I’ve always said that HeidiTown needs a helicopter. I found one at Wings Over the Rockies, Denver’s Air and Space Museum. This museum has been on our radar since we went to a food and beer festival there many years ago.
However, Ryan really wanted to visit again, and I am in charge of the calendar. I wasn’t that intrigued by the thought of going to a museum full of planes. It turns out that it’s not just full of planes, it’s full of stories, and I love stories.
We finally got around to going to the Air and Space Museum on Ryan’s birthday weekend in Denver. Driving down from Loveland on a snowy morning, we found it closed due to the weather.
We ended up at the Denver Aquarium, which I hadn’t visited in twenty years. In fact, I think I went when it was still the Colorado River Adventure before it got bought by Landry’s Inc.
I do not have much to write about the outing other than it is expensive, they have tigers (not cool), and it smells funky. I grew up with amazing aquariums in the Pacific Northwest and Vancouver, B.C. so a for-profit “entertainment” venue is not my cup of tea. But in our defense, there wasn’t much open, and I do like watching fish, but I’d rather snorkel with them in Cozumel, but I digress.
11 Things You Should Know Before Going to Cozumel, Mexico (circa 2016) with updates
We ended up back at Wings Over the Rockies the next day, much to Ryan’s relief. And I’m so glad that we did. Having arrived at the museum’s opening on a snowy morning, there weren’t many other visitors, so we had the place and volunteers to ourselves (for a while). It got busier! But the ginormous space didn’t feel crowded.
There are a lot of planes and Ryan’s a bit like a kid in a candy shop around airplanes, especially military airplanes, and most were. His father, Kurt Schlaefer, attended the Air Force Academy and flew the F-111. They have an F-111.
Most intriguing for me is the big televisions in front of many of the planes. Here, visitors can watch the story of that machine being told by the individuals who flew that type of aircraft. I constantly lost track of Ryan as I stood in front of screen after screen.
Remember them always saying “Mig! Mig!” in Top Gun? Well, they have a Russian MIG at the museum. Turns out, 6,000 American pilots learned how to fly them to have mock air battles with American planes allowing our pilots to get real-life experience fighting them in the air. The video is of a gentleman who learned to fly one of these MIGs, and it’s fascinating.
By the way, there is an F-14 on the floor here. That’s the plane Maverick (Tom Cruise) flew in Top Gun.
One of my standout experiences at the museum was watching two adult men with their wives. One man said, “Oh my gosh, this is so great!” Especially giddy, he too was like a kid in a candy shop.
I love seeing that kind of excitement, especially in an adult.
So, about that HeidiTown helicopter…
Here it is:
I grew up watching Star Trek: The Next Generation so I enjoyed the part of the museum dedicated to space exploration. The interactive stuff here isn’t just for kids. Science is cool!
We didn’t realize there were flight simulators at Denver’s Air and Space Museum and discovered this as we were getting ready to leave. There was a 60-minute wait, so we’ll do it next time. It was fun to watch because we could see what the “pilots” were seeing.
Admission to the Wings Over the Rockies Air & Space Museum is $19.95 for adults over 17. There are discounts for seniors, military, veterans and children. The flight simulator is $12 per person, and you’ll need to sign up because it’s popular.
I would add that the staff and volunteers here are above average—friendly, knowledgeable, and chatty. The gift shop is engaging and has lots of interesting gifts for the plane or space nerd in your life. I have both.
Lastly, I’d recommend lunch or dinner next door at the Lowry Beer Garden (less than five minutes from the front door of the Air and Space Museum). Lowry Beer Garden has a good beer selection and the best salmon BLT I’ve had in a long time. The biergarten is also priced reasonably which is rare these days.
