Napping outdoors has always been a joy: the sun on your face, the breeze ruffling your hair, birds chirping a lullaby. Now, after being cooped up for close to two months trying to slow the spread of COVID-19, dozing in the fresh air sounds even more alluring. Although you can only daydream about them until the need to stay at home passes, these serene spots are ready to host your post-quarantine snoozes.

Empower Field At Mile High

The Denver Broncos’ home turf may not seem like the best place to catch a few zzz’s—until you visit “Pass Through the Land,” a public art project on the east side of the stadium. Flat-top boulders make handy mattresses, while disks on a nearby structure create a windchime-like melody.

5280 May 2020
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Harper Humanities Garden

Step one: Calm your mind by watching lilies and lotuses drift atop the water gardens at this grassy expanse in the University of Denver’s Chester M. Alter Arboretum. Step two: Let the sound of rushes and cattails rustling in the breeze carry you off to dreamland.

Cheesman Park

This centrally located public park has room for plenty of people on its 80 acres. That leaves you with lots of personal space to sprawl out on grass that’s as fluffy as a featherbed and—thanks to the lack of water features—goose-poop free.

George Wallace Park

Following the paved trail along Goldsmith Gulch leads Hampden South and Greenwood Village residents to the ideal outdoor bedroom: The small stream’s banks provide multiple bucolic spots to spread a blanket and listen to the gentle trickle of water.

Cherry Creek Trail

You can set up a lawn chair at multiple stops along the 40-mile trail, but we like the green area near the intersection of Speer Boulevard and Lawrence Street in the Central Business District best—an urban oasis thanks to the burbling creek that drowns out the din of city traffic.

This article was originally published in 5280 May 2020.
Angela Ufheil
Angela Ufheil
Angela Ufheil is a Denver-based journalist and 5280's former digital senior associate editor.