Over three years ago when we were preparing to make our first Lost Valley adventure happen, I was researching places to stay and things to do in Colorado Springs.  Glen Eyrie popped up in my searches.  

 

 

It’s stunning – right?

I’d heard of it before actually – probably from my dad.  Many years earlier Dad and Mom had taken some of us on a journey to Colorado and Wyoming when my oldest brother was getting married in Wyoming.  We visited the Flying W Wranglers and their home base was located right outside of Glen Eyrie.  (The Flying W was since tragically destroyed in a fire, but I think they’re working on rebuilding it currently.)

Glen Eyrie is located right outside the breath taking Garden of the Gods in Colorado Springs and it’s actually not just a regular lodging option.  It’s a castle (for real) and a conference center.  It’s also the home of the Navigators and NavPress.  Back in the day my mom was a part of the Navigators and she shared many fond memories of her time spent working with this organization.  (I wish I could remember what she did but I’m sad to report that I cannot.)  The Glen Eyrie site hosts conferences and meetings, workshops and camps and a myriad of other events.  Andrew Peterson performed there recently – how fun would that have been to watch?

 

 

Glen Eyrie is all those things – conference center, castle, home to elegant afternoon teas, sitting in the shadow of a Colorado staple – Garden of the Gods, but it is also a lodging option for regular people like you and me.  

When I looked into staying at the castle three years ago, the timing didn’t work out.  I shelved the idea for the future.  The second year of Lost Valley we ate lunch with a guest at the ranch who also happened to be the General Manager for Glen Eyrie.  Well, what do you know?  So the third year as Lost Valley planning rolled around I had Glen Eyrie on my mind as an option for the night before we headed out to the ranch.  It’s a great location, it’s gorgeous, it’s unique and it felt like a fun idea to stay somewhere as cool as a castle.

 

 

In the end, we didn’t actually sleep inside the castle part of Glen Eyrie.  (Yeah, I was a little disappointed about that too.  But we’re a large party of people who cannot divide up into multiple rooms without an extra adult just yet.  I know my time is coming when London and Mosely can have their own room with no problem.  It just hasn’t arrived yet.)  We stayed in Glenview Lodge, one of several lodge options besides the castle itself.  In Glenview we were in a wonderful location, about as far back on the campus as you can go, quiet and private and cozy.  We had two rooms – which was such a treat for us since we’d been cramming six of us into two beds at most hotels along the way.  There was an adjoining door between the rooms so it felt quite spacious.  The lodging at Glenview was simple, but more than adequate and it was clean and tidy and welcoming and word on the royal castle street is that it’s being remodeled soon.  Glenview had no TV – which was actually fantastic.  Hotel lodgings so often make you feel forced to stare at a screen of nonsense you never intended to watch anyway.

 

 

Instead of TV, what we did was so much more magical.  Right outside our lodge, as in, directly outside of our parking area, was a hiking trail.  We scampered along that for a good while.  Much to the sheer satisfaction of my sons and much to the – what word is opposite of satisfaction – to my daughters.

 

 

 

When we trekked it back down to the lodge we discovered another major selling point for Glen Eyrie over any other hotel experience.  Because there were only a few families staying at our same lodge – whom we met and chatted with –  (they were from Indiana, attending a conference at Glen Eyrie) we were able to really feel at home and safe.  The kids who so desired settled in with novels and snacks.  The kids who so desired not to settle in climbed on rocks and looked for wildlife.  (Mule deer, loads of birds and whatnot.)  I met in the middle and strung my hammock between some trees by the lodge and read a novel – half way between both sets of kids.

 

 

You guys.  Have you ever had that sort of luxury at a hotel?  I guarantee I have not.

It was truly the most relaxing way to spend a little down time while not in the car and not being forced to stay cramped in a small hotel room watching endless television.

 

 

We wandered around the entire Glen Eyrie campus later that evening, admiring the castle and the grounds and the gorgeous landscaping and the beautiful back drop of rocks and outcroppings and mountains.  We were right in the heart of Colorado Springs and could have explored there all we wanted, but after having just driven across half of the United States, what we really wanted was to sit still in hammocks or climb on rocks.    (And of course we left our own little Ebenezer.  Six rocks.)

 

 

The next morning we headed into the castle for breakfast.  (Which is included in your stay.)  And just like the lodging and the views were unlike any other hotel stay, the breakfast was also wildly unlike a hotel continental breakfast.  In fact, it was nothing like one.  You could eat on the porch overlooking gorgeous views or inside the lovely dining room.  The food was plentiful and delicious, the staff was friendly and accommodating.  It was the perfect start to our morning.  Leisurely and wonderful.  We had walked to the castle from our lodge so it was just as dreamy and pleasant to walk back after breakfast.

 

 

Before we left the castle itself though, we explored inside it a bit.  (With permission, naturally.)  It was such fun.  It’s really a castle.  And it’s really so charming.  I definitely want to stay inside the castle in one of those rooms one day.

Plus, there are tours available and geology talks and so much more – I think we barely scratched the surface.  This spot could definitely be home base for an entire adventure around the area.  (If you decide to go, can I plan your adventure for you?  I love planning and I love Colorado Springs and now I love Glen Eyrie and if I had another life to live (or maybe in my retirement) I might just reside in that mountain state and write copious amounts of words and plan your next vacation too.)

 

 

Between the six of us with frequently differing opinions on what we enjoy, Glen Eyrie was the perfect lodging choice for us. In fact, it has already been requested by the kids to make it a regular part of our western adventures loop. It made every one of us happy.  There happened to be a wedding on the campus, not too far from our lodging, the same night we stayed and their music drifted happy into our open windows late into the evenings and even that felt as if it contributed to our joyful stay.

 

 

 

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