Is Louisville, Colorado, One of the Best Places to Live?

My husband and I took a drive out to the Boulder County area of Colorado last weekend. We had heard about the town of Louisville from magazine articles that often name it as one of the best places to live, and were curious to see why. The drive north was certainly beautiful, as we had some magnificent views of the high snow capped the Rockies, lying beyond the foothills, along the way. ( All photos will enlarge, for easier viewing of details, if clicked on)

The Flatiron Mountains, that we passed by in the town of Boulder, were instantly recognizable to us, as our son had attended the University of Colorado in Boulder for his Master degree in Boulder. You can see why he fell in love with this area of the country and decided to settle here after his graduation.

We soon arrived in Louisville and turned onto its Main Street. The city of Louisville was incorporated in 1882 and lies in Boulder County, six miles east for the city of Boulder and twenty-five miles northwest of Denver.  Its population is around 18,000 people.

The Miner Memorial statue in front of city hall on Main Street represents the past coal miners of Louisville, many of whom were immigrants of both Northern and Southern European countries, who built the town. In August 1877, the Welch Mine opened--the first of many coal mines to come. The Acme Mine operated directly beneath the original town of Louisville from 1890 to 1928 and produced nearly two million tons of coal. In all, thirty mines were located in and around the town, and locals did not have to travel far for work. After WW2 the demand for coal diminished and the mines closed in 1952, but by then Louisville had become a thriving suburb of Boulder and Denver.

The mining history in Colorado is not without its tales of strife and hardship and this year marks the 100 year anniversary of the Ludlow Mine Strike and Massacre and the Northern Field Mine Strikes, which included the Louisville mines. As both of my grandfathers were coal miners in Pennsylvania, I hold great sympathy and respect for the sacrifices this Colorado man made to improve work conditions and safety in the mines and to earn a living wage.

The Louisville Historical Museum was located on 10001 Main Street. It was originally constructed in 1904 as a general store. 

It features a variety of artifacts from the area and historic photographs

Next to the store is an original house that dates from the early coal mining era, and is now is set up to portray what a typical miner's home looked like......

...and its rooms were filled with period furniture and artifacts.

Some of the shops and restaurants we saw on Main Street in Louisville. Many are located in buildings that are original to the town from 100 years ago!

We stopped at the Blue Parrot Restaurant for lunch.  Click to enlarge the above photo and you can read its story on the menu's front page. For four generations the Colacci family has been serving customers at this location since 1919. They call their food "Grandma Style" Italian. 

The houses around the historic center of town are in a variety of cottage, craftsman and colonial styles.....

...while the homes further from the historic center were larger and on more property.

Some homes were well into the million dollars, and up, range.

Louisville is considered by many as a good place to live and raise a family for many factors--crime rate is very low, the schools are well respected, and its location near the technology-rich Boulder and Denver corridor has kept job options and the housing market solid. It is also surrounded by over 1,700 acres of open space, with recreation opportunities in the Rocky Mountains only twenty minutes away, plus Colorado has sunshine 300 days of the year! It certainly was a nice community. We enjoyed our visit to Louisville and will visit again in the future.

I'm sure every town considers its area the best place to live in.  I enjoyed all the years I lived in Brooklyn, New York, and I now feel the same way about where I live in Littleton, Colorado. How do you feel about your home town? What do you love the most about it?

Sleigh Ride in Breckenridge

 "Over the river and through the wood, to grandfather's house we go;

 the horse knows the way to carry the sleigh through the white and drifted snow..." 

I grew up hearing my Mother sing this song, based on a poem by Lydia Maria Child, to my siblings and I, every winter during the holidays.  Because of that sweet memory, I've always wanted to experience a sleigh ride. When my husband and I took an overnight trip to Breckenridge, in the nearby Rocky Mountains recently, we did just that! The town of Breckenridge is at a 9,600-foot elevation, so spring comes slowly to that area and there was still plenty of the 350+ inches of snow it received this past winter on the ground.  Luckily for us, we took our sleigh ride towards the end of a beautiful sunny winter day!

Luckily, I found a Groupon deal for a discount on the sleigh ride and dinner package through Breckenridge Sleigh Rides, which made the event super affordable.  Do you ever use Groupon? They offer some wonderful discounted deals on many different local businesses and attractions.  Our sleigh was pulled by two beautiful Belgium Draft horses, named Bob and Sally. The wrangler told us that these were once workhorses on an Amish farm.  When the horses reach around ten years old the farmer sells them to buy younger horses. Supposedly pulling a sleigh is easy work for them, as they are very strong and each can pull well over 2,000 pounds.

Even though the temperature was in the mid-'30s, we dressed warm, because when the sun goes down, the air gets chilly!  All the sleigh riders were also provided with wool or fleece blankets to put over their laps. Off we go, to the gentle tinkling of silver sleigh bells--just magical!

 "Over the river and through the wood --oh, how the wind does blow! 

It stings the toes and bites the nose as over the ground we go."

During our sleigh ride, we had wonderful panoramic views of the Tenmile Range!

I've often seen gorgeous views of this Rocky Mountain range on Barb's blog "Live and Learn."  Barb lives in Breckenridge year round and takes the most amazing photos of the sights there, accompanied by her lovely written observations and prose.  It was a treat for me to recognize many of these mountains from her blog!

Bald Mountain peak seen in the distance stands at 13,690 feet! Our wrangler called it "Old Baldy"

As we rode along we could see some magnificent homes in the distance.

The wrangler told us these homes were in the one to two million, and up, price range. Just look at their large and fabulous windows facing the mountain range!

A distant view of the Tenmile Range.  All the mountains that make up this range are over 13,000 feet elevation, with the highest being Mt. Quandary at 14,265 feet.

As we rode on, the sun slowly dipped below the horizon, and a soft golden light appeared in the sky.

Even Bald Mountain glowed!

After about 40 minutes the sleigh headed back to the golf clubhouse...

...where we said goodbye to our sweet horse duo.  Inside, we sat by a fire and had hot chocolate to warm up, while we watched other sleighs return. We then enjoyed a dinner buffet and were serenaded by a talented country western singer while we dined. It was all a very memorable experience -- one I'd definitely do again!  Although like most of you, I'm now looking forward to the warmer spring and summer weather,  it was definitely nice to be able to embrace a winter day like this and enjoy it! There is so much beauty in the Rocky Mountains, year round!

"Nature gives to every season a beauty all its own." 
~ Charles Dickens

Ice Castles in Breckenridge, CO

Although this past winter broke records in many areas of the country due to extreme cold and unusually high amounts of snowfall, Colorado's winter has been fairly normal. The high mountain ski regions of this state thrive on fresh snowfall, and winter activities and sports are a major part of the economy.  One of the fun annual attractions to see in the ski resort town of Breckenridge are the Ice Castles.  Besides Colorado, Ice Castles are also located in Midway, Utah and Loon Mountain, New Hampshire, but at 9,600 feet elevation, the Breckenridge Ice Castles are the highest commercial Ice Castles formation in the country!

Made by hand from over 20,000,000 pounds of ice, the Ice Castles are an amazing sight to see!

There are no additives to the water, no supporting substructure within or under the ice.  They are all formed by artistic minds and hard work.

We asked the workers how the ice Castles are built. They told us that they begin by making thousands of icicles that they harvest and sculpt together in freezing water.

The blend of the icicle placement, changing temperatures, water volume used and wind, resulting in an amazing array of ice formations!

The Ice Castles contain large towers, tunnels, archways, caves, caverns, and pedestrian pathways.

My husband and I enjoyed walking through the formations...

...and seeing the effects the bright Colorado sun gave to the ice as it shined through it.

In many areas, the ice looked a beautiful glacial blue!

Although the temperature on the day we visited was in the low 30's we felt quite comfortable because the sun is always very warm at such a high elevation.

The Ice Castles are a photographer's delight!

One section of the Ice Castles leads up an embankment...

...where we could look out over ski lodges, and some of the ski runs and mountains of Breckenridge.

Those brave enough could then go into this cave and slide down to the bottom of the embankment!

Each "room" in the Ice Castles gave a different perspective.

All the formations were beautiful!

Upon paying admission, our hands were stamped so we could return as many times we wanted to during the day.  We returned at night, as we were told that hundreds of LED light were embedded in the ice for night viewing.

The colored LED lights made the ice formations look absolutely magical!

 They changed many colors.

It was hard to decide what effects in the Ice Castles we liked better-- the daytime or the nighttime color effects? What do you think?

I'd say see both if you can!

The Ice Castles in Breckenridge are located at 150 West Adams Avenue.  They were open through March 22 and will return next year even bigger and better.  If you plan a visit to Breckenridge, Colorado next winter make sure to include them on your itinerary--you won't be disappointed!