This summer, Golden shines a little brighter at night! The town’s popular and FREE Movies & Music In The Park series plays at Parfet Park (10th St. & Washington Ave.) on select Fridays. Each night enjoy music and a family-friendly movie under the stars! The band takes the stage at 7 p.m. and the featured film, shown on a giant inflatable screen, starts at dusk — around 8:30 p.m.
[Read more…] about Golden’s Movies & Music in the Park
Golden
Golden’s Movies & Music in the Park
Alyth Active
Lookout Mountain Fire Station
Golden Elks Lodge
Colorado Railroad Museum
Trains captivate us all, whether we have experienced a robust rail travel system ourselves or whether we grew up indulging in Thomas the Tank Engine.
Enter into the real live world of classic trains at the Colorado Railroad Museum, just 12 miles West of downtown Denver in Golden. The museum opened in 1959 and has been a staple in Colorado for train-lovers of every age.
The main Museum building resembles an 1880-era small town railroad depot. Architectural features include wide eaves to protect waiting passengers from weather, and large bay windows so the station agent can observe activity on the boarding platforms. The yellow and brown paint reflects standard building colors for the Denver & Rio Grande Railroad.
It’s here you’ll find the gift shop and bathrooms, as well as permanent and rotating displays in the museum’s two gallery spaces.
Explore this indoor feature and delve into the colorful stories of the railroads serving Colorado for more than 125 years.
Inside you’ll find the year-round scale model train showcase that pays homage to Herbert W. Voltaw. Volaw built a series of 1-inch scale locomotive and railroad car models using aluminum, steel bar, wood, plastic and glass. He worked on these starting in the 1940s and through the 1960s.
Inside the depot, visitors can also watch introductory videos to the museum and enjoy hands-on activities downstairs in the museum’s lower gallery.
Make sure to check out the detailed displays of Colorado mountain railroading by the Denver HO Model Railroad Club, one of the oldest model railroad clubs in the region.
After that, it’s time to go outside and explore the 15-acre railyard.
As you walk around you’ll find more than 100 narrow- and standard-gauge steam and diesel locomotives, freight and passenger cars, cabooses and more. And many are open for passengers to walk on board and explore the inside.
Kids and adults love the museum’s G-scale garden railway, located near the center of the railyard. This intricate model makes loops around its own fenced-in landscape.
Walk around the display to catch the trains moving around and to see the intricacies of the design. Volunteers operate both on weekly schedules.
Next, take a ride on the Galloping Goose, a unique hybrid railcar that looks kind of like a bus and truck smooshed together. The unique vehicle was used to bring mail into the mountain towns of Colorado.
These railcars were built in the 1930’s by the Rio Grande Southern Railroad and were in operation until the 1950s. Today few remain, but the museum boasts two that the public can ride around the museum (twice!) for a small fee.
Any fan of Thomas the Tank Engine will recognize the museum’s roundhouse, a restoration facility with a working turntable. It’s not accessible to the general public, but see it while taking a ride on the Galloping Goose.
Thomas fans will also want to watch the calendar for Day Out With Thomas, a two-weekend long event that happens each year and features a life-sized Thomas engine to take guests around the track. The festivities also include many themed shows, art projects and activities for little ones to do.
Another popular event is the Polar Express. It runs each December and features not only hot cocoa, but Santa himself as well. Sit back on the train and become one with this story. It’s just part of the magic the Colorado Railroad Museum brings to the state and visitors.
Colorado Railroad Museum, 17155 W. 44th Ave., Golden, 303-279-4591
Hours
Open Tuesday to Sunday from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
Closed Thanksgiving, Christmas Eve, Christmas Day, New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day.
Train rides
Train rides aboard a cozy, vintage and fully-enclosed coach or on open-air cars circle the museum’s scenic campus.
Rides depart every 30 minutes every Thursday to Sunday (late-May through mid-August) from 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. From mid-January to mid-May the train runs at the same times, but only on Saturday.
Rides aboard the famous Galloping Goose No. 7 are the first and third Tuesday of each month from January through mid-May). Rides depart every 30 minutes from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
Visitors should buy timed train ride tickets online in advance, especially if you have a specific time you wish to ride.
Admission Prices
Adults (18 & older): $10
Seniors (60+): $8
Children (2 to 17): $5
Children under 2: FREE
Train Ride tickets on Ride the Rails: $4 for adults and $2 for children.
Free days can be found throughout the year. They are sponsored by SCFD and Boulder County. The latter is for Boulder residents only, proof of address is required.
Coors Brewery Tour in Golden
A fee now applies to all visitors taking the Coors Brewery tour. Visitors and locals alike can learn a lot about traditional brewing in a short time from one of Colorado’s best. (Did you know they’ve been brewing beer since 1873?) The 90-minute, narrated walk-through of the malting, brewing and packaging areas at the giant Coors Brewery in Golden is a short course in beer production. After the tour, visitors 21 years and older (with ID) can sample some of the beers in the new hospitality lounge. [Read more…] about Coors Brewery Tour in Golden