I'm a Colorado local. If I had one day to show you my state, I'd skip Denver and take you to a city just west of it. – Business Insider

I’m a Colorado local. If I had one day to show you my state, I’d skip Denver and take you to a city just west of it.  Business Insider

I've lived in Colorado for over a decade. If I had just a single day to show someone what I love about the state, I wouldn't take them to our capital city, Denver. Instead, I'd bring them to the much smaller city of Golden. Golden gives has a little bit of everything for visitors: mountains and hiking trails, a creek running through town, a historic downtown made for wandering on foot, and plenty of places to eat and drink. It's located just about 15 miles west of downtown Denver, or about a 25-minute drive, and typically less than an hour's drive from the Denver International Airport. Here's why I love bringing out-of-towners to Golden — and where I'd take them when they visited.

Golden has several coffee shops, but I'd start my perfect day here at Sogo Beans and Boards. The family-owned coffee and skate shop is just minutes from downtown. I love that Sogo air-roasts its fair-trade coffee and makes its own syrups and pastries. Its plant-filled room, free Wi-Fi, and garden patio make it easy to linger over a latte, and it's the kind of independent shop that makes a morning feel unhurried. The city makes it easy to go from a coffee shop to a trail without a long drive. For a leisurely morning, I'd rent an