Things to Do in Firestone

While struggling to renovate their mountain cabin in the dead of winter, Kristian and Kimberly Naslund caught sight of the snow-covered pines outside their window, swaying in time to music softly playing in the background. Today, the husband-and-wife team has immortalized this shared placid moment through the very name of their craft distillery, bringing along Kristian's father Chris into the business as the trio fashions small-batch whiskeys, rums, liqueurs, and gins of the highest caliber. Since the distillery is a working production facility, visitors and tourists are likely to witness workers filling, labeling, and numbering each bottle by hand in the bottling area or berobed and bearded alchemists turning mash into spirits over the artisanal copper-pot still. Each powerful sip of bourbon and sweet mouthful of liqueur is culled from all-natural ingredients, free from artificial extracts, flavorings, or coloring agents.

Spring brings many changes to Rocky Mountain National Park. As the snow melts, rivers start to churn faster, waterfalls spring back to life, and wildflowers blanket the hillsides. There’s also a better chance you’ll spot some local animals. Among them are the migratory birds and a peculiar four-wheeled creature: the bright green vehicle from Green Jeep Tours.

Green Jeep Tours' guides take groups on themed adventures through Rocky Mountain National Park, showcasing its wildlife and majestic panoramas. Their "Springtime in the Rockies" tour takes you past hillsides and steams just in time to see wildflowers blossom and migratory birds take flight. As the Jeep roams the park, experienced guides point out key sites. But groups don’t spend the entirety of these excursions inside the jeep; you can also exit the vehicle to take snap photos or hike to waterfalls.

With 28 years of experience in glass blowing, Dan Daggett knows how to carefully work with red-hot glass as it glows and twists in a furnace. At his Loveland studio, Daggett spins vases, perfume bottles, bowls, paperweights, sculptures, and platters, and he leads classes to share his craft with aspiring glass blowers. During classes, he introduces pupils to the basics of working with liquid glass and the required safety measures. While you’re in the studio, you’ll be able to take a peek at Dan’s own work—like artistic vases and sleek paperweights ideal for keeping kites from violating house arrest.

After ten years of surfing and sailing around the world, Anton Rainold finally became a record-setter in an entirely different sport. In 2003, he transferred his skills to a cooler climate and became the first man in the US to open a snowkite-specific shop and school, as Summit Daily News reported. In the Colorado Kite Force shop, Rainold's team outfits shoppers for applications such as backcountry kiting, park and freestyle riding, or kiteboarding on the water in the summer. In the snow, they lead lessons for children and families, sharing techniques on how to stay safe, secure, and ready to lasso an adorable baby zephyr at any moment. After several hours, students are ready to strap into skis or snowboards, grab the control bar, and speed across the snow under the power of a majestic four-line kite.

Good Times Adventures’ first five guides took to the trails surrounding Breckenridge in 1986, leading their first visitors around on a ramshackle collection of 20 mismatched, antiquated snowmobiles. Those first forays weren’t fancy, but they were full of lessons. Through the years, the guides put those early learning experiences to good use, collaborating with the US Forest Service to expand their network of trails and acquiring a powder-smoothing snowcat to groom more than 40 miles of scenic routes through Swan Valley and White River National Forest. Today, more than 30 employees organize excursions for hundreds of guests, drawing their vehicles from a fleet of more than 100 of the latest seasonal models.

The even, glossy swathes of snow suit not only the treads of snowmobiles, but also those of dog sleds. Breckenridge local Orion takes the reins of his father’s business and an Iditarod-style sled, leading passengers along the same trails with dogpower rather than horsepower. Good Times’ staff welcomes guests—whether travelling by animal or machine—back to their lodge after each excursion to enjoy scenic views, complimentary hot chocolate, and snowsuit fashion shows.

Breckenridge Stables' herd of more than 100 steeds trots along for scenic trail rides, Western-style lessons, and historical tours of the town. As horses deftly navigate the Tenmile Range, guides point out local wildlife along the continental divide, the imaginary line drawn when Paul Bunyan and Babe the Big Blue Ox broke up. During colder months, Breckenridge Stables' custom-built mountain sleighs keep passengers snuggly during sleigh rides as a team of belgian, clydesdale, or percheron horses canters through the Colorado air.