���app

In this series, the ���app Newsroom introduces readers to the world outside campus by exploring Denver and the near beyond.

Whether you are from Colorado or just getting ready to pack up your bags to move to the Centennial State, there are countless great things about getting to call Colorado home. Just minutes from downtown Denver, the ���app is just a short drive from the best that this beautiful state has to offer. Here are a few of our favorite things about calling Colorado home.

The Great Outdoors

With 300-plus days of sunshine each year, Colorado beckons its nature lovers with thousands of miles of trails. Whether it’s biking the extensive trail system that connects the entire city of Denver, hiking up to or enjoying all the open space Colorado has to offer, there are plenty of places to connect with nature. Check out the in Colorado according to All Trails.

Beautiful Art

Denver is home to a vibrant art scene with galleries, museums, public art and buildings that double as canvases. One of the most recognizable landmarks in downtown Denver is a 40-foot blue bear peeking into the Colorado Convention Center. This famous ursine tourist was created by the late Lawrence Argent, a longtime ���app art professor with public art installations all over the world. Just a few minutes away, offers the largest concentration of art galleries in Colorado with more than 30 options. And keep your eyes open for the works of Austin Zucchini Fowler, coach of ���app’s Hilltoppers club swimming team and a prolific muralist who created several works this summer to honor health care workers on the front lines of the coronavirus pandemic.

Wildlife Viewing

You won’t have to look too far to see wildlife in Colorado. On a typical drive or hike through the mountains, you may well see bighorn sheep, bear, elk or moose. Heading from campus to the airport? Make a pitstop at the and drive through the 11-mile loop to see bison, bear and more. At , just an hour from ���app, you can see lions, jaguars, wolves and other animals rescued from illegal or abusive situations. It’s home to nearly formerly owned by Joe Exotic, the “Tiger King” of Netflix fame.

Diverse Mix of National Parks

Colorado is home to four national parks with drastically different landscape. Rocky Mountain National Park is the most visited with more than 350 miles of hiking trails, nearly 150 lakes and the chance to spot moose and elk. A trip to Great Sand Dunes National Park feels like you’ve traveled more than just a few hours away with its massive, rolling sand dunes. Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park boasts dramatic canyons and you can walk along some of the steepest cliffs in North America. Mesa Verde National Park was established to preserve Pueblo heritage and has some of the best-preserved archaeological sites in the United States.

Craft Breweries

If you’re a beer fan, you’re in luck. Colorado for most craft breweries in the United States. It’s home to around 425 different breweries that produce more than 1.5 million barrels of craft beer each year. Several ���app alumni are in Denver’s craft beer scene. Check out alumni-owned breweries and restaurants on the .

The Best Slopes

Colorado is known as one of the country’s best destinations for skiing. Colorado’s mountain towns dominate Forbes’ list of North America’s . Most of the state’s iconic slopes are just a two-hour drive from ���app, making it easy to hit the slopes in the morning and be back to the city for dinner plans.

Still need some convincing? Check out why