The Travel Brats

Travel Brats asked: “Where are we talking about today?”

Suzi said: “Boulder is a city at the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, in northern Colorado. To the west, are the Flatirons which are craggy rock formations overlooking the city. Downtown’s is the pedestrian Pearl Street Mall which includes art galleries, cafes, restaurants and boutiques. To the north, about 45 minutes away is Rocky Mountain National Park and to the south/southeast is Golden and Denver.Fantastic skiing exits 90 minutes away with half a dozen world class ski resorts nearby.

Boulder is home to the main campus of the University of Colorado, the state's largest university. The city frequently receives high rankings in art, health, well-being, quality of life, and education.

Boulder was a popular hippie town in the 1960s and re-invented itself as an affluent outdoorsy town, but it's still very rooted in its hippie traditions.”

Travel Brats asked: “Who lives there? What’s the environment like?”

Today, there’s lots of organic, natural items, as well as a number of breweries, and lots of great restaurants. “I like to say all the hippies had to grow up and wanted education and outdoor recreation for their children.

Additionally, there are world class road cyclists, skiers, and climbers that call Boulder home. Both NOAA and NIST have sites in Boulder and most recently, many tech companies have moved to Boulder and even Google has a large campus in town.”

Travel Brats asked: “What are the best things to do there?”

Suzi said:

• Lots of road biking - anywhere on the Front Range as well as climbing into the mountains.
• Lots of mountain biking - generally one must go up and then come down. Single track and dirt roads.
• Lots of climbers - seek out Boulder to climb year round
• Lots of hiking - can be either flat or up the mountain. Lots of trails from Golden to Lyons.
• Climbing the Flatirons from Chautauqua http://www.protrails.com/trail/138/boulder-denver-golden-fort-collins-lyons-flatiron-1 is a favorite tourist To Do.

Travel Brats asked “ What are more things to do along with the best hikes in Boulder?

Suzi said:

• Tour of Celestial Seasonings http://www.celestialseasonings.com/visit-us/tea-tour
• Etown - NPR radio music show https://www.etown.org/
• Boulder Theater - (Art Deco theater from 1930’s) can be any show https://boulderdowntown.com/go/boulder-theater?gclid=CjwKCAjw5Kv7BRBSEiwAXGDElW339gTT1JaR8sxfRxdetjjm9klXVuN98R2PTL5iVDOE8mPRcpcfNxoCPn8QAvD_BwE
• Fox Theater - music venue - divine https://www.foxtheatre.org/
• Chautauqua Auditorium - any music or show or reading venue https://www.chautauqua.com/happenings/venues/auditorium/
• Eldorado State Canyon Park - south Boulder https://cpw.state.co.us/placestogo/Parks/eldoradocanyon
• Fiske Planetarium - on CU campus https://www.colorado.edu/fiske/
• Favorite Bookstore - Boulder Bookstore on Pearl Street https://www.boulderbookstore.net/
• Rent a bike - great bike paths, road riding, and offload riding
• Danshabe Tea House - good food & historic https://www.boulderteahouse.com/
• Farmer’s Market - Saturdays 8am-2pm and Wednesday evenings 4p-8p
• Colorado Shakespeare Festival - June-August on CU campus - 2 venues https://cupresents.org/series/shakespeare-festival/
• Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art https://bmoca.org/
• Bolder Bolder - 2nd most populous 10K on Memorial Day https://bb10k.bolderboulder.com/
• Boulder Creek Festival - Memorial Day weekend https://bouldercreekfest.com/
• Open Space Trails https://www.summitcountyco.gov/105/Open-Space-Trails

Suzi continued on to say: “What you find in Boulder is that everybody does everything meaning most folks do hike, bike, ski, climb, and anything else outdoors. The Pearl Street Mall https://www.pearlstreetmall.com/ is a pedestrian mall that has lots of restaurants and shop. Both locals and tourists alike will be on “the mall”. The “hill” is a subsection of Boulder where the CU Boulder students congregate or hang out. Generally, most locals stay away from the “hill” since that area of town borders the CU campus.”

Travel Brats then asked the infamous question -- “Where should you eat there?”

Suzi said:

“Favorite Breakfast Spots:

Walnut Cafe - on 30th - known for great pie https://www.walnutcafe.com/

The Buff - great coffee & skillets https://www.buffrestaurant.com/

Dougs Diner - awesome breakfast bowls https://www.dougsdiner.com/

Snooze - nice casual & healthy https://www.snoozeeatery.com/branches/1733/snooze-boulder/

Village Inn - typical counter diner https://www.villageinn.com

Dot’s Diner - good diner https://www.dotsdinerboulder.com

Tangerine - a bit upscale with local food http://www.t...

Travel Brats ask: “What is Sanibel Island like? What’s it by?”

@Jennyfromtheboat said: “Sanibel has a relaxing vibe that is laid-back. It’s the place for outside activities such as biking, kayaking, Paddleboarding and exploring wildlife at Ding Darling. https://www.fws.gov/refuge/jn_ding_darling/ If you want an active day with outside activities Sanibel is the place. You also can go there and relax on the beautiful beaches. The sand is white, the water is clear and the beautiful turquoise color. There are many shells and I love to go shelling. Sometimes I like to go to the causeway and watch sunrise or sunset.

You can pay the toll which is $6 or do a u turn before the toll and hang out on the causeway. Or go to Bimini bait shack https://www.biminibaitshack.com for a fishbowl which is right next to the toll booth I usually pay the toll and I love the drive over the 3 bridges. It is the best view and it never gets old.”

Travel Brats asked: “How often do you go? Why do you like it so much?”

@Jennyfromtheboat said: “I have started going to Sanibel weekly. I love going there because my dream is to live somewhere where the primary mode of transportation is by bicycle. I love going out and exploring and discovering new hidden treasures that a lot of the locals only know about. I love being active and I love shelling. I usually go on Saturdays after I do yoga on the beach on FMB we drive to Sanibel rent bikes at Billy’s Bikes http://sanibelbike.com to go exploring, shopping, lunching, cocktailing, and shelling. I

also love going because masks are required everywhere and COVID protocols are enforced. I also like to give my business to the smaller businesses.”

Travel Brats asked: What’s the best way to get around Sanibel?

@Jennyfromtheboat said: “The best way to get around Sanibel is by bicycle. The paths are not right on the road so you’re a little bit further away from the traffic a lot of the paths are shaded. There are designated crosswalks for bikers. There is parking if you go to any of the restaurants or shops.

Travel Brats asked: Where is the best place to stay? What are the best resorts?

@Jennyfromtheboat said: “My favorite resort is Casaybell https://www.casaybelresort.com which is right on the beach. It is a resort where you can be in the pool you can order drinks and food and then just walk straight up the path to the beach. You can reserve chairs and you can rent kayaks and paddle boards.

I have stayed at Tween Waters https://www.reservations.com/hotel/tween-waters-inn?rmcid=tophotels&utm_source=googleads&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIv8mQ_8ff6wIVCTiGCh36qQhDEAAYASAAEgLOUvD_BwE

which is considered Captiva but it’s I think right on the border. If you travel by boat, Tween Waters has a place to dock the boat. We have gone there and purchased day passes so we would dock the boat and then just pay a fee per person to use the facilities and spend some money on their drinks and food. We have also stayed at the resort it’s on the water but the beach is across the street.

Another place that we’ve gone to several times is Southseas Island Resort http://www.southseas.com/?gclsrc=aw.ds&&gclid=EAIaIQobChMIoJLvmcjf6wIVDHiGCh3WoA-1EAAYASAAEgIDNvD_BwE

which I know for a fact is on Captiva. We’ve gone by boat and purchase day passesWe use the facilities have some drinks have some food and then go back by boat other times we have stayed there. In my opinion, Southseas is great but if you stay in the condos on the beach, the pool is pretty far where you would have to drive to it. If you stay near the pool, the beach is far. But the resort is fabulous with lots of activities.

Another resort that we have stayed at many times is Sanibel Harbor. https://www.vrbo.com/vacation-rentals/usa/florida/south-west/fort-myers/sanibel-harbour-reso?k_clickid=EAIaIQobChMItp6Lqcjf6wIVOeaGCh3ACAUeEAAYAiAAEgLjAPD_BwE&ds_cid=71700000037835838&ds_kids=p55724163079&ds_kid=39700055724163079&ksprof_id=700000001593178&ksdevice=c&ktarget=dsa-680810245665&kloct=&kloc...