Colorado
Celebrate Colorado's birthday with free entry to any state park, including Lake Pueblo
To celebrate the Centennial State’s 148th birthday, all Colorado state parks — including Lake Pueblo, the state’s most visited park each year — will be free to enter Aug. 5, according to Colorado Parks and Wildlife.
Every year on Aug. 1, the state recognizes its 1876 founding with Colorado Day. CPW does its part to provide picturesque backdrops for the festivities, albeit a few days after the fact, by offering free entry to all state parks on the first Monday of each August.
“This free entry day is an opportunity for visitors to immerse themselves in the beauty of Colorado state parks and their diverse landscapes,” CPW officials said in a July 31 news release.
While park admission is free, all other park fees — including camping reservations, boat and off-highway vehicle registrations, and hunting and fishing licenses — remain in effect.
Here are some things to know about Colorado Day and what to know before you head to a Colorado state park to celebrate.
What is Colorado Day?
Colorado Day marks the anniversary of Colorado joining the United States.
It officially became the 38th state in the Union on Aug. 1, 1876, when President Ulysses S. Grant signed the proclamation granting its statehood.
How did Colorado get its name? And why is it the Centennial State?
Colorado’s state name originates from the Spanish word for “colored red.” The name was chosen for Colorado as a Territory in 1861 by Congress, according to the Colorado Encyclopedia.
The state got its moniker as the Centennial State because it became a state in 1876, 100 years after the signing of the Declaration of Independence.
Another name often associated with the state is “Colorful Colorado,” likely due to its picturesque combination of mountains, rivers and plains, according to the Colorado Encyclopedia.
Heading to a state park on Aug. 5? Here’s what to know before you go
Colorado is well known for its natural beauty, and CPW officials urge Coloradans to protect its exquisite outdoor amenities and “act as stewards of the state’s land, wildlife, and water.”
“By balancing outdoor recreation with mindful conservation, we can all protect Colorado’s natural beauty,” CPW officials said in the release.
What to know before you go
Be safe on the water
As of July 15, Colorado was on track to surpass its record high for water-related fatalities, when 42 such deaths occurred on Colorado water bodies. CPW officials urge all water recreators to remember that life jackets save lives, and the majority of water-related deaths occur because people do not wear them.
Be careful with fire
Colorado is currently experiencing wildfires across multiple Front Range and Western Slope counties. Fire safety is a state-wide effort, and CPW encourages state park visitors to always practice fire safety.
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Check fire restrictions or bans at coemergency.com
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Download the free Colorado Trail Explorer (COTREX) app for wildfire alerts
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Drown fires out with water until you can touch the embers
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Never leave a fire unattended
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Avoid parking or driving on dry grass
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Check your tire pressure, exhaust pipes, and whether chains or exposed wheel rims are dragging from your vehicle, which may create sparks.
Keep wildlife wild
More on Lake Pueblo: Your 2024 guide of things to do at Lake Pueblo State Park this spring and summer
Chieftain Editor Zach Hillstrom can be reached at zhillstrom@gannett.com or on X, at @ZachHillstrom. Support local news, subscribe to the Pueblo Chieftain at subscribe.chieftain.com.
This article originally appeared on The Pueblo Chieftain: Lake Pueblo State Park is free to enter Aug. 5. Here’s why
Colorado
10 iconic places in Colorado to have a drink
From the rowdy saloons of the 1850s to the roaring post-Prohibition days in the 1930s and ’40s to the craft brews and $25 cocktails of the moment, Colorado history has paired up with drinking culture in the same way that gin goes with tonic or beer goes with a burger.
But not all watering holes are created equal. While there are plenty of amazing place to tip back a bevvie, we rounded up a few of the most legendary spots in Colorado have a drink.
Columbine Cafe, Golden
A lot has changed in Golden over the past century. For starters, Prohibition ended in 1933, meaning that Coors Brewing got back into the business of making beer. But there’s also now a highway where the Arapaho tribe used to camp and fish, and there are houses and offices and restaurants and gyms where there used to be nothing but open space and elk.
Things have changed at the Columbine Cafe as well, but not by much. Founded as a restaurant by Mike Hatzis, who emigrated from Greece to the U.S., it became a bar in 1934, and a hangout for Coors employees, who would come down after work to trade rumors, tell stories and drink the beer they made — because for most of its existence, the Columbine only served Coors. And since some of those employees worked the third shift, typically 11 p.m. to 7 a.m., the bar opened at 7 a.m. to make sure that everyone could get a pint at the end of the “day.” In 1976, Hatzis gave the bar over to his nephew, Harry Artemis, who’d worked at — where else? — Coors since 1962. Harry continued the run the place past his retirement from the brewery in 1992 and into the 2000s.
It’s now owned by Harry’s kids, Chris, Steve and Tina. Today, the Columbine serves a few beers that aren’t Coors — Longmont’s Left Hand Brewing was on tap recently — and it showcases bluegrass music on Thursday nights in a park-like patio out back; Chris even runs a ski tuning shop in the basement. And it hasn’t opened at 7 a.m. for a decade or so. But the Columbine is still the place to come to trade rumors and tell stories about Coors Brewing, among other things, and it’s still the place to find someone to talk to at the bar, or behind it.
15630 S. Golden Road, Golden; facebook.com/ColumbineCafe
The Cruise Room, Denver
With an aura that jumps straight off of the silver screen, the Cruise Room looks like the kind of place where you might run into Humphrey Bogart drinking a gin martini or Bette Davis swilling an Old Fashioned. Opened the day after Prohibition was repealed in 1933, the Art Deco bar is in the historic Oxford Hotel and it features a long and narrow layout — like a train or a ship — with slick booths on one side and a gleaming, neon-lit bar on the other. While the dress code here should be elegant if possible, you’ll likely find all kinds drinking at the bar.
1600 17th St., Denver; theoxfordhotel.com/eat-drink/the-cruise-room
Flagstaff House, Boulder
There are plenty of rooftop patios in Colorado. And they’re all fantastic. But in Boulder, there’s a patio that feels as if it’s on the roof of the world. Perched on Flagstaff Mountain, just to the west of Boulder, Flagstaff House — owned and run by the Monette family since 1971 — is a fine-dining destination known for elevated food, an award-winning wine list and breathtaking views. While dinner reservations book up far in advance, you can also visit the newly renovated bar and lounge area for a cocktail, a canape, or a dessert. It is seated on a first-come-first-served basis. There’s even a cozy fireplace on colder days where you can watch the sun set with, say, a glass of Caviar Dreams, made with prosecco, lemon, grapefruit, bitters, caper liquor and a bump of caviar.
1138 Flagstaff Road, Boulder; flagstaffhouse.com
Gray’s Coors Tavern, Pueblo
Sit at the bar on in one of the booths at Gray’s Coors Tavern for just a few minutes, and you’ll feel as though you’ve lived your entire life in Colorado. Not only does this timeless Pueblo bar and restaurant mostly serve Coors beer (history tells us that the brewery worked with bar owners after Prohibition ended to put the family name above the doors at a few saloons), but the walls are covered in Denver Broncos memorabilia from at least seven different decades and photos of Gray’s beginnings in 1934. But back to the menu, where you’ll find the perfect pairing for your Coors beer: an open-faced, double cheeseburger smothered in green chile (Pueblo-grown, of course, rather than Hatch), known affectionately as a Slopper.
515 W. 4th St., Pueblo; facebook.com/grayscoorstavern
Minturn Saloon, Minturn
Holed up alongside the Eagle River, the Minturn Saloon — and its predecessor bars at the same address — have been serving drinks in the Vail Valley since 1901. The beautiful backbar itself was built in the 1830s and spent time in Leadville before being hauled down the mountain. But the saloon is perhaps best known as being the end destination for the Minturn Mile, an experts-only backcountry route down Vail Mountain. Recently renovated, the saloon has upgraded its menu and become quite the tourist draw. But it will always welcome locals with a discount.
146 Main St., Minturn; minturnsaloon.com
My Brother’s Bar, Denver
If you’ve been around for 150 years, you don’t need a sign to announce your presence. Such is the case on 15th and Platte streets in Denver. A watering hole since the 1870s, the building at 2375 15th St. has been home to My Brother’s Bar since 1970, when the Karagas brothers moved to town and took it over. It’s now owned by local preservationist Danny Newman, who has kept the legacy alive. Laid out like a darkened English pub — but with an unexpected oasis of a patio out back, My Brother’s is known for burgers and beer. And you can get that burger however you want it because it comes with a tray full of possible condiments. (We recommend the Jalapeño Cream Cheese Burger.) The bar is also one of several where Beat Generation writer Neal Cassady spent time while he lived in Denver. Visit, and you might feel enlightened as well.
2375 15th St., Denver; mybrothersbar.com
Oskar Blues Grill & Brew, Lyons
Beer has a long history in Colorado and there are plenty of storied places where that heady liquid has been brewed. One of the most unexpected, though, was a raucous Cajun restaurant founded in 1997 in Lyons by a homebrew-loving Alabaman. But Dale Katechis was also bold, and in 2002, he did something no one could believe: he started canning craft beer. Sure, the big guys — Coors, Bud, Miller — all canned their beer, but microbreweries were supposed to be better and more refined. Katechis was laughed at, but it didn’t stop him from building his business into one of the 10 largest craft breweries in the country. Katechis eventually sold the brewery, but he kept the restaurants, including the original in Lyons, which has hosted renowned blues musicians and jam bands going back in time to a more innocent era in this little town.
303 Main St., Lyons; oskarbluesfooderies.com
Silver Dollar Saloon, Leadville
In case you forget that the town of Leadville is 10,120 feet above sea level, a short and breathy walk down Harrison Avenue, to the front door of the Silver Dollar Saloon, will remind you. Once inside, though, it’s hard to forget the building’s 150-year history (it has been a bar for nearly that long), its antique fixtures and its many guests, like the 10th Mountain Division soldiers (who trained just down the road at Camp Hale), gunslinger Doc Holliday, and the miners, prospectors and Prohibition-era lawbreakers who enjoyed a drink here. Join them by choosing from an extensive list of Colorado-made whiskey, beer and wine, and revel in the fact that this is one of the highest-elevation bars in the United States.
315 Harrison Ave., Leadville; legendarysilverdollarsaloon.com
Woody Creek Tavern, Aspen
For nearly as long as college students have been absorbing the satirical chaos of “Fear and Loathing in Las Vegas,” it has been a Colorado rite of passage to visit the bar and restaurant in Woody Creek, just outside of Aspen, where the book’s author, Hunter S. Thompson, hung out — until his death by suicide in 2005. The rabble-rousing journalist would likely laugh at the Woody Creek Tavern’s legendary status today, not to mention the ritzy feel of Aspen. But that doesn’t mean you shouldn’t stop in to peruse the celebrity photos and memorabilia on the walls, drink a bloody Mary and offer up a toast to Raoul Duke and Dr. Gonzo.
2858 Upper River Road, Woody Creek; woodycreektavern.com
Wynkoop Brewing, Denver
When Wynkoop Brewing opened in 1988 — serving 25-cent beers that day to draw people to the then-desolate neighborhood — it was the first time a beer had been commercially brewed in Denver since Tivoli Brewing closed nearly 20 years earlier. Since then, the brewpub’s booths and bars have been many things: a gathering place for civic leaders, journalists and pot-stirrers; the launchpad for the career of former co-owner John Hickenlooper (now a U.S. Senator), the site of live pig races and pool tournaments and the catalyst for a neighborhood that would go on to become one of the hottest party spots in town. Across from Union Station and down the street from Coors Field, the Wynkoop is now a courtly grandfather among rowdy teenagers, but it’s also the only place you can find a beer made from Rocky Mountain oysters.
1634 18th St, Denver; wynkoop.com
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Colorado
On-duty Golden police officer killed in Colorado crash, another officer hurt
A 33-year-old Colorado police officer has been killed in a car crash in snowy conditions and another officer was hurt. A suspected DUI driver is in custody after the crash. It happened on Tuesday just before 5 p.m. in Golden on the west side of the Denver metro area.
The officers — a man and a woman — both worked for the Golden Police Department. They were outside their patrol vehicle on the Golden Freeway (Highway 58) near the intersection with Washington Avenue just before the crash doing an accident investigation. That’s when they were struck by the suspected DUI driver’s vehicle.
The officers wound up trapped underneath that vehicle. The male officer died at the scene.
The officer who was injured is female. She was taken to the hospital and the extent of her injuries is unknown.
Highway 58 was closed in the area around the crash for a lengthy period while the investigation into the fatal crash took place.
The officer who died was in the military prior to becoming a police officer. His wife asked that his name not be released to the media at this time.
“He was an amazing human being. He has had a long, stoic career in the military, where he flew Black Hawk helicopters and served as a commander,” Golden Police Chief Joe Harvey said. “He will be survived by a wonderful wife, a sister and parents.”
“Internally, he’s going to be survived by 71 members of his Golden family,” an emotional Harvey told reporters Tuesday night.
First Alert Chief Meteorologist Dave Aguilera says Golden has received at least 8 inches of snow with the storm that started dropping moisture on Monday night.
Colorado
More snow coming heading into the weekend for Colorado and Denver
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