Summer Vacation 2025: Colorado

What?! H.A. is posting again so soon? I know, right? Look at me go. Currently, I am on a three-day weekend that didn't quite go as planned. Such is life! Anyway, let's get into the first few days of my Summer Vacation this year. 

To start, I went to Colorado for a few days with my friend Audrey and my daughter. Our goal? The Colorado Renaissance Festival's opening weekend! We arrived on Saturday and checked into our hotel in Castle Rock. After a quick freshen-up, we headed downtown to Wild Blue Yonder Brewing Co.

It has an industrial feel and offers ample outdoor seating, mostly located outside.

I got a flight of Soreno Moreno, Grapefruit Wheat, Battlefield Brew, and Dr. Tart. I wasn't wowed by their brews, but they weren't bad.

We then ventured to Honnibrook Craft Meadery, a place that Audrey and I were both pretty excited about. And boy, we were NOT disappointed.

You can get a flight of up to 8 tasters! Audrey and I both got one. I mean, it's mead, and I sure do love me some mead. The flavors I got were blackberry, black cherry, blueberry lavender, orange creamsicle, plum, prickly pear, surrender, and natural beauty. Some were a little better than others, but they were ALL delicious. Honestly, I'd go back to Colorado just to hit up this place. Their meads are also served at the Colorado Renaissance Festival.

They also had Old Fashioned Sodas, which were great for my daughter. She was able to enjoy herself with us.

The next morning, we were out the door bright and early. Besides the three of us' shared love of Renaissance Festivals, we like to be there when it opens. We were also excited because none of us had ever been there before, and we had all heard great things about it.

After acquiring some mead and a cider, we sat down for the first entertainment on our list, Celtic Legacy. They sound exactly like you expect from a Celtic drums and pipes outfit. They were awesome.

The bagpiper even did a song where flames shot out of his pipes. Huzzah!

After that, the three of us split up, and I headed over to see The Craic Show. Audrey didn't want to see this band, and my daughter wanted to shop. They were awesome, as well. If you mixed this group with Celtic Legacy, it would sound a lot like Corvus Corvax, and I love that band!

I ate some onion rings during their performance and promptly got sick. Combine that with the heat, and I had to seek shade for a good while, unfortunately.  

Eventually, I started feeling better, especially after the Sun went behind some clouds, and you could tell rain was on the horizon. Before that, though, I was just in awe of how we were surrounded by mountains the whole time....literally.  

I mean, the festival grounds are in the mountains!

We went and saw these two - The Kamikaze Fireflies. They did a lot of stunts and made plenty of jokes. Very entertaining! 

Lovely courtesans.

It rained - like a downpour - not long after this, so everyone hid out under any cover we could find. The main joust was canceled, but it did scare away a large chunk of the swollen crowd.

It was getting towards the end of the day, so we wandered over to The Pirate Pub to catch the last acts before closing ceremonies. These ladies are The Angels - Heroines in Disguise who sang, did a bit of swordfighting, and were terribly bawdy...just the way I like it! Huzzah!

King Henry showed up for closing ceremonies, of course. I got to see him up close.

Closing ceremonies at Renaissance festivals start inside but move you closer to the exit. This was the entertainment outside the gate. 

Overall, it was fun, but to this day, the best Renaissance Festival I've ever been to is the one in Minneapolis, followed by Kansas City. Still, I'm glad I got to experience a new ren faire. After all, I love them!

We headed back to the hotel after this to stuff our faces and pass out tired.

The next day, we went on a wild goose chase to find a muffin shop Audrey really wanted to go to. After that, we were finally on the road for our 8-hour journey back to Omaha. We stopped at the Colorado Welcome Center right next to the Nebraska border. It is interesting and has tons of tourist pamphlets and guides.

They have interesting and historical art on the grounds.

So, that was the first few days of my Summer Vacation 2025. It was a lot of fun, but it's only a snippet of my vacation, so I'll be back with more later.

Until then, friends, enjoy your weekend!