Pueblo, My “Big Little Town.”

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I would not call Pueblo a big ticket vacation destination that people would put on their summer vacation list, but it does have its charm.
I have always referred to it as a “Big Little Town.” It is considered a city, but it has that small town feel. I posted the question on a FB group of people from Pueblo and asked “What is the Heart of Pueblo?”  There was a lot of engagement with that question.  The most frequent responses were “It’s the people.”  That is true.  Pueblo is like a “Big Little Town.” Everybody knows everybody.

Pueblo is home to 4 Congressional Medal of Honor Recipients during World War II.  Thus, the name “Home of Heroes.”

  There’s no big skyline here. The way you know you are in Pueblo is the towers of the steel mill. The CF&I was the largest employer in Pueblo until about 1982. Now, Parkview Hospital is the largest employer for Pueblo.

So how does one end up in Pueblo for their summer vacation?  Well, if you have family here, you’re going to come back and visit.  If you’re from here you’re going to come back and visit to  see what’s changed.  We have many sporting events, Sunbelt Classic for the soccer kids,  Babe Ruth tournament for the baseball kids, and Basketball tournaments at the different high schools or out at CSU-P.   Since we’re talking sports, Pueblo has its own Hockey Team, “The Pueblo Bulls.”

There are many festivals that can bring you to Pueblo.  There is “Brew at the Pueblo Zoo,” ( Last Sat. in April); NSRA Rocky Mountain Street Rod Nationals, (June) “Rollin on the River, (4th of July) and Festival Fridays, every Friday (Jan – Feb) in winter and July – Aug in summer.  But the biggest festival is in late September, and it is the Chile and Frijole Festival!  There’s food, music and most of all if you haven’t purchased your roasted green chile yet, then this is where you can stock up for the year!

 

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Pueblo’s Riverwalk is a great place to go walking, enjoy the sunshine or eat at one of the local restaurants located along the Riverwalk. It looks a little forlorn right now in the winter but it is gorgeous in the summer with water.

For all you foodies, we are home to the Green Chile Slopper Challenge between Coors Tavern and Sunset Bar and Grill.  It was featured on the Travel Channel.  My husband and I did our own taste test, and we were 50/50. He liked Coors best, and I liked the Sunset Bar & Grill best! I’m not going to tell you who won, you should come and take your own taste test and decide for yourself!

There is the Pueblo Reservoir, you can go camping and fishing and take your boat out on Lake Pueblo. There is also the Rock Canyon swim area, with a place to play volleyball and a large picnic area.  The Nature Center bicycle trail rolls right through there.

You can go Kayaking on the Arkansas River after the spring run-off. Did you know we have surfing in Pueblo as well?  It’s true you can go river surfing on the Arkansas River as well.  You can do all this at Pueblo’s White Water Park, it is about a 1/2 mile stretch with 8 drops.

There are many museums you can check out in Pueblo, The Rosemount Museum, The El Pueblo Museum, The Buell Children’s Museum, The Weisbrod Aircraft Museum, just to name a few.  In total there are 10 museums you can visit while in Pueblo.

We have a great little Pueblo Zoo. In the summer there is nothing like the City Park Rides in the evening.  My son-in-law’s dad Gilbert Garcia helped with the restoration of the Carousel Horses.  He was a master woodcarver.

We have 3 public swimming pools, Mineral Palace with a water slide, City Park, with water slides and Pueblo West.

The top hotels hotelsto stay downtown are:

• Courtyard by Marriott, connected to the Convention Center
• Springhill Suites

The biggest reason to come to Pueblo however, is The Colorado State Fair! This year will be the 148th year for the the Colorado State Fair. This year’s fair will be Aug.28 – Sept. 7, 2020.  There’s food, exhibits, concerts, rodeo and fireworks at the end of each night.

There really is more to do in Pueblo than one might think. Again what makes Pueblo, is the people.