From Denver to Boulder and back again

Our day started around 5:30 this morning, because we really wanted to visit the Mint, and we had heard that you pretty much had to be in line by 6:30 to have any realistic chance of getting tickets for any of the day's free tours. As luck would have it, we did get tickets for the 8:00 tour, and by the time we were done around 9, the ticket office only had a few more tickets available for the last tour of the day, which was to start at 3:30. It was a fascinating tour and a nice complement to our recent tour of the Bureau of Engraving and Printing in Ft. Worth.

Early birds at the Denver Mint

In order to make the idea of getting up so early more palatable to the kids, we promised them we would take them out for breakfast. And we made good on that after the tour by taking them over to Dozens.

Dozens

Most important meal of the day

After breakfast, we drove over to Boulder to take a tour of the Celestial Seasonings tea factory. We were able to go out on the factory floor and get very close to all the machinery, which was really interesting to see. We also thoroughly enjoyed the tasting room! But the best part of the tour was the smell! Heavenly fragrances wafted up from every corner of the property, both inside and outside.

Celestial Seasonings

Clay with the iconic Sleepytime Bear

Enjoying a cozy seat

The tasting room

When we were finally able to pull ourselves away, we drove over to the Scott Carpenter Park, so the boys could burn off some energy on the playground, while the rest of us either napped or just relaxed and enjoyed the beautiful scenery.

Having a blast at the park

View of The Flatirons from Scott Carpenter Park

Finally, we headed back over to Denver for an early birthday celebration for Ruth, which started with dinner at The Populist and ended with rolled ice cream from Chaos and Cream. We also managed to toast National Wine Day in the process. It was a full and fun day, and we loved every minute!

Dinner at The Populist

Seared Scallops

Cheers to National Wine Day!

Rolled ice cream for the birthday girl

Another fun day in Denver

We spent another fun day in Denver, which started with a tour of the capitol building. It is a beautiful building, and we enjoyed learning about its history along with some of the history of Colorado. One interesting thing about the building was that they used copious amounts of Colorado rose onyx in the interior construction. Unfortunately, they used all of it, so now they are unable to make repairs to those parts of the building made of the material, without tearing it out and starting over with something else, which would then, of course, mean the complete loss of this beautiful stone.

Rose Onyx in the capitol building

The beautiful dome of the capitol

The senate chamber

The house chamber

View of snow-covered Mt. Evans from the capitol dome observation deck

A mile high on the capitol steps

After a picnic on the capitol lawn, we headed to the former home of "The Unsinkable Molly Brown" of Titanic fame. Interestingly, she was never once called Molly during her life. That moniker was given to her when the Broadway show came out, because it was easier to say than Margaret, and it just stuck. Her home was lovely, and we enjoyed learning about the life of this firecracker of a woman.

Margaret ("Molly") and J.J. Brown's home

The boys were very excited about the polar bear rug

I thought the staircase in the Brown's house was gorgeous

Our final stop of the day was the History Colorado Center, where we only made it to one exhibit, because that one was so fun we didn't want to leave it. It was set up like an old 1920s era town in the Colorado plains. It was very interactive, with a little school, a store, a barn, and a farm house, and we all thoroughly enjoyed it.

Practicing Morse Code

Coming down from the hayloft

Joy riding

Running the store

One of our favorite activities was putting ourselves in the school yearbook

A day in Denver

We had the opportunity to do some exploring in Denver today. We started with the city's free walking tour, which was very interesting and informative. Plus, we got in some exercise and Vitamin D.

The walking tour started just across from the capitol

The city is doing an environmental awareness project,
and they have painted many of the tree trunks throughout the city blue. I will say, it certainly does cause you to be aware of the trees.

Union Station

The tour ended at Coors Field, home of the Colorado Rockies

After the tour, we stopped for lunch at Wynkoop Brewing Company, Denver's oldest Craft brewery. The building is beautiful. The food is delicious. And, the games are abundant.

Clay and Knuckles, Wynkoop's greeter

The old Wynkoop bar

The boys made the most of the pool and shuffleboard tables

Wynkoop flight

Later, we headed over to The Denver Museum of Nature and Science. We are suckers for science museum, and this one was wonderful.

A little moose

I do not want to get into hand-to-hand
combat with the bear who owns this paw!

Learning about sugar content in breakfast cereals

The pack

When the museum closed, we took an Uber back to our RV park, gathered up all the laundry, and ate pizza and calzones at Mannie and Bo's while we waited on the washing and drying to finish at the laundromat. Denver is a fun city, and we had fun seeing some of the highlights today.

Calzones at Mannie and Bo's

Beer, Bob's, Bill, and a Big Boo-boo

We made the short drive to Colorado this morning, and our first stop was Golden, home of the Coors Brewery, which is the largest single-site brewery in the world. It was fascinating to behold the massive manufacturing facility and to see some of the machinery at work. It was a family-friendly tour, with age-appropriate samples at the end.

Coors Brewery

The malting room was a feast for the senses

One of the brewery's science labs

Watching 12 and 18-packs coming off the line

Cheers!

After the tour, we grabbed a late but delicious lunch at Bob's Atomic Burger, a local burger joint occupying the back end of a liquor store.

Beating a path to Bob's

Nothing but delicious

From there, we headed up to Lookout Mountain, the final resting place of Buffalo Bill Cody and home to a museum honoring his life's work. It is also a lovely perch from which to view Denver and the surrounding area.

The graves of Buffalo Bills and his wife

Buffalo Bill and Annie Oakley

Cowboy Clay rides again

Weston tries his hand at roping

A teepee for two

View of Denver from lookout Mountain

Well, I had this post all typed out and ready to publish, thinking all our adventures we're over for the day. But then Weston came back from the shower, with a story of slippage and a major gash in his hand. We quickly determined that it was going to require more than a Band-aid, so Jeff called an Uber and took Weston to the nearest urgent care facility, where he received four stitches. Now, I think our adventures are truly over for the day.

He survived and will have the scar to prove it