Gettin’ Groggy in Durango, CO

Durango is a great town, not so big and not so small, but with so much to do. On our way to Cortez we stopped in Durango and managed to see quite a lot in one day. One great stop is the Historic Strater Hotel on Main Avenue, walk around and see the glamorous side of the Old West as it was in 1887. The hotel is beautifully decorated with Victorian antiques and walnut furnishings. Just down the street from the Strater, we found one of many breweries in Durango called Carver Brewing Company. We also had time to visit Ska Brewery. Both fantastic!

A favorite amongst Durango locals, Carver Brewing Company has been around almost 40 years. Carver was the first brewpub to open in the Southwest and the first to open in Durango. Recently the founding brothers Jim and Bill Carver retired and passed the brewery operations over to their kids, who have the same passion for great, food, great beer and great sustainability practices. “Think Green, Drink Beer”, this microbrewery uses solar panels to heat water, wind power as renewable energy, and donates spent grain from the brewing process to local farmers for animal feed. I can see why this brew pub is popular, (the “Black Bear” stout was terrific), The Carver Family really has it down to a science – most definitely worth a visit when you are in this neck of the woods!

SKA Brewery is the brain child of Dave and Bill, a couple of dudes who just want to drink beer… so they drank lots of beer and listened to lots of SKA music and in pursuit of more beer, learned how to brew their own beer and thus, opened SKA Brewery in 1995. Located at 225 Girard Street this is not just any brewery, SKA is a HUGE warehouse with beautiful outdoor views of the San Juans. SKA offers a great food menu and a full list of IPA, hazy, sour and citrus beers; they also host many events, such as Yoga Mondays and Beer Fridays. Check out their fun and colorful beer can designs (produced in the warehouse and sold globally) and oh yay, they are open 7 days a week! WOW… these guys rock!! But why stop there? Dave and Bill have not only created one of the most fun places to drink beer, their sustainability efforts are HUGE as well, their solar building design and water recycle process cuts energy use by 50%. The brewery is 100% wind powered and uses reclaimed waste for construction of the walls, tables, bar tops and the spent grain (yeast and hops) is used for compost to landscape their beer garden. At the end of the day, it’s not just about beer as Dave and Bill say, “we care about where we live… Earth” (and specifically Durango) and guys, after visiting your brewery, I believe you! A HUGE thanks for making beer fun and for recycling… and for just being the dudes that you are.

Two other fun things to do around Durango; Durango Hot Springs Take a couple hours to relax in the geothermal mineral hot springs with oxygen rich nano bubbles infused into 32 natural pools (of varying temps). There are full spa services as well, but the best thing at DHS is that drinking is allowed, so adults can have a cocktail while soaking… we had some very delicious bloody mary’s! DHS is open daily but you must have a reservation, visits are limited to 2 1/2 hours (however they never asked us to leave so not strict about the time limit). Adults cost about $40 and you must bring your own towel. Well worth the cost… next time we will go on a winter’s evening to enjoy a hot soak in the cold snow!

Another MUST GO is James Ranch Grill. The ranch is known for mouth watering grass fed burgers… but their fries and selection of craft beers are great also. From the outdoor seating area, walk the short nature path and learn how the chickens and cows create a symbiotic relationship (gross but interesting) to create these delicious burgers. And the view is gorgeous, like a picture our of a James Herriot novel!