Blue Ridge Mountains' Autumn Hues

Officially, the first day of summer isn’t until June 20. Unofficially, the season kicks off with your first dip in the pool or cannonball — however, you prefer to make an entrance. While there are plenty of pools around the state, some offer superlative swims thanks to their views, waterpark amenities, and, yes, even a rock climbing wall that juts above the water. Ahead, discover 10 unique pools for a memorable swim this summer. A rock climbing wall towers over the Scott Carpenter Pool, which also includes a lazy river, slides, a high dive, and a lap pool.

“Exploring Colorado With Kids,” by Jamie Siebrase (a freelance writer for The Denver Post) and Debbie Mock (Falcon Guides) Letting a kid “wander the historical buildings at the Centennial Village Museum or touch a cloud inside the National Center for Atmospheric Research, that’s when a spark is ignited and the best kind of learning happens,” write the authors in their introduction to “Exploring Colorado With Kids.” “Exploring Colorado With Kids,” by Jamie Siebrase and Debbie Mock (Falcon Guides) This guidebook is a list of fun places to go in Colorado that also teach something. For instance, at Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument, kids take a mile-long journey through a petrified forest.

Colorado could come across as dinosaur-obsessed — and with good reason. The Rocky Mountain West has unparalleled access to artifacts from the dinosaur age because the uplift that formed the mountains unearthed layers of rock that were buried for millennia prior, said Bruce Schumacher, senior paleontologist with the U. S. Forest Service. That’s why when development companies start digging on new projects, they often stumble across dino remains.

The winding, sometimes-precarious state highway Colorado 82 over Independence Pass opened for the season just before noon Friday. Related Articles Colorado News | 20 years after a bulldozer rampage in a small Colorado town, the legacy of the “killdozer” lives on Colorado News | FDA urged to relax decades-old tissue donation restrictions for gay and bisexual men Colorado News | Colorado’s 10 best dinosaur destinations, from museums to track sites and quarries Colorado News | How do you get a job post-graduation?

The adventure no one needs this summer is having their car run out of gas — or battery charge for hybrid and electric vehicles. As the state adds more charging stations strategically placed along scenic byways, electric vehicle drivers have more chances to see Colorado scenery. As of February, 65% of the Centennial State’s historic and scenic byways are “electrified.” The Colorado Department of Transportation’s Scenic & Historic Byway Commission announced that 17 of Colorado’s 26 byways have electric charging stations within 100 miles.

For more than a century, the Broadmoor has welcomed travelers to Colorado Springs with its elegant decor, high-end amenities and mountain views. Now, fans of the historic resort can spend the night inside one of its guest rooms — while sailing around the world on a cruise ship. Windstar Cruises, a sister company to the 106-year-old hotel, has created near-exact replicas of Broadmoor rooms onboard several of its ships.