Idaho Springs, Colorado

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April 6

Roadside America

After breakfast at the Fairfield motel in Davenport we headed west towards Hastings, Nebraska, our next waypoint to Colorado.

We first stopped in Newton, Iowa to see a couple of offbeat attractions as listed on our trusted Roadside America app.  Newton, of course, is the home of the original Maytag washing machines headquarters, until not so long ago. Roadside America guided us to the very well-kept Maytag Park in Newton to see a bronze statue of the iconic unbusy Maytag repairman sleeping on a bench.

Then on the way back to the highway, still in Newton, we stopped to see a memorial rock dedicated to boxing great Rocky Marciano. Turns out that Rocky was killed in a plane crash just a few miles away.

On to Hastings, Nebraska where Roadside America guided us to the world famous Hastings Museum. Well, to our elation we learned that Kool-Aid was invented in Hastings, so of course there is a permanent Kool-Aid museum exhibit here!!

We spent about an hour in this museum.  Their tagline is: “As the largest municipal museum between Denver and Chicago, the Hastings Museum offers three floors of WOW.”  This tagline is accurate. There are many other cultural, local history, and wildlife exhibits here that are really quite good. There’s also a planetarium. Another pleasant surprise courtesy of Roadside America.

We spent the night about 2 hours away in Ogallala, Nebraska. We had stayed here before and were drawn to stay again because one of our favorite Roadside America attractions is in Ogallala…an alien spacecraft water tower.

We checked in to the Super 8 Motel and walked to the nearby Ponderosa dive bar for a beer, and a Red Baron frozen pizza, with the (very) local Ogallalans.

Off to bed.

April 7

Cheyenne, Wyoming

We chose a route to Idaho Springs, Colorado that took us through Cheyenne, Wyoming so we could visit the State Capitol building. We had been there before but it was closed for renovations at the time, so we never actually went inside it.

Along the way to Cheyenne there was yet another Roadside America attraction calling our name.  This time it was a large soft serve ice cream in the middle of somebody’s field, just off the highway in Chappell, Nebraska. Apparently, in 2012 the cone was moved to this residence of the former owner of an ice cream stand…and it’s been here since.

Arriving at the Wyoming State Capitol around 11:30 A.M. we did a self-guided tour of this newly renovated building.  It is a beautiful capitol, but far more understated than most of the 30+ that we have visited.

 

After the Capitol tour we grabbed lunch downtown Cheyenne at the popular Sanford’s Grub and Pub as recommended by staff at the nearby coffee shop.  Our server was great but it took forever for our food to arrive, and they weren’t that busy.  Food was ok.  It’s really all about the endless pop culture kitsch strewn about the place.

After lunch we walked to the famous cowboy boot art at Depot Plaza. There is also some other local art at Depot Plaza.  Our favorite was the found metal moose sculpture.

 

Then on to Idaho Springs, Colorado about 2 hours away. But before we crossed into Colorado on Highway 25 we were treated to another great Roadside America attraction…or should I say two more.  In the middle of an on/off ramp roundabout along the highway are two 14′ bronze statues a few hundred feet apart.  They are of a native American and a frontiersman apparently greeting each other.

Idaho Springs

Friends of ours rent a house in Idaho Springs, Colorado each year, and for some reason unbeknownst to us they keep inviting us to stay a few days. Half of us ski, the other half shop, but we all love this small old mining town about 30 miles west of Denver, and squeezed right below I-70.  It was founded in 1859 during the Pikes Peak gold rush, and has retained all of the rustic charm of an old mining town. It’s a great base for skiing some of Colorado’s best ski resorts.  Last year we skied Breckenridge and Keystone. This year we skied Arapahoe Basin and Ski Cooper.

2024 ski pics:

 

This year we spent some time in Leadville, another old mining town about an hour from Idaho Springs. It lies at the highest elevation of any city in the country!

We shopped:

We drank at the Silver Dollar Saloon:

 

We posed for an album cover:

Last year’s album cover was from Idaho Springs rather than Leadville.

Em and I spent three very fun nights with our friends in Idaho Springs. With the fantastic Tommyknocker brew pub, and MTN Prime restaurant within walking distance, we ate very well too!

Next: Black Canyon of the Gunnison/Mesa Verde