Last month, we spotlighted Denver. This month, we focus on the nearby college community of Boulder. Boulder is much more compact, a great choice for biking or walking enthusiasts, and has the world-renowned University of Colorado. Also, unlike many other communities, Boulder’s downtown includes many locally owned businesses (rather than the chains that are so common elsewhere).

Getting Here and Once You Arrive

The easiest way for out-of-town visitors to reach Boulder is by plane. From Denver International Airport (DIA), RTD’s (Regional Transit District) hourly Sky Ride service to Boulder costs $13 each way. The Boulder Transit Center is in downtown Boulder, and is served by most RTD (Regional Transit District) buses serving Boulder. Downtown Boulder is also the most convenient area to stay, during your visit.

Getting Around After You Arrive

The Regional Transit District (RTD) operates local buses in Boulder, as well as regional and express buses. One day passes (for unlimited local bus rides in Boulder—and elsewhere in the Denver region) costs $6. You can buy a pass (probably 2 passes: use one each day) at the RTD sales desk on Level 5 of the Denver Airport from 7a.m.-6p.m. weekdays, and 8a.m.-4p.m. Saturday and Sunday.

For information about how to get around Boulder by bus, bike, or walking, visit GoBoulder’s web site: http://www.bouldercolorado.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=8774&Itemid=2973.

Enjoying Your Weekend in Boulder

A weekend visit to Boulder can focus on either the outdoors or cultural attractions (a planetarium, natural history museum, art museum, and contemporary art museum). While you are downtown, take time to sample a few of downtown Boulder’s shops, and enjoy a good meal downtown.

For more ideas about ways to enjoy Boulder, visit: www.bouldercoloradousa.com/visitor/itineraries/.

Four local attractions sounded especially interesting to us:

Boulder Museum of Contemporary Art www.bmoca.org/
Fiske Planetarium http://fiske.colorado.edu/
University of Colorado Natural History Museum http://cumuseum.colorado.edu/
CU Art Museum www.colorado.edu/cuartmuseum

The Fiske Planetarium, University of Colorado Natural History Museum, and the CU Art Museum are located on the University of Colorado campus, convenient to the Skip bus (that runs along Broadway).

A Bicyclist’s Weekend in Boulder

Boulder has over 300 miles of bike trails. Riding a bike is a fun way to see Boulder and experience the town like a local. Boulder is relatively small and compact with bike paths and lanes everywhere. It's mostly flat which makes it easy to bike around town with shops that rent cruiser bikes or fast racing bikes for an hour or a day. Even though Boulder is home to passionate cyclists such as Olympic bike racers and the International Mountain Bicycling Association, the opportunities to see Boulder by bike are plentiful with easy urban trails for carefree cruising or hard-core mountain trails for gnarly riding.

Valmont Bike Park - The largest free urban bike park in America opened just this summer on June 11, 2011. Valmont Bike Park is a 40-acre off-road bike park with competition-grade cyclo-cross racing trails, big dirt jumps, dual slalom tracks, pump tracks, and slope-style trails. That's 1.7 million square feet of off-road cycling for all levels of riders. Family friendly features include a trike track, a learning loop, a kids' play area and restrooms. Plus, it's accessible from a number of the city's bike trails. http://www.valmontbikepark.org/

Rentals and Tours - There are six outfitters in town that offer bicycling tours. From two-hour tours around the picturesque downtown area to full day adventures in the mountains - on road bikes or mountain bikes - there is an outfitter for every level of cyclist. There are four bike rental shops in town and most of them are located near hotel rooms. Pick up a map and have some fun. http://www.bouldercoloradousa.com/

The Boulder Creek Bike Path - This is the premier cruiser ride in town. The Boulder Creek Path meanders for five miles along the scenic and gentle Boulder Creek that runs right through Boulder's historic district. Some of it is paved, some is dirt and there are spots for picnics, wading, tubing and strolling.

Top Chef Bicycling Itinerary - Boulder was named "America's Foodiest Town" in October 2010 by Bon Appetite magazine. It is also the home of Hosea Rosenberg, the winner of Top Chef: Season 5. He suggests this bicycling itinerary to discover Boulder's food scene:

Rent cruiser bikes from University Bikes on Pearl Street. Ride up Pearl Street to Eben G. Fine Park and then catch the Boulder Creek Bike Path.
Cruise along the path, following Boulder Creek, into historic downtown Boulder.
Have coffee at the Trident Booksellers.
Ride the bike a few more blocks along the Boulder Creek Path to the Boulder Farmers' Market. Grab a meal prepared by a local chef. Talk with the growers.
Continue the afternoon shopping and people watching along the Pearl Street Mall. Don't miss Peppercorn - a cooking store that's been described as one of the best in the country.
Have dinner where he got his start, Jax Fish House.
Sleep, eat, repeat.

To learn more about Hosea and the other top bicycling chefs, see http://www.boulderslicedanddiced.com/

Go Boulder has a map of Boulder bike trails and other destinations that are accessible by bike. Go to: http://www.bouldercolorado.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=8774&Itemid=2973. There is even a web site for specific cycling directions to specific destinations in Boulder. Go to: http://www.bouldercolorado.gov/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=8840&Itemid=2973.

Where to Rent Bicycles

For short-trips, Boulder’s B-Cycle bike sharing program is worth checking out. A 24-hour membership costs $5.42, a 7-day membership is $16.25, and an annual membership costs $54.16 (all rates include tax). There is no additional cost for the first hour, each additional half hour costs $4. For more information, visit: http://boulder.bcycle.com/.

For rentals over an hour, consider one of the following bike rental companies:

Bicycle Village

2100 28th Street, Boulder, CO 80301
Phone: (303) 440-8525
Visit Website

Summer Hours: (April-August) Mon-Fri 9am-8pm Sat 9am-6pm Sun 10am-5pm Winter Hours: (September-March) Mon-Fri 10am-7pm Sat 9am-6pm Sun 11am-5pm

Boulder Bikesmith

2432 Arapahoe Ave. Boulder, CO 80302
Phone: (303) 443-1132
Visit Website

Open Daily 9am-6pm

Full Cycle

1211 13th Street
Boulder, CO 80302
Phone: (303) 440-7711
Visit Website

Summer Hours: Mon-Fri 10am-7pm Sat 10am-6pm Sun 11am-5pm Winter Hours: Mon-Fri 10am-6pm Sat 10am-6pm Sun 10am-5pm

University Bikes

839 Pearl Street
Boulder, CO 80302
Phone: (303) 444-4196
Visit Website

Hours: Mon-Fri 10am-7pm Sat 10am-6pm Sun 10am-5pm

For More Information: For more information about Boulder attractions and accommodations, contact the Boulder Convention and Visitors Bureau. Visit http://www.bouldercoloradousa.com/, or call (303) 442-2900.

Steve Atlas spotlights where to visit or live without depending on a private automobile. Visit Steve’s website: http://carfreeamerica.org. View past Car Free Journey columns, and special reports about good places to live without a car at www.pubtrantravel.com. E-mail Steve with your comments or ideas for future columns at steveatlas45@yahoo.com.

New At

Pubtrantravel

Pubtrantravel welcomes Steve Atlas founder of carfreeamerica.org as its newest contributing writer.

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