What's there for a couple to do on a day trip to Ft. Collins?

[jmg8550]

^^^^ Its those Wyoming drivers coming down to Ft. Collins. They don't know how to drive at all.

Yeah...we don't know how to drive...sure.

Ginsue, glad you listened to my suggestion about not going to any Asian restaurants here. You saved some money there

[Great-Kazoo]

So, our trip.....


It was after 2 when we left Cheyenne and headed back South. I had some directions I wrote down for getting into Ft. Collins to check out some antique stores. We needed to turn off I-25 at the Harmony Rd exit & head West. Wait, Harmony Rd? This is the exit with the Timnath Wal-Mart. Was a greater power trying to tell me something a out my trip earlier in the day? Naw, just an interesting coincidence. We headed along Harmony to NB College Ave. It was around 3PM - on a Friday afternoon. Traffic was PACKED. By the time we finally made it to Prospect my wife made me turn around. I estimated that we were pretty close to the College, and Old Town, etc. (I found out later by looking at Google maps that we were only about a block away). She didn't care, the back-to-back traffic was not pleasing her and she just wanted to get out of there. Backtracking to I-25 we went. We got to SB I-25 and within 5 miles ran into heavy congestion. Within another 10 or so miles our die was cast and we were stuck in bumper-to-bumper traffic until we got South of Castle Rock. That was a LONG & stressful drive. I wish we had just stayed in Ft. Collins, checked things out, drove South to Loveland and checked it out, had dinner, etc. and just wasted time until all of the Friday evening rush hour(s) traffic thinned.

Lessons learned?

• Start out earlier

• Don't let traffic redirect you from your original plan because it will still be an issue & you won't get the benefit of what you planned. But remain loose with the plan.

• Consider high-traffic times along entire travel route and plan to be anywhere but places where traffic will be bad. This means you might have to spend more time enjoying the trip instead of fighting it.

• Stick with the loose agenda & don't go back to the tight scripted agenda where we have a timeline with zero margin for error. It's less stressful this way.

We got home around 7PM and, thanks to the traffic, I was totally exhausted. I would have preferred to spend more time in Ft. collins checking things out and avoiding the traffic, but... This just gives us an excuse to go back there!

Your mistake was going to the south end of the fort then trying to go north on one of the busiest roads in the state. IF there's a next time take hwy 14 in to old town. That south end is jammed with touchy, feely hipsters, million march moms and stoners all trying to get in to old navy through harborfreights side entrance.

The antique shops were south of harmony on college / 287. Sound like you had a decent ride with minimal amount of weather & road issues. In cheyo The Albany, one of the oldest eateries in the state, use to serve a killer open face turkey sandwich, fresh mashers & gravy, with Real turkey , not compressed deli meat.

Another point of interest in cheyenne, but not on the historical web site, is jmg8550's house.

[Great-Kazoo]

I'd spend the day in Fort Collins. Breakfast at Snooze...pineapple upside down pancakes. Tour campus and old town. Lunch at Enzios or choice city butcher. Head up around Horsetooth res. and stop by Liberty Arms on Harmony. Head south to Milliken for the best BBQ in the state at Rubbin Buttz...must have the peanut butter pie if Amanda has any left.

You lost me recommending Snooze, then got my attention with Enzio's or Choice City . That Rubbin Butz, it's the place north side of main st (hwy 60) caddy corner to the cracked egg? if so Yes their lunch was good. Trying to get down for their 5pm prime rib dinner. Very friendly people incl the owner.
Axe snooze and you'd be batting 1000

[Irving]

Doesn't the owner of Snooze post on here?

[Great-Kazoo]

Doesn't the owner of Snooze post on here?

Maybe. Hey it's a great place if you want an upscale looking plate of food. Other than that, it's nothing one couldn't get elsewhere in the fort. Guess it's how you like a meal served.
There's always a crowd at those Egg & i eateries. We wouldn't eat there again if it was the only place open, besides a seedy ethnic place with a CDC truck in the lot. Ate there 2x say 6 - 8 months apart. The food was just as bad the second time.
Tried one in the metro area, because that's where his girlfriend wanted breakfast. He should have kicked her to the curb on that suggestion alone, terrible food.

[theGinsue]

I just looked at my trip odometer from yesterday. 384 miles from filling up @ the edge of my neighborhood to pulling back into my drive.

Your mistake was going to the south end of the fort then trying to go north on one of the busiest roads in the state.

Ah man, that ain't right - I wrote my directions down straight from your PM to me (but I wasn't sure if I was supposed to take a left or right onto College). Of course, your directions didn't account for me being dumb enough to drive trough there during rush hour-ish times.

Head south to Milliken for the best BBQ in the state at Rubbin Buttz...must have the peanut butter pie if Amanda has any left.

Driving past the exit for Milliken yesterday afternoon I kept trying to remember what was suggested there and since I couldn't remember I kept driving.

Today my wife watch some show on the Discovery Channel that talked about BeauJo's in Idaho Springs. My wife said she wants to eat at BeauJo's. She almost tore my head off when I told her there's a BeauJo 's in Ft. Collins that we were just 5 minutes away from yesterday. She was mad I didn't suggest it to her. Hell, there were a lot of places I didn't recommend to her because I didn't know she was interested.

[jmg8550]

Your mistake was going to the south end of the fort then trying to go north on one of the busiest roads in the state. IF there's a next time take hwy 14 in to old town. That south end is jammed with touchy, feely hipsters, million march moms and stoners all trying to get in to old navy through harborfreights side entrance.

The antique shops were south of harmony on college / 287. Sound like you had a decent ride with minimal amount of weather & road issues. In cheyo The Albany, one of the oldest eateries in the state, use to serve a killer open face turkey sandwich, fresh mashers & gravy, with Real turkey , not compressed deli meat.

Another point of interest in cheyenne, but not on the historical web site, is jmg8550's house.

What's so interesting about my place?

[Great-Kazoo]

What's so interesting about my place?

No one visit's Only special people do

[Great-Kazoo]

I just looked at my trip odometer from yesterday. 384 miles from filling up @ the edge of my neighborhood to pulling back into my drive.



Ah man, that ain't right - I wrote my directions down straight from your PM to me (but I wasn't sure if I was supposed to take a left or right onto College). Of course, your directions didn't account for me being dumb enough to drive trough there during rush hour-ish times.

TURN LEFT / GO SOUTH, ON COLLEGE



Driving past the exit for Milliken yesterday afternoon I kept trying to remember what was suggested there and since I couldn't remember I kept driving.

Today my wife watch some show on the Discovery Channel that talked about BeauJo's in Idaho Springs. My wife said she wants to eat at BeauJo's. She almost tore my head off when I told her there's a BeauJo 's in Ft. Collins that we were just 5 minutes away from yesterday. She was mad I didn't suggest it to her. Hell, there were a lot of places I didn't recommend to her because I didn't know she was interested.

Have her plan the next day trip. Little late to tell you what she wants, after the fact. This way if something is missed, she's the tour guide.

[Irving]

Beau Jo's in Idaho Springs was my very first job. I worked there for three years. There used to be seven of them around the state. Is there not still one in the springs? If not, there is one near I-25 and Colorado Blvd, and I swore there was one even further south than that. Personally, I always liked the one in Idaho Springs the best, but going there during ski season is just begging to be stuck in crappy traffic again, AND waiting over an hour for table.