2017 is right around the corner and with the renewal of the calendar we each have an opportunity to renew our passion for living in this incredible place. Colorado has a pursuit for nearly every style or ability level — from the timid to the fierce, from the cultured to the athletic and from the outdoors to the city — and these pursuits exist all across the state. The entire staff at 303 Magazine contributed to making this list of 99 New Year Resolutions for the true Coloradan, which emphasize the unique activities you can find only in Colorado or ones that highlight the essence of living here.
This list is for the natives, the wanna-be natives, the newly arrived transplants and everyone in between. And if you complete all 99 in the next year, you can thank us for the awesome adventure.
1. Stay a night at the Stanley Hotel (the place Stephen King was inspired to write The Shining)
2. Ski or board at every resort in Colorado
3. Snowmobile in Grand Lake (the snowmobiling capital of Colorado)
4. Go Snowshoeing in Rocky Mountain National Park
5. Finish the Manitou Incline in under 45 minutes.
6. Go to the Denver Lantern Festival
7. Hold your breath all the way through the Eisenhower Tunnel (approximately 1.69 miles)
8. Volunteer at Food Bank of the Rockies
9. See a sky full of stars in the Black Canyon of Gunnison (designated a “Dark Sky Park”)
10. Attend a concert at Red Rocks
11. Go to Film on the Rocks
12. Do Yoga on the Rocks
13. Visit each major museum in Denver
14. Go to a Denver art gallery — such as Leon, Black Book, Gildar or RULE
15. See a concert at Denver Botanic Gardens
16. Traverse the Via Ferrata near Telluride
17. Actually check out every bar in the Denver Passport (or its winter version, the Winter Warmer)
18. Try your luck in one of Denver’s Escape Rooms
19. See a sunrise from the Fire Lookout Tower on Devil’s Head Trail
20. Slide down the longest alpine slide in Colorado at Winter Park Ski Resort in the summer
21. Backpack to Conundrum Hot Springs
22. Go to as many shows as possible at the Underground Music Showcase
23. Visit Glenwood Springs to soak in the hot springs and explore the caverns
24. Ride the Winter Park Ski Train
25. Sled/ski/board/camp at the Great Sand Dunes National Park
26. Tailgate before a Bronco’s game
27. Visit the Coors Brewery
28. Buy weed at a Colorado dispensary
29. Smoke more weed
30. Smoke less weed
31. Start growing your own weed (as long as your landlord is okay with it)
32. Mountain bike the Trestle Bike Park in Winter Park during the summer
33. Venture onto a ride at Lakeside Amusement Park
34. Take a ride at Elitch Gardens at night
35. Participate in New Belgium’s Tour De Fat
36. Road trip to find breweries across the state
37. Visit Mesa Verde
38. Stay at a Bud and Breakfast
39. Bike the entire Cherry Creek Bike Path
40. Take a photo of the Maroon Bells (and hike it if you have the experience)
41. Go flyfishing in the Indian Peaks Wilderness
42. Hike, snowshoe or skin to one of the huts in the 10th Mountain Division
43. Stay a night in a Yurt
44. Hike at least two 14ers
45. Backpack Ice Lake Basin Trail near Silverton
46. Wakeboard on Horsetooth Reservoir in Fort Collins
47. Attend a “Laser & Liquid Sky Show” at Boulder’s Fiske Planetarium
48. Visit the abandoned Titan One Missile Silo near Deer Trail
49. Tube Boulder Creek
50. Raft the Colorado River
51. Stand up Paddleboard on Cherry Creek Reservoir
52. Stand with one foot on either side of the Continental Divide on Monarch Pass
53. Cliff jump at Devil’s Punchbowl in the White River National Forest
54. Skydive at Mile-Hi Skydiving in Longmont
55. Attend a real Rodeo
56. Drive the Million-Dollar Highway from Silverton to Ouray
57. Go Rockhounding for geodes and other stones
58. Gamble at Black Hawk or Central City
59. Attend City Council Meetings and/or Town Hall Meetings
60. Watch an indie film at the Sie FilmCenter or during the Denver Film Festival
61. Check out live painting of graffiti and street art during Colorado Crush in Denver
62. Puff, Pass & Paint in Denver
63. Get a drink at “My Brother’s Bar,” where Jack Kerouac and Neal Cassady ate and drank in Denver
64. Lose yourself in the Tattered Cover Book Store on East Colfax
65. Contribute to a community garden
66. Stroll around during First Friday Art Walk in any of the seven art districts of Denver
67. Race in the Imogene Pass Run (or another mountain race)
68. Self-guided tour of St. Elmo, the most haunted ghost town in Colorado
69. Visit a ski-in, ski-out lodge
70. See the beautiful creations of the Denver Chalk Art Festival
71. Skin up Berthoud Pass and ski the backcountry
72. Learn how to snowboard if you ski, or learn how to ski if you snowboard
73. Go to a hot spring
74. Hike the entire Colorado section of the Continental Divide Trail
75. Attend a concert at every venue in Colorado
76. Find the best green chili in Denver
77. Find the best street-style taco in Denver
78. Go to the Palisade Peach Festival and eat a lot of delicious peaches
79. Dance your heart out during the Sonic Bloom Festival at Hummingbird Ranch
80. Enjoy the Telluride Bluegrass Festival
81. Join and attend a secret event by Silver Spork Social
82. Rock climb in Eldorado Canyon
83. Use public transportation as much as possible, including the A Line to DIA
84. Hike the Yankee Boy Basin Trail to see the renowned wildflowers
85. Learn to safely drive in the snow
86. Educate yourself on fire safety and learn to build a campfire with ease
87. Get weird at Frozen Dead Guy Days in Nederland
88. Rescue a pet from a Colorado organization, like Mountain Pet Rescue or Rocky Mountain Feline Rescue
89. Bike one or all of the single track trails around Fruita
90. Visit Trinidad for the history
91. Drive over Trail Ridge Road (usually May 30-September 30) into Rocky Mountain National Park
92. Take a ride in this all glass train in Southwest Colorado
93. Zipline the Royal Gorge near Cañon City
94. Sit in one of the purple seats in Coors Field so that you are exactly one mile high
95. Learn how to swing dance at the Mercury Cafe in Denver
96. Donate to a Colorado charity
97. Eat some Rocky Mountain Oysters
98. Read more 303 Magazine
99. Forgive the transplants for wanting to move to Colorado (See #1-98)