A Sunny Fall Saturday in Fort Collins

by Steve
(Chicago, IL)

A few years back, I took a trip to visit a good friend at Colorado State University, located in Fort Collins, Colorado. While most of our adventures were of the kind that only a college student could appreciate, the last full day of my trip was a magical Saturday that I recommend any visitor to the Fort Collins area try to recreate.

My alarm woke me at the awful hour of 5am, but our perfect October Saturday was to start with a sunrise at Horsetooth Rock. To the west of town lies Horsetooth Mountain, so named because of Horsetooth Rock, a unique rock feature set into the mountain. It was chilly on the way up, in the dark, but the view of the sunrise hitting the rock formation made it all worth it.

Next was a home football game for the Colorado State Rams, the local football team which plays in the Mountain West Conference. The stadium is beautiful (and loud!), and the afternoon sun made for a perfect fall temperature. The game came down to the wire, and the Rams came from behind to win in the fourth quarter. After the game the town swarmed with good spirits – everyone was cheery and full of smiles.

Fort Collins has three microbreweries, so we spent the evening sampling a wide variety of beers. I definitely intend to return some day for the Colorado Brewer’s Festival, which is held in town each year in June. The night air brought a chill back to me, but Fort Collins had already captured my heart.