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Do you know what single parents are looking for when planning family travel?  Minimal stress and maximum time together. Here are five possibilities:

Consider a farm vacation.

Slow down for a stay at a Feather Down Farm, one of three working farms in the US and 50 in Europe that welcome families interested in learning about sustainable farm practices, healthy eating and life with a chickens, goats and lambs.  A parent might head out for a hike or settle in with a book, while the kids learn to churn butter or collect eggs for breakfast. Visit the Honesty Shop where family members can peruse local produce and other delectable, sign for what looks interesting, and perhaps craft a dinner from their purchases.  Spacious tents, furnished with authentic detail, offer a private room for adults as well as a cozy “cupboard bed” where kids can tuck away for the night.

Contact:  716-226-6323; www.featherdown.com.

International adventure.

Single mom Michelle Kingsley O’Neill and her 13-year-old triplet sons spent a month exploring Ecuador and brushing up on their Spanish skills. With a rental home on the beach in the coastal town of Olon as their home base, the family of four took language classes, enjoyed side trips to Cuenca and other sites of interest, learned to surf, zip-line and sample local cuisine.  The result?   With high school on the horizon, O’Neill agreed to the boys’ request for homeschooling this year so they could fit more travel time into their education plan.

Contact: www.Ecuador.travel;  Intrepid Travel.com

An all-inclusive deals.

Single parents checking into the all-inclusive AAA Five Diamond Grand Velas Resorts in Riviera Maya and Riviera Nayarit will have the single supplement fee waived when traveling with their
children. In addition, one child will stay at a 50% discount. Expect welcome amenities, a state of the art kids’ club, airport transfers, as well as day and evening beach, eco, and sporting activities that will engage adults and children throughout their seaside vacation.

Contact: 1-888-323-4294; http://rivieramaya.grandvelas.com/

Ride the rails.

Train excursions provides one parent traveling with kids a relaxed and stress free opportunity to enjoy each other’s company without road traffic or the strictures of a fast-paced tour to provide distraction.  On board VIA Rail, Canada’s premier passenger rail service, kids will love visiting the panoramic dome in the Skyline or Park car for a unique vista. They also have the option to join other junior explorers for movies and games. Choose from cross-country adventures or itineraries that offer some of the finest leaf peeping on the planet.

Contact: 1 888-842-7245; www.trainpackages.ca:

Ranch relaxation. Adventuresome parents eager to share their passion with the next generation will welcome a stay at this secluded guest ranch in central Idaho’s Sawtooth Mountains.  Choose from activities that include fishing in the Salmon River, an overnight pack trip, swimming in a pool fed by hot springs, cycling and river floats. Evening children’s programs enable Mom or Dad to carve out their own quiet time or join in weekly barbecues, while the kids enjoy their own new friendships. Open mid-June through mid-September.

Contact: 208-774-3544; www.idahorocky.com.

Find more ranch vacation ideas here….and here.

Are you a single parent? Share your ideas with us!

If you are a lover of all things western, you’ll want to wander through this list of  great tunes as curated by The Western Writers of America.

The list is a mix of  traditional, old timey, country and melodies from the movies.

Is your favorite here?

1. Ghost Riders in the Sky
2. El Paso
3. Cool Water
4. Streets of Laredo/Cowboy’s Lament
5. Back in the Saddle Again
6. High Noon/Do Not Forsake Me
7. Oh Shenandoah/Across the Wide Missouri
8. Tumbling Tumbleweeds
9. Home on the Range
10. Red River Valley
11. Big Iron
12. Don’t Fence Me In
13. Bury Me Not in the Lone Prairie
14. Desperado
15. Wildfire
16. Cattle Call
17. Pancho and Lefty
18. Little Joe, the Wrangler
19. They Call the Wind Mariah
20. Coyote
21. Along the Navaho Trail
22. Happy Trails
23. Rawhide
24. Yellow Rose of Texas
25. Mamas, Don’t let your Babies Grow up to Be Cowboys
26. Ballad of Davy Crockett
27. Wayward Wind
28. Strawberry Roan
29. When the Works All Done This Fall
30. Empty Saddles in the Old Corral
31. Ballad of the Alamo
32. Mule Train
33. My Heroes Have Always Been Cowboys
34. Knockin’ on Heaven’s Door
35. Amarillo by Morning
36. Man Who Shot Liberty Valance
37. Last Comanche Moon
38. Oh My Darling, Clementine
39. The Rebel (Johnny Yuma)
40. Ballad of Ira Hayes
41. North to Alaska
42. My Rifle, My Pony and Me
43. Don’t Take Your Guns to Town
44. South of the Border
45. Desperadoes Waiting for a Train
46. Get Along, Little Dogies
47. Buffalo Gals
48. I’m an Old Cowhand from the Rio Grande
49. New San Antonio Rose
50. Gunfight at the OK Corral
51. Wild Montana Skies
52. Last Cowboy Song

Ted Hayes and friends summit Cotapaxi in South America.

I took the last six months off of school to live in Ecuador with an American family on sabbatical. Here are 52 tips and bits I learned along the way.  A good traveler shares when he can, so here you go:

1. I brought double the clothes I needed.
2. I brought half the money I needed.
3. Miami International Airport is insane. It is incredibly diverse and it was a little discouraging not being able to understand half the people there. And I hadn’t even left my own country.
4. If you are a poor college student (or poor anyone these days) and an airline is offering you a couple hundred dollars cash to stay a night in a city you have never been to, TAKE IT!
5. Arriving in a new country where you don’t speak the language is overwhelming.
6. But everything works out.
7. If you are not sure whether or not you can drink the water in a country you can check here or just buy bottled water.
8. If you don’t speak the language well (4 semesters of college and 3 years in high school and I still fell into this category) make sure you have explicit directions to your hotel/hostel/family’s house.
9. Don’t overpay and then tip the cab driver. You’ll feel stupid later.
10. ALWAYS agree on a price beforehand.
11. If you speak only English and need help, hostel attendants usually speak English and can point you in the right direction.
12. If the name of the restaurant is in English, the prices double. If you have a date, they triple.
13. Salsa dancing isn’t for everyone. But it’s for everyone that likes dancing.
14. Hola Feliz = Happy Hour
15. It’s important to try the local food. Even if it is Guinea Pig (CUY!).
16. It’s important to find out what makes the country you are in unique.
17. It’s important to realize that if you can’t afford to go to the Galapagos, there are plenty of other fun things to do.
18. There are about 30 million species of insects in the jungle.
19. One of them is the mosquito. Try this. Or this. Good luck.
20. You can pan for gold. And ACTUALLY find some. (It worked out to about $12/hr if you are good. So if you work long enough, you can pay for the back surgery.)
21. Hiking to 19,347 ft. is hard.
22. But if I can do it, so can you.
23. If you are interested in studying the language, it’s important to find the school that is right for you, your schedule, and your level.
24. The Internet is basically everywhere. So it’s very easy to stay in touch if you are near a city.
25. It’s easy to be frustrated when your showers aren’t always hot, the Internet is slow, the store is randomly closed but don’t let it get to you.  You’re not in Kansas anymore. And for now, that’s a good thing.
26. Music is good everywhere.
27. So is ice cream.
28. Your guidebooks or your mothers may advise you not to eat meat on a stick (from street vendors) but I thought it was one of my favorite meals while I was there.
29. I left the house everyday with wearing sunglasses and a rain jacket.
30. Cabs are cheap and easy.
31. So are busses.
32. Souvenirs are great. But if you’re going to buy clothes, make sure you’ll wear them at home. No need to waste closet/luggage space.
33. Just because you are in a foreign country does not mean the food is good.
34. But there are probably good ingredients to make good food. Hit the markets and cook.
35. Learning a second language is hard.
36. But if you try, people will help (unless you are learning French).
37.  You will never fully blend in but there is no need to try to stand out (That said, if it’s sunny, I wanted to wear flip-flops. No one got hurt.)
38. Pay attention.
39. In my view, most of South America is safe for people with common sense.
40. And dangerous for people without it.
41. They don’t take credit cards.
42. Bring cash.
43. They don’t take credit cards.
44. If you’re feeling a little self-conscious about speaking Spanish in a conversation, have a beer.
45. Meeting other gringos is great but you’ll inevitably have the same conversation a million times and speak too much English.
46. Seek natives. In addition to being good practice for Spanish, they make good tour guides and, usually, friends.
47. The long distance busses play awful movies awfully loud. Bring earplugs or be content blasting your iPod (unless you love everything Steve Austin).
48. Make time to study Spanish.
49. Then take time to study Spanish.
50. And take lots of pictures!
51. Remember it’s always great to come home.
52. Because then you can plan your next adventure!

Ted Hayes returned from South American, graduated and currently lives in Portland, Oregon.

Why do anglers always take a picture of themselves holding their catch?

The answer is that, long ago,  people started doubting their fish tales. The same goes for businesses and their marketing, where customers are often dubious of the claims brands make about themselves.

However, businesses have a validation tool more powerful than an angler’s snapshot: third party publicity.

As well as spreading the word, publicity provides third-party validation of your business, showing you as reputable and and backing up your claims. Like angling though, you have to tempt journalists and bloggers to bite if you want to successfully promote your business.

Here are easy ways to do it.

1. Create content
Content creation—blogging, tweeting, video publishing—is key to establishing yourself and your company as a “thought leader” and source for journalists. Consistently (it doesn’t have to be every day) update your website, blog, and other social channels with relevant and timely expert information. Over time, journalists will learn to consider your company a reliable source for information.

2. Engage and add value
Work to maintain relationships with members of the media even when you don’t have news to share. Do this by commenting on articles directly and sharing those pieces on social networks. Once you begin to build personal relationships with journalists, you can even send them information relevant to their beat, even if it’s not a direct pitch for your company. By acting as a reliable source for information, you can become a trusted member of a journalist’s or blogger’s Rolodex.

3. Do some research, then show it
To become a trusted media source, do research to determine which outlets and journalists will be interested in what you have to say. Look up their most recent articles to find what they cover and how they cover it. Who are the local reporters that would cover your business? Don’t be afraid to reach out and introduce yourself and your company. Showing that you’ve done your research by identifying the most appropriate journalists for your company is the first step in positioning your business as a credible source of information.

When your company has big 
news to share, prepare a 
news release and distribute it 
through an online distribution service like PRWeb. In addition to
more news mentions, using an online
distribution service increases your online visibility. Use the keywords you’ve identified for your business in your release and link them back to your website. You can also increase news mentions by building a list of relevant publications, blogs, and journalists to email when you have news. Do your research and communicate clearly why you think they should be interested.

5. Use trends to publish and pitch

Keep your eyes open for news stories and trends related to what your company does. This allows you to publish searchable content (or pitch journalists) offering an expert opinion on the story and showcasing your business in the process.

BONUS TIP: Let journalists come to you
Thousands of journalists and bloggers use free Vocus service HARO (Help A Reporter Out) to find sources from the business community. HARO delivers current media queries directly to you, allowing you to respond to relevant inquiries with a quick pitch. If you’re not using it yet, you should be.

- See more at: http://blog.vocus.com/blog/six-ways-generate-publicity-for-your-business/#sthash.adOmEPoK.dpuf

Family travel can play a strong role in the education you offer to your children and grandchildren. Here are five ideas to consider:

Reflect your values. The travel choices you make can send a strong message to your loved ones about what matters most to you. Consider the family travel bucket list as a thoughtful and deliberate reflection of your own values, hopes and dreams. So before you begin listing desired destinations, ask yourself what aspects of the world – geographically, spiritually and culturally – you want to share with your children, grandchildren and perhaps other friends and family members.

Identify Priorities and Passions.  Are you a nature, history or art lover? Do you want your children or grandchildren to learn how to ski, photograph or scuba dive? Do you hope to share your love of baseball or botany with the next generation?  Will volunteer vacations or heritage tours be an important part of your mix? Take time to consider these ideas that will expand your family’s horizons and weave them into your travel plan.

Identify places.  Americans get low marks for knowledge of geography. Begin with a good map or atlas and consider studying the globe an important part of your family travel education. While your list will most certainly change over the years, think about which destinations you hope to visit while your children are in the nest and beyond?  And, when it comes time to involve the children in creating the bucket list, remember that kids don’t know what they don’t know. Certain theme parks and resorts will likely be on their radar screens. But they may not be aware of the glories of Yellowstone or Yosemite or the historical significance of Gettysburg or the Alamo. You can and should set the direction.

About the money. Choosing to make travel a priority is a decision that may require foregoing other luxuries or experiences. But the quality bonding time and lifelong memories are sure to be worth it. Consider creating a travel savings account. Opt for travel related gifts for birthdays, graduations and holidays. Encourage the children to establish their own travel fund. Saving for a specific trip can be an important part of the overall experience.

About the time. Whether you begin by tossing up a tent in the backyard or strategizing to experience a safari in Africa, there is no time like the present to begin planning family travel. As children get older, their schedules become increasingly complicated by their own commitments. Take advantage of school breaks. Consider off-season adventures when fewer crowds and lower prices can enrich your experience, even if it means missing a few days of class.  Is a month, summer or year abroad on your family wish list? If, so, begin the research now.

You’ve planned and prioritized. Now, have fun. Take pictures.

- Lynn O’Rourke Hayes

“Quitting smoking is easy. I’ve done it a hundred times!”

The often repeated words of Mark Twain.

Can you relate?

Perhaps it is time to become a healthier you. Here are five tips that will help you breathe easy in no time.

1. Choose a quit smoking date.

2. Begin walking every day. You’ll build discipline and heart/lung health. Plus you’ll feel better from the start.

3 .Talk with your doctor about your plan and any aids he or she might suggest.

4.Gather support from friends and family. Let them know what you are up to and ask for their encouragement.

5. Find a “breathing buddy”, someone who shares your goal to quit smoking and develop cleaner, healthier lungs and lifestyle. If you don’t know anyone, contact your doctor or local hospital and inquire about smoking cessation programs. You’ll perhaps find a “buddy” there as well as additional information and support.

Here’s to a healthy year ahead!

Headed to college? If you or your kids will be seeking higher education, here’s a good place to start. These classics provide an insight into the ways of the world.

Get started reading now. Or, perhaps this will make round two for you. Either way, enjoy!

1. Lord of the Rings by JRR Tolkien: W.H. Auden thought this tale of fantastic creatures out to destroy a piece of fell jewellery was a “masterpiece.”
2. To Kill a Mockingbird by Harper Lee: A child’s-eye view of racial prejudice and weird neighbours in Thirties Alabama.
3. The Home and the World by Rabindranath Tagore: A rich Bengali noble lives happily until a radical revolutionary appears.
4. The Hitchhiker’s Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams: Earth is demolished to make way for a Hyperspatial Express Route. Don’t panic.
5. One Thousand and One Nights Anon: A Persian king’s new bride tells tales to stall post-coital execution.
6. The Sorrows of Young Werther by Johann Wolfgang von Goethe : Werther loves Charlotte, but she’s already engaged. Woe is he!
7. Midnight’s Children by Salman Rushdie: The children of poor Hindus and wealthy Muslims are switched at birth.
8. Tinker, Tailor, Soldier, Spy by John le Carre: Nursery rhyme provides the code names for British spies suspected of treason.
9. Cold Comfort Farm by Stella Gibbons : Hilarious satire on doom-laden rural romances. “Something nasty” has been observed in the woodshed.
10. The Tale of Genji by Lady Murasaki: The life and loves of an emperor’s son. And possibly the world’s first novel?
11. Under the Net by Iris Murdoch: A feckless writer has dealings with a canine movie star. Comedy and philosophy combined.
12. The Golden Notebook by Doris Lessing: Lessing considers communism and women’s liberation in what Margaret Drabble calls “inner space fiction.”
13. Eugene Onegin by Alexander Pushkin: Passion, poetry and pistols in this verse novel of thwarted love.
14. On the Road by Jack Kerouac: Beat generation boys aim to “burn, burn, burn like fabulous yellow roman candles.”
15. Old Goriot by Honore de Balzac: A disillusioning dose of Bourbon Restoration realism. The anti-hero “Rastingnac” became a byword for ruthless social climbing.
16. The Red and the Black by Stendhal: Plebian hero struggles against the materialism and hypocrisy of French society with his “force diame.”
17. The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas: “One for all and all for one:” the eponymous swashbucklers battle the mysterious Milady.
18. Germinal by Emile Zola: Written to “germinate” social change, Germinal unflinchingly documents the starvation of French miners.
19. The Stranger by Albert Camus: Frenchman kills an Arab friend in Algiers and accepts “the gentle indifference of the world.”
20. The Name of the Rose by Umberto Eco: Illuminating historical whodunnit set in a 14th-century Italian monastry.
21. Oscar and Lucinda by Peter Carey: An Australian heiress bets an Anglican priest he can’t move a glass church 400km.
22. Wide Sargasso Sea by Jean Rhys: Prequel to Jane Eyre giving moving, human voice to the mad woman in the attic.
23. Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland by Lewis Carroll: Carroll’s ludic logic makes it possible to believe six impossible things before breakfast.
24. Catch-22 by Joseph Heller: Yossarian feels a homicidal impulse to machine gun total strangers. Isn’t that crazy?
25. The Trial by Franz Kafka: K proclaims he’s innocent when unexpectedly arrested. But “innocent of what?”
26. Cider with Rosie by Laurie Lee: Protagonist’s “first long secret drink of golden fire” is under a hay wagon.
27. Waiting for the Mahatma by RK Narayan: Gentle comedy in which a Gandhi-inspired Indian youth becomes an anti-British extremist.
28. All Quiet on the Western Front by Erich Remarque: The horror of the Great War as seen by a teenage soldier.
29. Dinner at the Homesick Restaurant by Anne Tyler: Three siblings are differently affected by their parents’ unexplained separation.
30. The Dream of the Red Chamber by Cao Xueqin: Profound and panoramic insight into 18th-century Chinese society.
31. The Leopard by Giuseppe Tomasi di Lampedusa: Garibaldi’s Redshirts sweep through Sicily, the “jackals” ousting the nobility, or “leopards.”
32. If On a Winter’s Night a Traveller by Italo Calvino: International book fraud is exposed in this playful postmodernist puzzle.
33. Crash by JG Ballard: Former TV scientist preaches “a new sexuality, born from a perverse technology.”
34. A Bend in the River by VS Naipaul: East African Indian Salim travels to the heart of Africa and finds “The world is what it is.”
35. Crime and Punishment by Fyodor Dostoyevsky: Boy meets pawnbroker. Boy kills pawnbroker with an axe. Guilt, breakdown, Siberia, redemption.
36. Dr. Zhivago by Boris Pasternak: Romantic young doctor’s idealism is trampled by the atrocities of the Russian Revolution.
37. The Cairo Trilogy by Naguib Mahfouz: Follows three generations of Cairenes from the First World War to the coup of 1952.
38. The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde by Robert Louis Stevenson: This famous novella has been adapted for movies, opera and plays.
39. Gulliver’s Travels by Jonathan Swift: Swift’s scribulous satire on travellers’ tall tales (the Lilliputian Court is really George I’s).
40. My Name Is Red by Orhan Pamuk: A painter is murdered in Istanbul in 1591. Unusually, we hear from the corpse.
41. One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez: Myth and reality melt magically together in this Colombian family saga.
42. London Fields by Martin Amis: A failed novelist steals a woman’s trashed diaries which reveal she’s plotting her own murder.
43. The Savage Detectives by Roberto Bolaoo: Gang of South American poets travel the world, sleep around, challenge critics to duels.
44. The Glass Bead Game by Herman Hesse: Intellectuals withdraw from life to play a game of musical and mathematical rules.
45. The Tin Drum by Gnter Grass: Madhouse memories of the Second World War. Key text of European magic realism.
46. Austerlitz by WG Sebald: Paragraph-less novel in which a Czech-born historian traces his own history back to the Holocaust.
47. Lolita by Vladimir Nabokov: Scholar’s sexual obsession with a prepubescent “nymphet” is complicated by her mother’s passion for him.
48. The Handmaid’s Tale by Margaret Atwood: After nuclear war has rendered most sterile, fertile women are enslaved for breeding.
49. The Catcher in the Rye by JD Salinger: Expelled from a “phony” prep school, adolescent anti-hero goes through a difficult phase.
50. Underworld by Don DeLillo: From baseball to nuclear waste, all late-20th-century American life is here.
51. Beloved by Toni Morrison: Brutal, haunting, jazz-inflected journey down the darkest narrative rivers of American slavery.
52. The Grapes of Wrath by John Steinbeck: “Okies” set out from the Depression dustbowl seeking decent wages and dignity.

 

What’s not to love about a carousel?  For a charming mix of music, whimsy and history, here are five to consider: 

Salem, Oregon. Located in the city’s 23-acre riverfront park, this vintage-style carousel was lovingly created as a community project. Dozens of locals families worked to prepare the site, even carve and hand paint the horses.  With old-fashioned organ music as the backdrop, families now enjoy seasonal celebrations including breakfast with Santa. The gift shop offers handcrafted ornaments, books and gifts to providing continuing support for the community treasure. Contact: 503-540-0374;  salemcarousel.org

North Tonawanda, NY. Visit the one-of-a-kind Herschell Carrousel Factory Museum, housed in the original factory building where you can ride two antique carousels and delve into their history. The largest of the pair is 40 feet in diameter, with hundreds of lights and 36 hand carved horses, some dating to the late 1890s. Rotating at 6.5 revolutions per minute, the carousel was originally intended as a thrill ride for adults. The “kiddie carousel” in the Children’s Gallery was created in the 1940s for the junior set to ride without the help of adults. It has been completely restored. Ask about carving and restoration demonstrations and other family events scheduled throughout the year. Contact: www.carrouselmuseum.org

Indianapolis, IN. The centerpiece of the permanent exhibit called Carousel Wishes and Dreams is one of the three oldest surviving Dentzel menagerie carousels in the world.  This revolving gem was originally installed in 1917 at the Broad Ripple Park. After the building in which it was housed collapsed, the animals were salvaged, restored and eventually lowered through the roof to its new home on the fourth floor of the expansive Children’s Museum of Indianapolis.  Contact: www.childrensmuseum.org/carousel

Westerly, Rhode Island. Built
in 1876 and a National Historic Landmark, families can climb aboard what many believe to be the oldest flying horse
carousel in the country. Once part of a traveling carnival, the charming carousel in Watch Hill features hand-carved horses suspended from chains. Thus, as the speed increases they seem to “fly”.  Each horse has a leather saddle and a tail and mane crafted from real horse hair. Revelers
can reach for the brass ring near the end of the ride. If you are lucky enough to grab it, you’ll win a
token for a free ride.

Contact: 401-348-6007;  www.visitrhodeisland.com/what-to-do/amusements/458/flying-horse-merry-go-round/

Santa Ana, California.  Kids learn about environmental conservation and preservation when they climb about this eco-minded carousel at the Santa Ana Zoo. Rather than hand-carved horses, the Conservation Carousel is comprised of endangered species. After circling aboard this unique ride, kids receive a collectible educational card with information about at risk creatures. The zoo, founded in 1952, is located on a 20-acre urban oasis. A request from its original benefactor means you will find 50 monkeys in residence at all times. Contact: 714-836-4000; www.SantaAnaZoo.com.

Keeping the kids entertained all summer can be an expensive endeavor. Check out these five Colorado ideas that won’t break the bank.

1. TRAIL RIDGE ROAD

Take an adventure on one of the world’s best nature-made roller coasters, the ride along Rocky Mountain National Park‘s Trail Ridge Road. Open from Memorial Day to late autumn, the scenic byway — topping out at 12,183 feet above sea level — is the highest continuous paved road in the United States. Kids love being the first to spot a ptarmigan or bighorn sheep and wildflowers from every color in the rainbow.

2. U.S. MINT TOUR

More than 50 million coins are produced each year atDenver‘s United States Mint. A behind-the-scenes tour details the history of money and the coin-stamping process, and kids are fascinated by the huge machines that count, sort and bag the coins. You’ll also see the second-largest deposit of solid-gold bullion in the U.S. after Fort Knox. Be sure to book your U.S. Mint tour online in advance.

3. TAKE THE GONDOLA TO MOUNTAIN VILLAGE

Getting to Mountain Village is half the fun. The 13-minute ride from the floor of Telluride‘s cozy box canyon over the ridge to Mountain Village offers a panoramic view peppered with waterfalls, mountain peaks and the colorful old mining shacks in the town below. At the top, a handful summer activities await, including Adventure Rock bouldering, the St. Sophia Nature Center, a disc golf course and hiking and biking trails.

4. NATIONAL WILDLIFE REFUGES

Colorado is home to seven National Wildlife Refuges that are free and open to the public. The refuge system was created to conserve America’s fish, wildlife and natural areas across the country. Visitors can spot everything from bison and moose to hawks and bald eagles living and nesting among some of the state’s most spectacular scenery, and most offer educational and nature activities for kids from hikes and fishing ponds to lectures and interpretive displays. The Rocky Mountain Arsenal refuge just outside Denver recently opened a new visitor center, with a fun Learning Lab where kids can enjoy hands-on activities such as dissecting an owl pellet, looking inside a live bee tree and exploring wildlife dioramas.

5. SOUTH PARK CITY MUSEUM

In the 1950s, a preservation-minded group saw the once-booming South Park area (near Fairplay) fading away and asked the locals to scour their attics and barns for artifacts and relics from its past. More than 40,000 authentic 1880s heirlooms and artifacts turned up and were used to re-construct a town with 40 original buildings that imitate life as it was at the end of the 19th century. You can actually go inside most of the buildings, and there are very few “don’t touch” signs. The museum welcomes kids under six for free.