Denver, Colorado

Denver was originally settled in 1858 by explorers crossing the Great Plains of the Midwest and reaching the Rocky Mountains. Denver is well-known as a Wild West town; many log cabins, tepees, and tents were how the original settlers made shelter. This created an expansion in the town's population throughout the latter half of the 19th century.

In 1863, there was a great fire near Denver that burned many homes, along with a flash flood; this forced redevelopment of property, and Denver residents raised money for a local railroad. They earned around $300,000; new railroad lines were built for access around Denver, in addition to travel between different U.S. states.

Known as the Mile-High City, Denver is located approximately 5,280 feet (one mile) above sea level. Its population is only continuing to expand with urban and suburban developments, in addition to various job opportunities. Its metro area population is around 600,000 people. Denver's main language is English, and its currency is the United States Dollar, or USD.

Location

Job Opportunities

Denver offers a variety of industries, ranging from aerospace to business and technology-related services. Denver has many aerospace services and jobs, ranging from well-known space contractors to over 300 aerospace companies. Biosciences are also popular in Denver; these jobs consist of designing and innovating medical devices, in addition to working in pharmacies or conducting scientific research. Broadcasting and telecommunications jobs are opportunistic because Denver lies in the Mountain time zone and there is plenty of both local entertainment and worldwide communication. One other industry is Denver's finance and technology sector, one of the few located in the western United States. There are over 90,000 employees working in the financial industry. Denver is also known for software publishing, with one of the largest employment bases in the United States. From aerospace to bioscience and technology, the Denver metro offers a variety of employment opportunities.

Cost of Living

Denver is more expensive to live in the city compared to the suburban areas. For one-bedroom apartments, city center prices average $1,800 monthly, while those in the suburbs average $1,400. As for larger units, three-bedroom apartments in the city average $3,000 and suburban ones average $2,300 monthly.

Utility expenses, including heat, electricity, and running water, average near $130 per month for Denver residents. If owning a car is important, the average price per gallon of gas is around $3.08, with great variance. The average small car bought brand-new costs around $22,000. Like many other U.S. cities, owning a car is optional with public transportation also being an option.

Transportation

Denver uses the Regional Transportation District, commonly known as the RTD, as its main public transportation network. Services range from buses around town to light and commuter rails to the airport line. The bus is ideal for travelling in the heart of the mile-high city, including going to local events downtown and travelling short distances. The RTD divides transit into four zones: A, B, C, and Airport, with each servicing a different part of the city. If one travels "local," they are in the "A" or "B" zone; C is "regional," travelling from one part of Denver far to another; and the Airport zone is applied if one's trip originates or terminates at the airport.

Denver also offers both a light-rail and commuter-rail system. The light rails go from one end of town to the other more rapidly, allowing for more stops along with a faster mode of transportation. For a more relazing ride, the commuter rail features longer routes, such as further into suburbs, with fewer stops. Regardless of transportation, RTD fares are $3.00 for one-way fares; $6.00 for a day pass; and $114 for a monthly pass. Because the airport is relatively far from the city, there is a slight upcharge for an airport ticket. Travel with the day and monthly passes are unlimited.

Recreation

Situated in the Rocky Mountains, there are a variety of outdoor activities to partake in the city of Denver. During Summer, there is abundant hiking and biking, ranging from city trails and parks to going up the Lookout Mountain for scenic city views and great exercise. These areas turn into downhill skiing paradises for locals and tourists alike during Winter. For local professional sports teams, the Colorado Rockies play baseball at Coors Field, and the Denver Broncos play football at Empower Field at Mile High Stadium. Concert venues are also popular in Denver, with the Red Rocks Park and Amphitheatre. Carved from towering red rock monuments, this venue hosts rock artists from varying decades and styles.

There is also an abundance of culture, art, and history in Denver. Being a westward expansion city in the 1800s, museums include the Buffalo Bill Museum and Grave, the story of Buffalo Bill Cody; Clyfford Still Museum, a famous painter of the 20th century stressing abstract expressionist art; and the Colorado Railroad Museum, with an 1880s-style train depot displaying historic locomotives and cars. Every Saturday, there is a train ride on the "Galloping Goose" around this historic museum.

For more greenery, Denver boasts Confluence Park, where the city was founded in 1858. Today, it is located on a river and an 85-mile trail passes through. Other parks and recreation include the City Park, Denver's largest park; and the Denver Botanic Gardens, featuring a Japanese Garden, Rock Alpine Garden, and over 23 acres of land. For any nature lover, Denver has a variety of parks and other greenspaces, from parks by the lake to the Botanic Gardens.

Climate

Denver has cold winters with hot summers, and the temperature can be controlled by chinook, a warm wind that blows eastward off the Rocky Mountains to provide warmer temperatures in Denver. During Summer months (June through August), the year's warmest temperatures of low 80s to low 90s (28 to 32 degrees Celsius) are experienced; lows bottom out around the low to upper 50s (11 to 15 degrees Celsius) in these months. October is an interesting transitional month, with highs reaching the 70s or even 80s some days, while lows may reach the freezing point the same night. Denver is prone to snow for half the year, from mid-October to mid-April; snowstorms may happen sporadically. Rainfall, though, is somewhat consistent with around 2 inches per month between May and September.