In this episode of Short Tails, I am looking back at the summer of 2022, when Hannah and I were house sitting just outside of Boulder, Colorado. We were able to tick off a huge bucket list item and visit one of the most iconic amphitheaters in the world.
Boulder, Lafayette, and a Trip to Red Rocks.
I really enjoyed Colorado. The hiking opportunities were outstanding, the scenery equally so, and the friendly and laid-back atmosphere of places like Boulder and Denver make them inviting and welcoming cities to visit.
In the summer of 2022, we were accepted to look after a huge house in the town of Lafayette around 20 minutes outside of Boulder. It remains one of the biggest and nicest homes we have taken care of. It came complete with the easiest dog ever, August, who required a morning walk and a daily feed.
Although we didn’t know it beforehand, the use of a car was also included. The homeowner, a British ex-pat named Suzie, messaged us on her way to the airport saying ‘Oh, there’s a car on the drive if you need it’. It was a fantastic bonus as it opened up so many more possibilities.
Lafayette, CO
We knew precious little about Lafayette other than what we had seen in the house sitting listing. We imagined it to be just a small town that was dependent on nearby Boulder for the majority of its amenities. This couldn’t have been further from the truth. Lafayette has a lot going for it, there are a ton of cool bars, breweries, cafes, and independent restaurants.
The charming high street is an inviting place to be. It’s dotted with retro spots of Americana that will have huge appeal to visiting tourists. You can’t walk more than 10 feet without finding a cute cafe, a hole-in-the-wall ice cream vendor, or a vintage/thrift shop. It has an old-world feel while offering plenty of modern-day conveniences.
In true savvy Brit style, we stumbled across the cheapest beer around at William Oliver’s Pub, conveniently one of the first stops on the walk into town. Being fans of Pilsner beer we spotted an imported can of the stuff on their menu for $2! Being an affluent area of Colorado where no one would gawk at an $8 beer we seemed to be the only takers of the cheap cans, more for us!
House Sitting in Colorado
As I already mentioned the house was huge – a true modern-day mansion. Hannah and I had the entire sub-level apartment to ourselves which came complete with gym equipment, an air hockey table, a cinema screen, and more space than we had in our house in the UK!
August had her own doggy door to the garden, so after her morning walk she pretty much took care of herself. A wise old soul, she appreciated plenty of time to herself and enjoyed hours staring at the fish in the garden’s pretty epic pond.
This allowed us to take several trips up into the surrounding hills to go hiking and hop on the bus to explore the bars of Boulder.
Boulder, CO
There’s a lot going on in Boulder. It’s a lively part of Colorado that seamlessly mixes plenty of tourist traffic while maintaining a homely, local’s vibe. A strong art and student scene ensures the demographic remains vibrant and alive. The bar scene is comparable to any big city I have visited.
Pearl Street runs through Downtown Boulder and has enough to keep even the most social visitor occupied indefinitely. We’d heard about a cool basement bar with free pool tables and some of the cheapest beer in town called the Sundown Saloon. It didn’t disappoint and we sank plenty of PBRs and played pool with friendly locals for hours.
Feeling quite buzzed we found another saloon bar on Google Maps not too far away, so we decided to head there for another round. After struggling to locate it we eventually stumbled upon what we were looking for, closed on a Saturday evening! Turns out it was a SALON, not a saloon, great for a haircut but not so much on the beer front!
Red Rocks Amphitheater
Knowing we would be house sitting in Colorado we had penciled in a trip to see a gig at Red Rocks. Many of my favorite musicians, bands, and comedians had played at the iconic outdoor amphitheater and I had always wanted to go.
The 9,500-seater outdoor theater holds events almost every day from group yoga to live music. Our top choices boiled down to the Goo Goo Dolls (meh) or fellow Brit David Gray touring his iconic White Ladder album during its (Covid delayed) 20th anniversary year, it was a no-brainer.
Tickets were not extortionate and we enjoyed taking a few beers and some snacks and tailgating in the true American-event style before the gig. It’s open seating in the venue (within your ticket-level area) and quite a climb to the theater’s top level. Denver is already a mile above sea level and being from the flatlands of Peterborough I certainly noticed the altitude.
David Gray and the White Ladder Album
I am not going to claim to be a huge fan of David Gray but I certainly left Red Rocks more of a fan than I was before we went. His iconic hits such as This Year’s Love, Babylon, and Please Forgive Me were all massive hits in the UK when I was a teenager and it was amazing to see them performed live at Red Rocks.
David Gray held the sold-out audience in the palm of his hand for two whole sets performing the White Ladder album from start to finish as the entire second set.
Red Rocks is an incredible venue that lived up to every expectation I had. I’ve been to football venues, concert halls, and stadium gigs all over the world but Red Rocks tops them all. If you ever get a chance to watch anything live there I highly recommend it.
Conclusion
In total, we spent just shy of a month house sitting in Colorado before jetting off to Texas (Short Tails – Welcome to Texas). We experienced some of the hottest weather Colorado generally experiences during July/August of 2022 but we had a terrific experience.
Getting to tick off not just Red Rocks, but the big American cities of Boulder and Denver in one house sitting placement was an amazing opportunity.
Further Info on House Sitting
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