Beautiful backroads of the Colorado Rockies offer a unique display of colorful fall leaves.

It’s no secret that Monument falls a bit short when it comes to entertaining its many teenage occupants. With the warm summer days basically over, most might think that there is nothing left to do. But the closing of the “summer door” to pools, tanning, and lake days, only opens the window the fun fall activities. Here are some ideas on how to get into that festive, fall spirit.

Make a fall Playlist

Making a fall playlist for an IPod or phone provides a chance to update ones music library, but can also be used as a reminder of fall every time the songs on it are played. If searching for music becomes a challenge, try asking friends for music suggestions. There are many music websites such as “Earmilk.com”, that can give you an inside scoop on new and upcoming artists for every genre. This idea is so simple and minimal effort is required. Just relax and have fun discovering new music, or reminisce while adding favorite tracks new and old to the playlist.

Go for a drive

Grab some friends or family and go for a mountain drive. This up close view through the winding mountain roads can give specters a chance to see the array of beautiful changing leaves that we are not always exposed to, on such a large scale, here in Monument.

Go for a hike

The weather is still nice enough to hike comfortably and living so close to the mountains there is no shortage of beautiful places to go hiking, in the crisp fall air. For the more adventurous there are the Boulder Fields located at Palmer Lake reservoir, which also offers other hiking trails up the beautiful mountainside. Mount Herman is a favorite among locals of all ages because of the variety of trails it has to offer. Fox Run Park seems to be the best suited for those considering bringing a dog with them, due to the long marked trails, which are safe and convenient for both the dog and pet owner.

Host a “Scary Movie” night

Invite some friends over, dress code: comfy PJ’s-. Provide the popcorn and Halloween candy and have your friends each bring over their favorite scary movies. Horror films aren’t for everyone.  It’s the Great- Pumpkin Charlie Brown is a cute fall classic that can get anyone in the fall spirit.

Pick out pumpkins

There is a great variety of places to pick out a pumpkin here in Monument. Local grocery stores such as Wal-Mart and King Soopers offer surprisingly good quality pumpkins of all shapes and sizes, for a cheap price. For those who want large pumpkins to carve for Halloween or smaller ones to use as fall decorations, there is no shortage of fall spirit in Monument.

Choose a Halloween costume

Some teenagers feel they are too old for trick-or-treating once they reach high school, however, some continue to keep this age old tradition going well into their high school years. If you are completely idealess, looking online is a great place to start. Simply by seeing pictures of costumes or hearing others costume ideas are good ways to come totally unique. Believe it or not, there are many ways to have an amazing Halloween costume without spending an insane amount of cash. Raiding parents, siblings, and friends closet’s (with permission of course) for anything you could pair together to create the perfect look, is a great way to create a Halloween costume.

Unfortunately, Colorado does not always have quite the extended autumn months as some states do. Snow has already been predicted to fall within these next few weeks. With that in mind, be sure to enjoy the rest of Autumn before the long winter ahead.