Lone Tree, CO Outdoor Activities

A rainbow of paint showers Dynamic Paintball's 8 acres, where players weave between bunkers. Year round, these simulated battlefields host games of intense Capture the Flag, during which participants must dodge acrylic salvos, hide behind wooden structures, and race across grassy fields. To keep things fun yet safe, Dynamic Paintball's staffers supervise all games and matches up players based on skill level. They also set up paintball battles for bachelor parties and birthdays.

Away from the technicolor warzone, a shaded staging area lets groups strategize and grab bites to eat. Players can also head over to Dynamic Paintball's proshop, where staffers repair damaged gear and recommend new paintball guns from the likes of Tippmann.

As rifle shots crackle across the 14 fields of Golden Gun Club, shooters wait for the quiet explosions of clay pigeons that signal successful shots. Each of these fields⎯eight for trap and six for skeet⎯are open to the public, though memberships are also available, which grant visitors discounted rates on range fees. After each visit, patrons can refuel at the onsite grill, where Sportman's wings steep in various sauces and freshly barbecued burgers warm palates so diners don’t need to install central heating in their uvulas.

Shannon Long's path to the American dream went in the opposite direction than that of most people. While many work in retail to support their dreams of becoming artists, Shannon molded clay over steel substructures, sculpting half-scale abstract figurative art while dreaming about starting a fly-fishing business. As a boy growing up in popular Lake Havasu, he frequented a small Western-themed shop where the owner was always chatting with customers who shared his fascination with the independent spirit of the American West. In a turn of serendipity, Shannon got married and happily followed his wife to her native Colorado. Sometime after, he opened the fly-fishing shop he had always dreamed of, and found himself becoming the shopkeeper chatting with and educating customers in their shared interests.

Today, Shannon oversees a guide service manned by a staff of veteran fly-fishing experts. On full-day and half-day fly-fishing trips, guides lead anglers for the grand slam: rainbow trout, cutthroat trout, brown trout, and brook trout all caught in a single trip. The Rocky Mountain landscapes surround fishermen in dramatic scenery, including towering pine trees, giant red rocks, and bright-blue skies as the sounds of colliding bighorn sheep occasionally ring out over the water. In addition to guided trips, the staff also leads classes, including courses designed for women and families, that cater to both beginner and advanced anglers.

Jessica Pickering brings more than 12 years of horse-showing experience to each hunter, jumper, and eventing lesson she conducts. Using the tenets of dressage as an overarching theme, Jessica starts students off with flat lessons that focus on horizontal riding techniques before moving on to vertical jumps and activating the horse wings for aerial flights. Once students are comfortable galloping with their steed, they can begin jumping and competing. Each class takes place on the saddles of Venus and Miss Roulette, two highly trained horses that are great for beginners and kids.