Run, Hike, Drink Beer- Repeat

I just had the most incredible trip to Boulder, Colorado to visit my lovely friend Lydia! I spent 4 wonderful days running, hiking, and drinking local craft beer. Lets start with my favorite part first….

Running

Boulder, situated in the foot hills of the Rocky Mountains, has an incredible running and biking scene. It seems like virtually everyone rides or runs on a daily basis. There are running trails through the city along paths and lots more a stone’s throw outside of the town on nice, wide, gravel trails at the base of the mountains. It was a little tough doing my first run at the mile-high elevation, but I definitely eased into it and enjoyed them more each day of the trip. The scenery didn’t hurt either, I got to stare at the flat-iron mountains, watch ground hogs scurry around, and admire the wildflowers. I loved how accesible the trails were and it seemed like there were a lot of them. I am excited to go back and explore more of the Boulder running routes.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Hiking

I also did a lot of hiking while in Boulder. After a run and some breakfast, Lydia and I would set out to explore. We went to Rocky Mountain National Park one day and drove along the famous trail ridge road, the highest paved road in the country? world? Whatever, it was over two miles above sea level in the Rocky Mountains and offered amazing views and some scary, hair-raising twists and turns. We did some hiking up there and marveled at the majestic peaks. We also saw a lot of marmots, brown rodent animals. In addition to Rocky Mountain, we did some wonderful hiking right in the Boulder area. We explored some trails in Eldorado Canyon and summited Mount Sanitas. I was so excited about how close and plentiful the hiking trails were. They offered some beautiful scenery and glimpses of wildlife.

Beer Drinking

Then after a long day of running and hiking, we retired to a local brew pub (of which there are many). We visited Mountain Sun, Avery, Upslope, and Oskar Blue. Each place had a unique, inventive, and plentiful list of craft brews that tantalized my tastebuds. Beers of note were a Beligian Pale Ale from Upslope and XXX IPA from Mountain Sun. In addition to the delicious beers, I really enjoyed the culture of the brew pubs. It seemed like many Boulderites really appreciated good beer. It was almost a fine dining appreciation, with people savoring their brews and appreciating beer on a whole ‘nother level. As Lydia said, “Good beer is nourishing to the soul.” I wholly agree 🙂

I had such a wonderful time in Boulder, I’d like to consider moving there some day. The running and beer culture were enough to make me want to call Boulder home.