I'm a long-time fan of trailriding, and try out guest ranches wherever I travel. This gem of the…read morewest, Sylvandale has topped my list after many years of comparisons. We, as Coloradans are blessed to have this unique and top-quality ranch right in our neighborhood, at the base of the Rocky Mountains. It has the finest viewpoints from red rock formations, canyon lands, a rushing river, a gorgeous, authentic ranch with multiple trails of varying lengths and endlessly pretty viewpoints, no matter the season. Staff have always been perfectly fun, engaging, safe, and accommodating. But I am definitely saving the best for last... the horses !!! I have never ever been disappointed in the horses I've ridden here. I'd tell you the names of my favorites, but I'll save that for you to find on your own. They are just how you hope they'd be. Healthy, well-cared for, strong, stable, and light to your requests. They are also light and sure on their feet even as they cross rocks, and all kinds of natural Colorado native brush. I fall in love with this place and my horse more every time I visit. This is your trail ride! This is your place! This is your horse making epic memories.

The good: staff is super nice and helpful to a point. The views and the sound of the river. The…read morewind through the trees. The Turkeys walking around. The not good: they struggle mightily to get food served. I mean every single meal. Every one. UNSAT. They know exactly how many guests they have yet run out of food so fast during service. It's ridiculous. The cabins. Sometimes 'old for the sake of being old' just doesn't work. Modern plumbing fixtures and plumbing are not the devil. Example: I don't need to experience 100 year old bathing experience in a cabin with a brand new air conditioner. Also - don't put quilts on the beds with a sign that says don't use the quilts as they're for decoration. Lighting: pick a lane. LED or Incandescent. Using both just looks cheap. Onsite maintenance support: having the bulk of the cabins with no water is a real problem. Not having people onsite to immediately address that problem is even worse. Trash: a little trash can in the room doesn't cut it. Either put out trash bins for people to use that can be secured or have your staff collect trash daily. Key drop: if you want cabin keys returned to the office then either have an employee there before 0830 or have a key drop slot. The potential is there for this place to do so much better. That said this trip had me stay in 4 different hotels. Sylvan Dale was far and away the most expensive rate and they rank last out of last of a spot we'd revisit. Note: I don't do the trail ride or any other activities so those don't factor in to my feedback. This is strictly about accommodations and hospitality.

Soooooo much FUN! This was our 4th time rafting and it's…read moreour #1 fav so far! Did the full day session 22 miles on the river! It was beautiful, and so fun! Rapids were FUN! Def would recommend this company and we would def come back and do it again... ;) The pub they have go after ur done rafting.... Everyone there is AWESOME! Thank you again guys!

Had a great time. River was moderate but still had some rapids. Very good guides that helped to…read moremake the trip safe and enjoyable

This place is fantastic! They do lots of stuff for skating, the community, kids and teens…read more I have been here 2 times with my girl scouts. They have done a beginning skate class for us. It was easy to schedule. I sent an email and gave some dates/times and they picked one. After that had to pay the fee for class in advance. And then we got to wait until class day! The teachers are great and super passionate about what they do. My scouts felt super comfortable with them. For class, they leant them boards and helmets and then pads to whoever wanted them. They offer some open skate times, women/girls only, 30+ night, beginner class and more. They also have a small skate shop in their building. Its the only indoor skate park in fort collins. So on dates that its cold outside its supposedly busier than when its nice out. There is not a ton of parking so just be forewarned.

Opted to give whetstone a second try. Not because we are interested in becoming members or coming…read morehere regularly, just wanted to try out something different from our norm. Pros : -Climbing options were good. There are a large variety of ropes to choose from. -There are 4 autobelay options I believe -There is also a lead climbing area. -Of course there is also a bouldering area which seemed like quite a few choices, but they were busy working on it today so there was not much of it open to use. -They have some sinks out by the climbing wall so you can go wash your hands and not have to take off all your gear in order to wash your hands. Cons: -Price! holy smokes $46 for me and my daughter climb for 2 hours. Yikes!!! this is more than i pay for my gym membership for my entire family for a month......... That does not include gear rental either as we have our own so we didn't need any of theirs. If you want or need gear it will be more. -You will need to fill out the waiver upon entering not a big deal but their ipad system makes it a little tough to get through. -If you want to do more than bouldering you will need to take a test for top rope and also watch a video for autobelay. Okay fairly standard. However, they failed to mention until after I paid that 1. they were working on the bouldering wall so not much available there. 2. The guy couldn't leave the front desk and no one else was available so can't do the auto belay training either If a good chunk of things are not going to be an option and obviously we are not a regular maybe make sure you let people know BEFORE they pay. We did do the top ropes test. It will take between 5-15 minutes depending on you. I just felt jipped because we did not have the option of using anything and I paid what I felt like was a LOT of money! They could have at least told me upfront that hey you wont be able to use the auto belay and a lot of our bouldering is tore up so probably can't use a lot of that either. I may have made a different decision and went elsewhere. Anyhow. I guess my impression from last time 2 years ago about to this time was not much different.

Whetstone Climbing is a new climbing gym in the Fort Collins/Loveland area. The facilities are…read moremodern and there is a very ample amount of space for sport climbing, bouldering, and working out. I very much enjoyed my experience at Whetstone and I thought the service and amenities were good. The overall setting was decent. Expect slightly stiffer ratings than other gyms in town but still not overly so. One slight concern I had if I were a regular would be the route turnover- it did not seem to be the same as Ascent, the other gym in town and routes stayed up a bit longer. I think the setting at Ascent is maybe a little better but it's hard to really tell given I only climbed 8 sport routes here vs. years at Ascent. The rates seem fair. $17 for a day pass is cheaper than superior gyms down in Denver. Membership rates seem about the same as Ascent and if I were living in Fort Collins, I'd likely just go to whichever gym was closer to where I lived. The community is friendly and I thought the idea of a bar/coffee area is smart. Definitely hope that Whetstone succeeds as a gym.

Who knew Goat Yoga was a real thing? When my work hosted an event at Barnyard Buddies, I quickly…read morejumped on board to see what this new trend was all about. Let me say, it was so much fun! A few things: + They provide a yoga mat, as your personal mat will get really dirty! + Located on a beautiful ranch/farm in Loveland. + No need for any yoga experience! The instructor leads the class with basic yoga poses, yet the focus is more of the baby goats prancing on and around you! + The instructor and her husband are really engaging and do a great job of making you laugh. + The farm hosts a lot of animals! From a wild turkey and horses, to the instructors golden retriever roaming around, it's fun to see and pet all the animals. + A small souvenirs shop is onsite with coffee mugs, yoga mats, T-shirt's and goat inspired trinkets! + Makes for a great group event! Lots of laughs and baby goat fun! This is definitely the place to check out for a unique and fun experience!

Yes, I gave into the quirky goat yoga trend. I've never enjoyed being in a goat pen so much! Not…read morethat I've been in many :) fear not yogi newbies, this isn't really a "yoga" session as it is the perfect excuse to be around the cutest baby goats ever! Yes, of course there is yoga involved. But instead of focusing on the eagle pose, you focus on the fun pose that is conducive to pro-goat poses! The staff was so entertaining and nice! Our instructor did a fantastic job of leading the class and was so patient. All the while a friendly gentleman (I believe her hubby) made sure we all got some quality goat action! No one left unsatisfied that they didn't get the full run yoga experience! I went on my own because I'm a one man wolf pack. But most others went in small groups or with a friend so I imagine it's even more fun when your friends can snap photos all the while there is a goat enjoying your mat. :) Give in to your inner goat loving self and enjoy the quirk that is goat yoga! I dare you not to smile. You'll never make it through without giggling!

My husband and I wanted to try white water rafting during our vacation in CO. We found this…read morebusiness online and they were able to accommodate us. We drove over an hour to Fort Collins and found it easily. Getting outfitted with gear and instructions took a while. We were taken by school bus to the river site and met with our guide. She was very good in reviewing the rules and terminology used while rafting. Overall a very fun experience. I would recommend this business.

We had the absolute best time on the Poudre River with Dakota. He was a great guide. He was…read moreknowledgeable, and and helped my anxious daughter to feel secure and confident during our ride. Honestly, everyone from their staff and the folks at restaurant above (Vern's) that we interacted with was fantastic! Do not hesitate to book with Wanderlust Adventure they are the best! It was one of the highlights of our trip to Colorado.

Time for teen 2 to get certified. She took the pool certification and next month will be doing…read moreopen water diving certification with them at the homestead crater. They are accomodating and easy to work with. Both of my kids have enjoyed the classes and instructors immensely. The store is clean, though does have limited parking in the lot. However thr is plenty of street parking. My kids have thoroughly enjoyed working with this company.

Not the greatest experience. It's been a while and I'm still annoyed, so here's the story…read more I needed a carbon fiber scba tank filled so visited the shop with high hopes. Dude looked at the tank and asked if it had a visual inspection. Nope. Not required. Just hydro every 5 years. Last test in May 2024. Dude agreed DOT doesn't require visual, but he does. Annoying, but I agreed to leave the tank overnight for his $20 visual. I mentioned it was a high pressure cylinder. Dude said yeah, looks like 4500 psi. He didn't indicate that would be a problem. No call after 2 days so went to pick up the tank. The young lady helping me wasn't rude, just markedly unfriendly. She looked at the tag and said, "OK. Just the hydro, then." "You mean the visual?" "Same test. We just call it that." It's not the same, but whatever. She looked at the tag again and said it didn't need the visual after all. Yeah, that's what I told dude. Did you want it filled? Yeah, that was the point. The tank has a gauge to show remaining psi. It was at 3600, pretty close to the pressure it was when I brought it in. Stern young woman explained it depends on their bank pressure, which I understand, but would have been nice to know when I dropped it off...or I wouldn't have left it to be filled. That'll be $54. That's ridiculous. The hydro test was $40. No. The tank has current hydro. Dude wouldn't fill the tank without doing an unnecessary visual. Oh, ok. $14. For a short fill? It depends on our bank pressure...

A family group of eleven in town for a memorial service ended our time in the water. It was…read moreperfect. Our guide was Will. He did an outstanding job and made our half day morning trip so much fun. Highly recommend!

Booked a rafting trip for our softball team and their families over the July 4th holiday week. 36…read morepeople total. Pros: The group booking process was easy and the staff was super friendly and accommodating for our big group. Upon arrival the presentation was organized and thorough, especially the video that covers all of the safety instructions. Shop is big, with two restrooms and a comfortable outdoor seating area which is nice, as we waited almost an hour before getting on the bus. The guides were fun and energetic, especially Grace who engaged our group of teen girls and got them hyped up on the bus ride for the trip, banging their paddles on the bus roof! Everyone had positive feedback and was happy with their first rafting experience through RMA. Cons: We did a level 3 trip and it seemed a bit calm. Not too many "rapids", water level was low, and the two legs of the trip we made seemed short, under an hour each. Towards the end of the trip I asked if we could have some time for the girls to swim in the river the head guide abruptly said no and that we were out of time (likely because a raft had overturned and we spent 15 mins+ docked and waiting for them to regroup). Would have been nice to have maybe used that time to swim instead of just sitting in our rafts. Oh well. Overall, our group was happy with our trip and all said they're ready for a level 4. I would def recommend RMA for your group adventure, assuming most trips are the same duration. I'm especially thankful to Grace for making it so fun and memorable for our softball girls. Thanks guys!