We've been hosting guests in Teller County since 2021 — which means we've given this exact list of recommendations to hundreds of families, couples, and groups who stayed in our cabins. This isn't a recycled travel blog post. It's what we actually tell guests when they ask: "What should we do while we're here?"
The Pikes Peak area is one of Colorado's most underrated destinations. Most visitors drive through on their way to Denver or Aspen without realizing they're passing within 25 minutes of one of the most diverse outdoor regions in the state. Here's what's worth your time.
The Unmissables
1. Summit Pikes Peak — America's Mountain
25–35 minutes from our cabins. At 14,115 feet, Pikes Peak is one of only a handful of Colorado fourteeners accessible by car. The Pikes Peak Highway (toll road) winds 19 miles to the summit where you'll find views stretching over 100 miles on a clear day. The summit visitor center serves the original Pikes Peak donuts — they've been made up there since 1916 and taste even better at altitude. Allow 3–4 hours for the full experience. If you prefer hiking, the Barr Trail is a 13-mile challenge from Manitou Springs.
2. Colorado Wolf & Wildlife Center
5 minutes from our Florissant properties. This is one of the most underrated wildlife experiences in Colorado. You walk within feet of real gray wolves, foxes, and coyotes in natural enclosures — guided tours run multiple times daily. It's legitimately moving, especially with kids. Book your tour in advance; they sell out on summer weekends.
3. Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument
15 minutes. Thirty-four million years ago, a massive volcanic eruption buried an ancient forest under ash and created one of the world's most remarkable fossil sites. Today you can walk among petrified sequoia stumps the size of small houses and see insect fossils preserved in extraordinary detail. It's a National Monument, entrance is cheap, and most visitors spend 2–3 hours here. Often overlooked — don't skip it.
For Adventure Seekers
4. Cave of the Winds
35 minutes. Underground cave tours are the headline, but Cave of the Winds has expanded into a full adventure destination — wind walkers (a guided walk along the canyon walls on a suspended bridge), cliff side zip lines, and a terror-dactyl freefall swing. The cave itself is genuinely impressive with formations that took millions of years to form.
5. Offroad Trails in the Pike National Forest
20–30 minutes. If you brought a 4x4 or rented one, Teller County sits in the middle of some of Colorado's best offroad country. Gold Camp Road, Old Stage Road, and the trails around Cripple Creek offer everything from easy forest drives to technical rock crawling. The views are spectacular and you'll have the trails mostly to yourself on weekday mornings.
6. 11 Mile Reservoir
35 minutes. One of Colorado's premier trophy trout fisheries, 11 Mile Reservoir sits at 8,600 feet with views of the Pikes Peak massif on one side and open ranchland on the other. If fishing isn't your thing, bring a kayak — the water is impossibly clear and the surrounding state park has good hiking. The sunsets here are extraordinary.
History & Culture
7. Cripple Creek
25 minutes. In the 1890s, Cripple Creek was the richest gold mining district on earth — $500 million worth of gold came out of these mountains. Today the historic downtown has been lovingly preserved, with several operating casinos in the original Victorian-era buildings. The Mollie Kathleen Gold Mine tour takes you 1,000 feet underground in an original mine shaft — genuinely thrilling and surprisingly family-friendly. Live music on weekends throughout summer.
8. Garden of the Gods
40 minutes. Free entry to one of Colorado's most iconic landscapes — 300-foot red sandstone formations rising from the earth against a backdrop of Pikes Peak. Paved paths make it accessible for all fitness levels, and world-class rock climbing routes bring climbers from across the country. Go early morning to avoid crowds and catch the best light on the formations.
Local tip: The Trading Post at Garden of the Gods has the best view café in the area. Get your coffee and sit on the terrace — Pikes Peak over the red rocks is the kind of thing people come to Colorado for.
Family Favorites
9. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo
50 minutes. America's only mountain zoo sits at 6,800 feet on the slopes of Cheyenne Mountain. Hand-feeding giraffes at altitude with Pikes Peak in the background is a genuinely unforgettable experience — our guests with kids consistently mention this as a trip highlight. The zoo is compact enough to do in half a day without exhausting young ones.
10. Dinosaur Resource Center
15 minutes, Woodland Park. A surprisingly excellent natural history museum with full-size dinosaur casts and active paleontology work. The Florissant area is fossil country — this museum contextualizes what you'll see at the Fossil Beds and adds real depth to the prehistoric history of the region. Great for kids and genuinely interesting for adults.
The Ones Nobody Puts on a List
11. The Donkeys of Florissant
There's a property near our Florissant cabins where you can pull over and feed local donkeys through the fence. No website, no reservation, no charge — just a Colorado back road and some very friendly donkeys. Our guests find out about it from us and it becomes one of their favorite memories. Ask us for directions when you arrive.
12. Manitou Springs
35 minutes. If you need a day in an actual town — great restaurants, independent shops, art galleries, and the famous Manitou Incline (2,744 stairs straight up a mountain) — Manitou Springs delivers. It's the quirky, creative counterpart to the wilderness and mining history that defines the rest of the region. The mineral spring water flowing through downtown is actually drinkable from public fountains.
Ready to experience all of this?
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