Best Vacations for Dogs 2004 | Colorado Canines Adventure Trips | Best of Denver® | Best Restaurants, Bars, Clubs, Music and Stores in Denver | Westword
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Now more than ever, people are traveling with their dogs. Leave it to someone in this hound-huggin' state to come up with a better way to do it. Boulder pet-supply retailer Alex Teller decided last year to organize adventure travel packages tailored especially for shared human/canine enjoyment. Trips range from winter skijoring clinics to summer tubing excursions and backpacking expeditions; particularly poochy perks include everything from doggie massages to all-natural goody bags provided by Teller's staff. The days of kennel confinement are over. Here, boy!


Littleton mother of two and former teacher Alison Weems noticed how hard it was to keep up with local children's events, despite the fact that there were plenty of them to choose from. Unfortunately, she found, you needed a stack of newspapers and magazines, a strong word-of-mouth network and a cast-iron memory to even know about them all, let alone remember their dates, times and places from week to week. So she did something about it: For a minimal annual fee, Weems sends subscribing parents weekly e-mails from her Cruisin' Kids website, which overflows with day-by-day information about everything from play groups to toy stores. And to say that Weems's listings are comprehensive would be an understatement: If you can't find an activity your kids like here, it simply doesn't exist.
Littleton mother of two and former teacher Alison Weems noticed how hard it was to keep up with local children's events, despite the fact that there were plenty of them to choose from. Unfortunately, she found, you needed a stack of newspapers and magazines, a strong word-of-mouth network and a cast-iron memory to even know about them all, let alone remember their dates, times and places from week to week. So she did something about it: For a minimal annual fee, Weems sends subscribing parents weekly e-mails from her Cruisin' Kids website, which overflows with day-by-day information about everything from play groups to toy stores. And to say that Weems's listings are comprehensive would be an understatement: If you can't find an activity your kids like here, it simply doesn't exist.


Aw, go take a hike! For a mournful pooch accustomed to being locked up all day with nothing to keep him company but destructible furniture, the context is anything but negative. After all, what hound wouldn't rather go for a walk? Save your sofa: Denver Hound Hikers provides various dog-walking services, from a standard midday fifteen-minute walk around the block or dog-park visit to the more rigorous two-hour "Hound Hike," a supervised outdoor excursion with everything provided (water, snack, towels, cleanup). And just so you know Fido's been having a great time, every Hound Hikers package includes a personalized, Internet-accessible Doggie Diary and digital photo of your four-legged friend having the time of his or her life. It's the paws that refreshes your pooch.
Aw, go take a hike! For a mournful pooch accustomed to being locked up all day with nothing to keep him company but destructible furniture, the context is anything but negative. After all, what hound wouldn't rather go for a walk? Save your sofa: Denver Hound Hikers provides various dog-walking services, from a standard midday fifteen-minute walk around the block or dog-park visit to the more rigorous two-hour "Hound Hike," a supervised outdoor excursion with everything provided (water, snack, towels, cleanup). And just so you know Fido's been having a great time, every Hound Hikers package includes a personalized, Internet-accessible Doggie Diary and digital photo of your four-legged friend having the time of his or her life. It's the paws that refreshes your pooch.
Altair playground, which opened nearly a year ago near Park Meadows mall, is out of this world, and that's all part of the plan: In addition to its picnic shelter and spanking-new toddler-friendly equipment geared to the two-to-five set, Altair's centerpiece is a literal wreck -- an alien ship crashed into a rock that beckons kids to come climb all over it. Well-placed for emergency pre- or post-shopping recreation, this playground's a blast!

Altair playground, which opened nearly a year ago near Park Meadows mall, is out of this world, and that's all part of the plan: In addition to its picnic shelter and spanking-new toddler-friendly equipment geared to the two-to-five set, Altair's centerpiece is a literal wreck -- an alien ship crashed into a rock that beckons kids to come climb all over it. Well-placed for emergency pre- or post-shopping recreation, this playground's a blast!

The Golden Community Center's got it all under one roof: a six-lane lap pool, a therapy pool and an awesome kids' pool designed to provide a great swimming experience for all, regardless of age or level of water wisdom. Babies in swim diapers are in their element in gradually graded shallows that mimic the seashore, while older kids can romp through everything from fountains and waterfalls to a challenging floating bridge and a gigantic, 150-foot water slide. But the GCC really makes a splash with its birthday parties. Packages include all of the above plus a large private party room. And because everything's indoors, the parties are perfect in any season.
The Golden Community Center's got it all under one roof: a six-lane lap pool, a therapy pool and an awesome kids' pool designed to provide a great swimming experience for all, regardless of age or level of water wisdom. Babies in swim diapers are in their element in gradually graded shallows that mimic the seashore, while older kids can romp through everything from fountains and waterfalls to a challenging floating bridge and a gigantic, 150-foot water slide. But the GCC really makes a splash with its birthday parties. Packages include all of the above plus a large private party room. And because everything's indoors, the parties are perfect in any season.


Four Mile Historic Park, perched along the Cherry Creek Greenway, is an agrarian jewel, a throwback to earlier times smack-dab in the middle of the city. And it's a heck of a lot better than the rigors of Chuck E. Cheese's for kids' birthday parties. Instead of video games and rides, Four Mile offers horse-drawn wagon rides, pioneer and/or tepee games, cake-baking in an open-fire oven, old-timey crafts, and feeding the farm animals, which include roosters, fat hens, gorgeous screw-horned sheep and a pair of French Percheron horses. It's reasonably priced, more fun than a three-legged race, and there's no mouse telling you what to do.

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