On a pure whim we decided to drop everything and take a trip to the mountains. The prospect was enchanting, as this would be my very first time in Breckenridge. A friend had some time available at the Hyatt Residence Club property – Main Street Station. She selflessly offered it up to a few friends, if any of us had the time to go. After checking out a few pictures online it felt nearly impossible to not take advantage of a few days off to relax and reset with the family.
I packed entirely too many clothes for a two-night stay, but I didn’t know what to expect. In my youth I’d have thrown a shirt and underwear in a backpack and not been home for a week. As an adult I’ve grown used to trying on five shirts before I decide on one and I do enjoy my fancy of footwear. In addition to the week’s worth of clothing I packed for myself, my husband and my son, I brought plenty of smoke supplies: weed, papers, a chillum, an O.penVape o.pen and a go.pen and some donated shatter. All kept locked up in my new favorite storage case, an Eva-2 from Anonymous Bags. This thing has a locking zipper head. So I just kept the key in my wallet and the case tucked inside a bag on top of the fridge. (Read up on more stash storage options here.)
Did I expect to need everything I brought? No. But isn’t it the official scout motto (and the unofficial mommy motto) that declares “be prepared”? I had to be prepared, people. I didn’t know if it was a smoking room we’d be in (crossing my fingers) or if we’d be confined to a balcony in our wintriest of coats. Snow was expected over the few days we were there, so I was really hoping we wouldn’t be schlepping all around town trying to find some cannabis enjoyment. Of course we want to follow all hotel rules, but we want to smoke weed on our vacation too.
Check-in was painless at Main Street Station. The front-desk attendant was personable and informative. Shortly after we put our son to bed I rolled a joint in anticipation of unwinding after driving through the mountains in the snow. Scary.
But my cooling-out session was only an inviting mirage. “No smoking,” warned a booklet we had received at check-in, not anywhere on the Hyatt property, including on your balcony. Sigh. Evidence of breaking the no-smoking rules would result in charges starting at $500.
Cue my jaw dropping.
Yes, we could try the balcony and hope for the best, but there were other guests with balconies adjacent to ours and staff that I noticed walking the grounds a few times. Call me … observant. We had brought some Ozium, an air sanitizing spray to be used sparingly that absolutely belongs in any traveling toker’s toolkit. But $500 is a lot to chance for the sake of smoking a joint and I’m not going to lie, I did not feel confident rolling the dice.
So I started the morning with a quick and discreet vape and we headed out to explore the town on foot and look for some family entertainment.
Vaporizer reviews: Products from O.penVape, Firefly, Pax Ploom & more
Breakfast is hard to find in Breckenridge in the offseason. Most places are closed from the end of April until late May. Who knew? Not me. But I just kept in mind it wasn’t costing anything to take in the magnificence surrounding me and it was actually a relief to not be navigating the busy streets with a 2-year-old. Empty streets were … OK.
You know how in Denver when you walk around here or there you might catch a whiff of the goods? Well, didn’t catch any such skunky scents in Breckenridge. Not even a waft. Again, maybe it’s because things were slow, slow, slow in town on a Monday during “mud season” but … just sayin’.
We did pass a dispensary, Breckenridge Cannabis Club, during our walk and we saw another one, Alpenglow Botanicals, on our drive out of town — but remained passersby. Our son was with us and dispensaries are not so family friendly (and rightly so).
We did find family-friendly dining at Park and Main for breakfast and Empire Burger for dinner. Both places had above-average service, maybe even better than our actual food. However, when you’re being served with a smile and you’ve braved the snow for a warm meal, that warm meal is probably going to taste pretty darn good, no?
There wasn’t really any activities geared toward children my son’s age. I did see that the Breckenridge Rec Center offers Family Gym Time for residents and visitors on Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays from 10 a.m. to noon. But the entire town was an open gym! And at only 2 he can sure wear himself out with a little snow adventure. By the time we’d walked most of the way down Main Street, he was ready for Daddy to pick him up so he could catch a quick nap before we made it back to the hotel.
Hooray that the Hyatt had a free movie rental kiosk. We decided that instead of fretting about not smoking (I’ll admit I obsessed a little bit — could we go down to the car and smoke solo? Could we sneak onto the roof in the stairwell?) we just watched a thriller.
Overall, Breckenridge was quaint with breathtaking views one can’t really do justice with meager descriptions. With that said, I probably wouldn’t go back in the offseason again. Main Street is lined with cute little shops, 85% of which were not open for business during our two-day stay. And while the solitude of a cozy mountain town can be refreshing, a ghost town is a very different scene. I don’t want to feel like I’m in a scene from “The Walking Dead,” stumbling upon people here and there wondering if they are friend or foe.
If you are planning a trip to Breck (family or no) and you want to get high, I seriously recommend bringing a vaporizer. It could also be the perfect situation for some responsibly dosed edibles. Because let me tell you, unless you have balls of steel, actually smoking weed legally is going to be a hard goal to accomplish — especially with a child in tow.
