A Day In Colorado Springs

If you want to explore Colorado Springs and time is a big constraint, here is the best itinerary to cover famous places of #coloradosprings in a day.

Colorado Springs is a beautiful place, center point to many famous attractions. We spent whole day there and it was just brilliant.

Points Covered :-

1. Pikes Peak
2. Seven Falls
3. Garden Of The Gods

Above mentioned point are the major points of CS. We stayed at Quality Inn & Suites, Garden of the Gods which was very close to Garden Of The Gods, as mentioned in property name itself. We decided to cover it at the last due to its proximity from the hotel. Area near hotel is surrounded by nice restaurants.

We left early for #pikespeak , highest summit of southern front range of Rocky Mountains which was just 1 hour drive away from the hotel. We drove through Pikes peak highway – 19 miles drive with elevation of 14,115 feet. This drive was one of the steepest among all our previous trips and full of breathtaking views. Temperature completely flipped as we moved closer to the top, thus we had to wear hats, gloves and jackets (in May). Luckily we had all such stuff with us (some learnings from past road trip experiences). It was really fun to wear winter clothes in Summer and to watch skaters and ice everywhere in the surroundings. Once we reached at the shuttle point, from where only shuttles are allowed due to narrow and steep road. We parked our car and waited for our turn (frequency is too slow) close to 25 mins, lady driver told many facts about the area. At the top, it was just beautiful, whole city can be viewed from there and clouds were almost touchable. There is a railway service for the point which was under renovation, that could have been good experience as well. There was a restaurant and visitor center which was a savior in that cold, it's unbelievable they were selling hot coffee, donuts, french-fries and many other fresh stuff. After spending quality time there, we returned to our car through shuttle and drove to our next destination. We were advised to drive in low gears (manual mode) so as not to damage the vehicle.

Activities to Do :-

1. Biking
2. Hiking
3. Railway Tour
4. Shuttle Tour
5. Drive
6. Skating

Next place on our list was #sevenfalls which was also close to our Hotel so we drove back for close to 1 hour. It's the only natural waterfall of Colorado to be listed in National Geographic's list of international waterfalls. It’s a privately owned attraction, opened to public since 1880, formed naturally in attractive South Cheyenne Canyon. We left for the Norris Penrose Event Center in the morning, our pickup point for the park. They don’t have parking space (only bike parking) at the park, so complimentary shuttle services are provided to the tourists from Norris Penrose Event Center. We reached at Norris Center which was bit difficult to find (poor GPS), parked our car in parking lot and waited for the shuttle. There was a long queue of tourists, all waiting for the shuttle. When the shuttle arrived, it got full soon and we were still behind in the queue (more wait, No please !). To our luck, somehow two seats were still unoccupied and people before us were in big groups so we were asked to on-board.

Park is about 4 miles from the Norris Center, so it didn’t take much time to reach there. At the entrance, again there was a long queue for tickets (wished this could have been done in center itself) in which we spent close to 1.5 hour (cap is recommended, there is no shade). Ticket price is 16$ per adult and they also have Tram facility (costing 2$ per adult) to reach the Fall which is about 1 mile walk from there. We wanted to opt for Tram after standing for so long, but didn’t have patience to be in another line for it(not to talk about their frequency ) ,so we decided to walk. Walk was actually a good option, as the place is surrounded by beautiful rock formations and creative structures giving opportunity for photography. We reached at the fall after taking enough time in the observation of surrounding. Seven Falls ,as name suggests , is a water stream falling down from height of 181 feet, forming 7 waterfalls, each with it’s unique name. To watch the falls from close, one has to climb the staircase having 224 stairs. Those who don’t want to or can’t climb the stairs, have the option to watch the fall from an observatory just opposite to the Falls. There are 2 trails, once you reach at the top. Beside watching the fall from top, hiking is a good option. We hiked a trail for few minutes ( didn’t complete it, so as to return on time ) and then returned to the view point.

We decided to head back to our hotel and before that checked the gift shop, which was actually pricey, also didn’t find anything attractive either. We bought two ice-creams from there and started walking (1 mile) towards the entrance. Queues were not yet done with us, now one more long queue for the shuttle. We waited in the queue for long and were very much tired. After 2 shuttles, our turn came and we were like dead in the bus. Shuttle dropped us at the Norris center and we drove back to our hotel. 

Points to Consider :-

1. Park is open all days except Tuesday and Wednesday.
2. Be prepared for long, long queues.
3. No parking at the park, except bikes.
4. Shuttle is the only option, available from Norris center.
5. Keep in mind, more time would be invested due to lines for shuttles, tickets and trams.
6. Bring water

Activities to do :-

1. Hiking trails
2. Walking
3. Zip-lining (yes, it’s available, but at our time it was closed due to some reasons)
4. Dining

Next and last point was #gardenofthegods , as the name suggests, it is something you can’t miss, c’mon it’s GODS’ garden. As history goes, initially it used to be called as “Red Rock Corral”, but later on renamed to “Garden of the God” due to its wonderful rock formations. we explored whole garden by ourselves, without guide. There are various formations , each having unique name, unique structure, that will wonder you. Structures are made up of limestone, sandstone and conglomerate and are the results of the uplift of Rocky Mountains and Pikes Peak.

Park entry is free, we firstly went to Visitor Center, gathered information about the recreational activities and available tours. They have Segway tour, bus tour, rock climbing, mountain biking and few other activities. At that time in evening, nothing was available so we just visited the park.

What to expect in Visitor Center :-

• Booking for personal or group tours at the counter
• Information about the park, operational hours, it’s history and other facts
• Short movie on the history of park, every 20 mins
• Nice cafeteria with great view of park
• Exhibit for Geology, Plants, Wildlife and Native Americans
• Gift Shop

There are nearly 20 miles of trails, it’s kind of paradise for the hikers. We also spotted cyclists and skaters in the park. Rock-climbing is also a popular activity here, but we couldn’t do that due to lack of time. Trust me, it’s a heaven for photographers and nature- lovers. Pikes Peak can also be viewed from the park, it was amazing to see the peak from the park which we covered just in morning.

Activities to do :-

1. Hiking
2. Cycling
3. Skating
4. Rock-Climbing
5. Segway
6. Photography

After spending considerable amount of time, we returned to our hotel. It was a great experience, we were totally in lap of nature.

Tips :-

• Seven Falls can be covered at the last, since they illuminate it with lights in night, which is another experience. Also it will save some time for Garden Of The Gods.
• Other famous attractions -> The Incline, Manitou Cliff Dwellings and Cave of the Winds Mountain Park 

Colorado Springs is highly recommended destination, 1 or 2 days are enough to cover its beauty.

Happy Reading ! Keep Traveling !!!

To Know more about Colorado, visit :- Harpiytravel