Day 1 – August 1, 2015
The alarm blasts early when you have a 5:00 am flight. We woke up at 2:15 am, for a 3:20 cab ride to the airport. The cab ride was pleasant; getting through security was not. I ran into a surly, power tripping TSA Agent who barked at me about not removing my Kindle from my backpack (IS IT BIGGER THAN A COKE CAN!?), then assigned me to secondary screening. There is a lot more in between the barking and the pat-down that I’m not recounting here – but I did recount it when I filed a formal complaint with his manager.
After my full body pat down, we were able to relax in the terminal and get off on two uneventful flights. We landed in Colorado about 10:15 am, waited over 30 minutes for luggage (which got me a $50 credit on my next flight! Thanks Alaska Airlines!), got our rental car (a Toyota Camry!) and we were officially on vacation in Colorado!
First stop: Eats. We went to Avery Brewing Company in Boulder – Jon’s pick – and enjoyed some great beer and wonderful food. I made my own sampler – Avery sells 4 oz beers so you can mix and match!
I had:
- Liliko’i Kepolo – a Witbier with tropical passionfruit
- White Rascal – a Belgian Style White Ale spiced with coriander, curacao, orange peel – described as a zesty classic ale
- Summer’s Day IPA – an IPA with tangerine peel.
My beer sampler at Avery Brewing Company
My favorite was the Liliko’i Kepolo, with the IPA in second place. For lunch, I had the BBQ pork sandwich with fingerling potatoes. Jon had the Maharaja Imperial IPA and the blackened catfish, then followed it up with a smaller beer – the Beast Grand Cru – with 6 hops, 6 sugars and 6 malts – get it? 666? Our food was really good, but I was so jealous of Linda’s dish after getting a taste – the best vegetarian tacos I have ever eaten!
Linda’s Veggie Tacos at Avery Brewing Company – delicious!
After lunch we went to the Boulder History Museum. It is in the historic Harbeck-Bergheim house, built in 1899, a summer home for J.H. Harbeck and his family. Mr. Harbeck was a well known Wall Street figure, owning a dry goods business and a fleet of 20 ships to tranport goods for his business. They actually ended up spending very little time in Boulder – the last time they visited was in 1910; Mr. Harbeck died that year. They left instructions with a caretaker that the home was to be left vacant for 20 years because the graves of the family dogs needed time to settle, and they didn’t want them to be disturbed. I kid you not…
The Boulder History Museum, in the Harbeck-Bergheim House.
Built 1899 – American Four-Square style
The home was sold after Mrs. Harbeck’s death in 1930 and eventually was purchased by Milton Bergheim and his wife, who lived there 30 years before selling the home to the City of Boulder. The home itself is American Four-Square style, and has 12 rooms and two bathrooms. Unfortunately, records about the architect and the building of the home were lost in a fire in 1932.
A stained glass window in the Harbeck-Bergheim house. It is believed to be Tiffany.
At the museum, there was an exhibit on the Arapahoe tribe and the Sand Creek Massacre in 1864. There was quite a bit of information on Chief Niwot, an Arapaho Chief who tried to maintain a peaceful relationship between the plains tribes and white settlers. He was very well educated, and greeted settlers in English. Chief Niwot was mortally wounded at the Sand Creek Massacre. There was also an exhibit on Boulder history – Boulder was founded as a supply town in 1858 for the Gold Rush in Colorado, and also had significant agriculture.
A prospector’s gear.
It was a small museum, but the exhibits were nicely done. Plus it was nice to see the historic house; the museum is planning to move into a new facility soon. It will have climate control so they can better display artifacts and receive traveling exhibits – at that point the museum will be using the house only for special events.
Outside the museum we watched a tour bus roll by – designed to look like a rustic cabin on wheels – it looked like a fun tour, but I doubt I would be able to get Jon on it!
A unique tour bus in Boulder, Colorado
Wine and History Visited 