Now that we were all settled in our Boulder cabin, we quickly fell into a new routine. We were still on Central Time from living in Austin, Texas and spending a month in Omaha, Nebraska, and we found ourselves waking up an hour earlier than we were accustomed to. Deciding that we would get more out of the day, we just rolled with it. Our morning routine now consisted of waking up before sunrise to make breakfast and coffee while I got a small fire going in the wood burning stove. Even with the overnight temperatures dropping down into the single digits outside, it never got below 50 degrees in the cabin. Not exactly ideal, but better than freezing temperatures. A few logs in the wood burning stove would quickly warm the cabin up to the 60-degree range while we ate breakfast. Each morning, we watched as the sun rose up over the tops of the nearby mountain peaks and warm, golden sunlight poured in through the windows. I still can't think of a more peaceful way to start the day.
It was our first full day in Colorado and we decided to drive up to Fort Collins to do a little exploring. The drive would only take us about an hour and we decided we would stop to get lunch while we were there. Brigitte found several locations offering gluten-free options and we settled on a take-out restaurant called Liminal, which was 100% dedicated gluten-free and only used whole foods with zero preservatives. If humans weren't eating it 200 years ago, they weren't serving it. We both ordered bowls to-go and, oh lordy, that was some of the best take-out either of us had eaten. Our bowls were packed full of so much food and, somehow, it was incredibly cheap. If you're ever in Fort Collins, I highly suggest checking it out.
We were completely stuffed and decided to drive further into Fort Collins to check out their downtown strip and the Old Town Square. Parking on the main strip was easy to find, and we could immediately see how charming it was. There were great looking restaurants, shops, cafes, a theater; everything you could hope to find. An ad for the city had informed us that Fort Collins had been the inspiration for Disney's Main Street U.S.A., which was fitting.
Brigitte had found another highly rated gluten-free location called Explorado Market which was located in the Old Town Square portion of downtown Fort Collins. It was so cute, and the staff were so friendly! There were many baked goods on display that I just had to try. They had several gluten-free donuts available and, being a total sucker for any type of fried dough, bought several. Triumphant, I brought my haul out to Brigitte and we sat in the Old Town Square while we snacked.
Once we had finished walking around and window shopping, we decided to drive through other parts of Fort Collins to try and get a vibe for the place. The more we drove, the more we fell in love with it; it was just so charming and cute. As we neared the edge of town, we saw that there was an enormous lake on the map and decided to drive up to check it out. We drove up several switchbacks and realized that the lake was actually the Horsetooth Reservoir; and it was massive. Driving the roads of the outer banks, we couldn't believe how truly large it was. Stopping at a lookout point, we got out of the car and walked through the snow a bit while marveling at the beauty of the reservoir. It was still nearly entirely frozen and covered in snow, further adding to the majesty of it. Unsurprisingly, even in the cold and the snow, there were people out running on the various trails around us. Colorado folks are a different breed.
We hopped back in the car and started making our way back towards Boulder. Everywhere we looked, our eyes were met with stunning scenery. The snow covered the rolling plains out to the east of us while blanketing the imposing mountains to the west. I couldn't remember seeing any place more beautiful and couldn't believe it was only our first full day in the state. What other marvels would we find in this stunning landscape?
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