Cool new things to do in Colorado this summer

Memorial Day weekend heralded the official return of festivals, camping, picnics, Tevas, pools and margaritas on the patio. And while there are plenty of old favorites to return to, from Red Rocks shows to your favorite ice cream shop, and from the Telluride Bluegrass Festival to SUPing on Cherry Creek Reservoir, sometimes it is nice to try something new.

Check out our list of what’s new in Colorado (like a wave park, hotels and more) here, or take a look below to see 10 “cool” new ways to beat the heat in the Denver area and across the state.

Pedal a swan boat at Washington Park

Washington Park has always been a good bird-watching spot, but it’s even better with the addition of 18 swan-shaped pedal boats that people can rent. Even cooler, the majority have canopies that are illuminated at night, giving a trip around the lake a magical glow. City Park has offered swan boats and sunset rides for a few years now, but this is the first year for Wash Park, said Eric Heiserman, the operations manager for Wheel Fun Rentals in Colorado. Ride during the day or rent an illuminated swan starting 30 minutes before sunset. Then, catch the sunset, watch the stars come out and be back to the dock within an hour of sunset. Get there early if you go on a weekend because there will be a waiting list by 5 p.m. or so, Heiserman adds.

Create your own ice cream

If you haven’t had Thai-style ice cream before, you’re in for a sweet treat. To make each order, vendors combine milk, cream and sugar on a cold plate and then chop it, recombine it and roll it up before serving it in a cup with a variety of toppings. The latest Thai-style ice cream shop in Denver, Stir-Pan Creamery, opened late last year at 1221 S. Pearl St. after running its first store in Breckenridge since 2016. Its flavors change daily, but look for regular delicacies like French toast or banana pudding — or have your own flavor created right in front of you.

Related: 8 ice cream shops in and around Denver worth screaming about this summer

Take a cold plunge in Glenwood Springs

Cold plunging has risen in popularity over the past few years as people have touted the purported health benefits of freezing your butt off. Spas and hot springs, which are typically more about hot water than cold, have jumped on board, including Glenwood Hot Springs Resort, which has just opened five new pools, including the aptly named Inhale Pool, where the waters are a sharp-breath-inducing 52 to 60 degrees. Best done on a very hot day.

Ride a shuttle to the top of Pikes Peak

One of the funniest things to watch in the summer is a flatlander at the top of Pikes Peak wearing just shorts and flip-flops. Because while it might be in the 90s down at the bottom of the purple mountain majesty, temperatures at the top are 35-45 degrees all summer long. On the other hand, it’s a great place to cool off, which gets easier this year with an expanded bus service from Mile 7 of the Pikes Peak Highway to the 14,115-foot tippy top for people who don’t feel like risking vertigo and death by driving themselves (previous shuttle service began at Mile 16). The shuttles will run on the half hour from Friday, May 24, through Sunday, Aug. 11. Reservations are required at coloradosprings.gov; tickets cost $23 for adults and $7 for children (which includes a pass).

Skip the line at Rocky Mountain National Park

Does waiting in a mile-long line of cars at Rocky Mountain National Park get you hot under the collar? Cool off with one of the park’s revamped transponder devices, which allow users to skip the line before 9 a.m. and after 2 p.m. between May 24 and Oct. 15. Although the transponder isn’t a fix-all — as the lane is used for regular traffic during peak hours — it’s good for early risers and latecomers. Right now, it can only be used at the Beaver Meadows Entrance, but transponder lanes may be added to the park’s other two entrances as well. Transponders cost $15 and can only be purchased on Sundays between 9 a.m. and noon, and by people who already own RMNP annual passes or one of several other National Parks passes.

Relax on a new patio

Patios are hot. Which makes them cool. Denver and its suburbs have their fair share, especially since “patio season” here can run from April to November. This summer, you can’t go wrong with a daytime hang on one of these stellar rooftop patios. Or, you could try something brand new, like the outdoor spots at the recently opened Desert Social, Corsica Wine Bar, Gusto/Cholon at Sloan’s Lake, Alma Fonda Fina, Wonderyard Garden + Table, or Kawa Ni.

Hope up in an aspen tree hotel

There’s nothing cooler than Colorado aspens, the iconic black and white trees that quake in the summer and turn gold in the fall. Which is why the 265-room Populus Denver hotel, which opens sometime between now and September (it’s already taking reservations for that month), at 240 14th St., is going to be such a stylish and savvy addition to Denver, and a rare project that stands out for the right reasons. The architecture makes the building look like a tree, and the windows from many of the hotel rooms are shaped like the markings on an Aspen. All of that, and the hotel’s owners plan to use materials and practices that offset its carbon emissions.

Rock on at the Sunset Amphitheater

Music venues outside of the Denver area have been building names for themselves in recent years — the Dillon Amphitheater in Summit County, in particular. The newest draw for music lovers will be Sunset Amphitheater, which is slated to host its first show on Aug. 9 when One Republic begins a three-day stint at the 8,000-capacity arena in Colorado Springs. When it is completed, Sunset will include 90 privately owned VIP luxury fire-pit suites, a rooftop bar with views of Pikes Peak and the Air Force Academy, and a fine-dining restaurant

Drink a brewery-made hard tea

With more people looking for gluten-free, lower-calorie or even non-alcoholic beverages from their bars and restaurants these days, Colorado’s breweries are trying to fill the bill. Many of them now offer hard seltzer, kombucha, cider or non-alcoholic hop water or cocktails. Hard tea is the latest drink on their radar, and you now can find it at larger breweries like New Belgium, Oskar Blues and WeldWerks, as well as a few small ones. The newest brewery to can a hard tea is Denver’s Call to Arms Brewing, which debuted Denver Tea Party in May. The 5% ABV beverage is brewed with organic black tea, Meyer lemon and turbinado sugar. And you can serve it over ice.

Hang with a ‘roo at the Denver Zoo

The Denver Zoo’s newest — and one of its largest — habitats opened in late May, featuring tree kangaroos, red kangaroos, wallabies and dinosaur-like cassowaries, which are enormous birds. But the coolest thing about Down Under is that visitors can walk right through the grassy area where the red kangaroos and wallabies hang out. There are no fences or glass walls or moats. You can’t touch the animals of, course, but the experience is still very cool.

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