO.
Agree with mizuna & luca d'italia as great restaurant recos. better, IMHO, is Barolo Grill - http://www.barologrilldenver.com/. northern italian, and they take the staff it italy every year (in fact check to make sure it's open when you're there) to visit the places where their wine, cheese, truffles etc come from. had 1 of the best breakfasts of my life when back visiting this winter at snooze - http://www.snoozeeatery.com/ - not far from your hotel. if you feel adventurous, there are several good ethiopian places along east colfax. and there's a fun new place within walking distance called cheeky monk - a belgian beer cafe. there's a great stretch of cute places along east 17th avenue you can walk to. happy to make other suggestions if you tell me what kind of food you like.
on to estes - i agree with whoever said don't try camping the 1st time in the mountains. it can just be dicey and in any case the campground are crowded over the holiday. better option that might give you a little feel of roughing it is to rent a cabin. i've never done so can't recommend any but there are tons to choose from. i've never had a memorable (in a good way) meal in estes so will pass on that. i have to agree that the trails around the bear lake area in RMNP will be pretty crowded, but beautiful nonetheless. i would also stress that the park is huge & if you go on monday instead of sunday crowds drop dramatically, and if you go to a less popular trailhead that's true too. absolutely recommend going to the ranger station at the entrance on sunday to ask for recommendations. there are some beautiful trails on the east side where you hardly see other hikers. ask about bridal veil falls, sandbeach lake, and lumpy ridge. i don't think 4 days is too much because you'll probably kill the better part of a day with your drive over TRR. might be wise to take a picnic lunch with you. the snack bar at the visitors center at the top is horrible. the souvenir shop there is quite lovely, and the whole place is worth a visit for its great views and frequent wildlife sitings. there's a cool and short hike just east of this visitors center near the peak of the road, think it's just called the tundra trail. please note that the tundra is a very fragile environment and don't go off trail or feed the animals (i'll stop preaching but this is a real sore point with me!).
an important reminder for hiking up here is to go early. your goal should be to be back below treeline (or in your car) by 1pm to avoid the inevitable thunderstorms that roll in, try to find a few hikers to spear with lightning bolts & quickly roll on to nebraska. no matter how nice it seems in estes, take a rain jacket, plenty of water & sunscreen (you'll be shocked how intense the sun is up there), & some extra snacks in case you get stuck somewhere for awhile.
you don't want to try going all the way across the park & back on the south side if you're heading to boulder next. pretty awesome route but lots of driving (you have to go all the way back down to I70). if you have a cruddy weather day & have nothing else to do though, go for it. if by chance you end up in winter park (way better food options than grand lake) for dinner, eat at the Backcountry Grill & tell Bob or Nancy (owners, he's almost always there) that Monica says hi.
Boulder - some fabulous restaurants. Frasca has won lots of national awards; it's run by 2 guys who worked at the French Laundry in Napa. The Kitchen is darn near as good and just a little cheaper. Very focused on local/organic sources, and also has a brunch to die for (the toffee french toast will make you swoon). Both of these have terrific wine lists too; Kitchen even has a comfy wine bar upstairs where they serve some of their menu too. There's another place sort of kitty-corner to the west across Pearl Street with a fun outdoor patio. Name & menu changed since I left but it will be obvious what I'm talking about. Best use is an afternoon drink on the patio:) There are some great trails right on the edge of town, one right through town along the creek, and lovely wandering along the Pearl Street Mall. Sounds like you're pretty active so I'd recommend checking out the Title 9 and Outdoor Divas stores for great women's activewear. Divas has clearance in the basement. Nothing's very cheap in either place but they have great stuff.
I think that's all I've got right now. Didn't spend too much time in COSprings because it was a PIA (really congested). Garden of the Gods is great but doesn't take long to do. The Broadmoor is a beautiful hotel/resort. Manitou Springs is a cute little place. I've spent very little time at Sand Dunes. Idea of swinging thru Taos/SantaFe is tempting but that's cramming a lot into too short a time. Next trip!
Feel free to ping me if this raises more questions. Have fun!!

sorry cjrey, just realized you mentioned a wife so she's the active woman not you! send HER to Title 9 & Outdoor Divas. btw, both have stores in the Cherry Creek North part of Denver too.

you could drive from Denver to Grand Lake(2h), stopping in Winter Park for dinner. Next morning hike to LuLu City. It's about 3.7 miles each way, but it's mostly very level and easy and goes along the Colorado River. You don't need to go the whole way as there really isn't much left at LuLu city itself, and it's the end of the trail where it gets more hilly. I've seen wildlife (deer, elk, marmots etc) every time on this trail. I think it's a nice intro to the park as it's easy and not terribly crowded, at least in the morning. From there, head over Trail Ridge Road and then down into Estes Park, stopping at all the lookouts etc.

This keeps you away from the busier parts of the park on Sunday, eases you in - and means you don't end up backtracking. I quite like the drive from Denver to Winter Park (through Berthoud Pass) and then on to Grand Lake as well. We saw a bear in Winter Park last time we had dinner there. Very exciting!

When you leave Estes Park you then head straight to Boulder without retracing your steps. Here's a map...

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=d&sour...24&ie=UTF8&z=9

hez & colomonica,
thanks to both for all the help & suggestions, my w wife & I are both responding so dont get too confused.
I like hez idea of getting to estes by way of winter pk/ grand lake, will give you schedule and see if you think doable otherwise was going to dr up i-25 to hwy 34 so not to repeat boulder hwy which we will be coming to from estes,so if you dont mind going to give schedule if you want to comment or suggest particular activity relative to location. KEEPING in mind we have booked all nights for reservations except last nite before we head back to Houston, Tx. Didnt want too mess with reser. being busy time we are going, here it goes :
day 1- thur 07/02 - drive to denver -arrive late eve-warwick
day 2 - fri 7/3 - spend it denver - eve - warwick
day 3 - Sat 7/4 - head to rmnp/estes pk - stone brook cabin -estes pk -3 nites
day 4 - Sun- estes/rmnp - hiking, sightseeing, etc
day 5 - Mon - estes/rmnp - more hiking early, afternoon open
day 6 -- Tue - change cabins to Woodlands Inn - estes pk
day 7 - Wed - go rafting @ wanderlist - just N. of ft collins
back to cabin, last eve. in estes pk area.
Day 8 - Thur - head to Boulder early . a.m. - stay Bradley Boulder.
day 9 - possibly looking to stay most of day in Boulder instead of trying to fit in Co. Springs/ sand dunes. Evening start dr. south to be closer to Houston for very early Sat
a.m. drive home....
We are very much looking forward to our trip and can't thank everyone enough for all the suggestions. We have a daughter starting her freshman yr @ Univ of Tx in August so we thought we better go while we can,. Come to think of it, would be good excuse to drive to Boulder when UT & CO. play there in coming yrs.

As long as you leave early enough on Saturday you'll be fine going through Winter Park. I've done it on a day trip the whole way around - ie Boulder, Estes Park, 2 hikes in RMNP, Grand Lake, Winter Park and back to Boulder via I70/CO96 through Golden.

If you're leaving Estes Park early a.m. then try to hold out to have breakfast at Lucille's ( http://www.luciles.com/ )in Boulder. It's been the #1 breakfast place forever - and it is fabulous!

You can absolutely do this. I do love the drive through WP over Berthoud Pass! We used to have a 2nd home in WP. It's not very charming as towns go, but the scenery's lovely.
I vote in favor of staying in Boulder an extra day & skipping the Springs/Dunes.
I don't think anyone mentioned this either - plan on at least one day to roam into RMNP either early morning or dusk. That's when the most wildlife are about. You should at least be able to see some elk, & maybe moose or bighorn sheep.

Hez.... going to take your suggestion and leave early Friday morning from for towards Estes/rmnp by going route of Winter Pk & Grand Lake. Should have time to make stops and sightsee since check in is not till mid-afternoon @ cabin. Also have been told about Lucille's and will definitely take your advice if not the Thursday we head to Boulder for sure Friday a.m., hopefully we will be able to get in. Many thanks again.

colomonica;
leaning too staying fri eve. in Boulder. We already ruled out dunes/ co. sprgs.....only question is do we hang out in Boulder all day w/o rm. based on 12:00 checkout and then towards eve. start our drive towards Houston. Starting our trip we are driving Hou to Denver -one day- total about 16 hrs with 3 short stops. Boulder would add another 45-60 mins ? coming home I believe. That would be only concern, definitely want to make it home late sat.
Either way we plan on spending majority of 2 days in Boulder with or w/o room 2nd day. LAST question is town of Raton big enough where it has some kind hotels/ motel, place looking at making it to Friday evening to start Sat. drive to suburbs of Houston. Thks for advice on wildlife will definitely do that.