Keystone, CO
We stayed in the River Run Village (In Black Bear Lodge) in the heart of Keystone from October 16th to the 23rd. Ski Resorts // ski towns are a great place to stay during the off-season months because they are relatively inexpensive but keep in mind that not much will be open, in terms of food and shops, in the village area! This didn't bother us much! By the end of our week there though, things were opening up for the season and they were preparing to open a few of the runs the next week!
Each night we were here, we spent time swimming and in the hot-tub! It was amazing to see all the stars above the ski hill because it was so dark, with no light pollution at the time! I doubt you can see that many stars during Ski Season. (I am sad to report that I do not remember everything I learned during my astronomy class in college).
A different night we walked to Lake Keystone, which was only a mile down the road!
On Friday (10/21) we went for a post work hike in Dillion. When we arrived, the road to the trailhead was closed for the winter. We parked at a different trailhead and made our way down. We were in the only ones on the trail besides a mountain biker filming!
On Saturday, we headed into Frisco to hike Mount Royal trail. This is about a 4 mile out and back trail with 1,375 gain in elevation (and it was a steep elevation gain). The gain on this hike had me feeling very very out of shape but Ryan had no issue this time! The views weren't the most amazing we have seen but we liked that it was challenging and something different! I started the hike in a leggings, a tank top, long sleeve, sweatshirt, and fleece light jacket. By the time we got to top of the hike, I was down to the tank top and dripping sweat. (You might notice that this ends up being a common occurrence throughout the next few weeks).
Oh and Ryan's hair was having A DAY!
We took the scenic route back home and stopped at the Sapphire Point Overlook because there was an empty parking spot! The overlook was worth the stop!
On our way back from the days' adventures we stopped at Steep Brewing and Coffee Co. This is probably our favorite place we have eaten so far! The people who work there were amazing and so friendly. The Pizza was SO GOOD!!!! We realized how nice it is to have beer, drinks, cider, N/A beverages, and a kitchen, all in one place! In Minnesota, the brewery's usually have food trucks but not a full kitchen on site! They also don't have as much of a variety of options for drinks! The big drinker (and socialite) Ryan said he would want to be a regular there if we lived nearby.
