Located in the Gold Hill shopping center (hwy 67 & 24), Java Junction is Woodland Park's only coffee shop that also roasts their own coffee. The result is apparent when you take your first sip; their coffee is excellent and has that extra bit of character that only freshly roasted coffee can provide (coffee is best drank within a week of roasting). They offer more than just coffee though...tea drinkers should be happy with the large selection available, various snacks tempt patrons, and there's a wide variety of merchandise for sale (everything from cups to scarves to CDs by local artists). If you're passing through town and need to check your email, you can hop on one of the two internet-connected computers available for a small charge, or take advantage of their free wi-fi if you're packing your own laptop computer. The shop is a little on the small side, with only a few tables inside though the tables outside offer a nice options on pleasant days. Java Junction has been in town for over ten years; current owner Lorena Townsend has been running the business since 1997.
Java Junction can be a little tough to find; just look for the giant 'COFFEE' sign between the UPS Store and City Market; the smaller 'Java Junction' sign hangs in the window and isn't very visible until you're really close. They're open from 6-6 most days.
Motorists driving on highway 24 near
Safeway need not fear their sanity if they think they saw a large
chicken on the side of the road waving at them. New to the Woodland
Park restaurant scene is Wild Wings 'n Things obviously serving a
variety of chicken wings but also chicken sandwiches, various side
dishes (the usuals, fries, onion rings, jalapeno poppers, mac &
cheese wedges, etc), a few salad options, and of course food to
keep the kids happy (corn dogs, PB&J, hot dogs, etc). The decor
was not what we expected, it featured an aviation theme with planes
everywhere and was quite cool. For lunch, we decided to try a
variety of their specialties, ordering a couple of sandwiches and
two types of wings. The Teriyaki Chicken sandwich and Buffalo
Chicken sandwich were tasty, very fresh, and about what you'd
expect. For the wings, we avoided the flavored wing options, of
which there were plenty (chili lime, garlic parmesan, lemon pepper,
golden spice, honey BBQ, and teriyaki), opting instead for the
spicier options. They have three spicy wing sauces; not knowing
what to expect we chose the mild ("bomber") and hot ("Sonic Boom"),
choosing to save the "Kamikaze" wings for another day once we asses
their meaning of spicy. Turns out it's what you'd expect, the
"mild" was similar to most chain restaurants' definition of
'hot' and was pleasant to eat, just the right amount of
spiciness; it'd be hard to imagine someone finding the mild wings
too spicy. The Bomber wings were really spicy, about the limit for
this taster and too much for my lunch companion to bear. Fantastic
and definitely something I'll be ordering again. Prices were
reasonable though a little more expensive than normal fast food
(we'd categorize Wild Wings 'n Things as 'medium' food, must
better than fast food but not a sit-down restaurant); one thing we
noticed was the conspicous absence of drink prices on their
menu...can't blame them too much for this as it seems to be a
growing trend, but it's not something we like to see as many
places charge way too much (in our opinion) for a simple soft drink
(we chose to order water so the price they charge is still a
mystery to us). You can find Wild Wings 'n Things next to Safeway
and can preview their menu online here.
We ate lunch at Jo-Mamas the other day. They actually have a pretty extensive non-pizza menu, including soups, paninis, sub sandwiches, calzones, pasta dishes and a salad bar. We had a hard time deciding! I really had a pizza craving, so I got one of their lunch specials - a slice of pepperoni and a soda for $3. The slice was huge so this was a good value. I would rate the pizza as ok to good. Like most "pizza by the slice", it didn't taste very fresh. We have yet to try a whole pie there, but I'm sure it's better right out of the oven. My companion had an Italian beef panini. It came with a side of pasta or chips for $6.50. He said the sandwich was wonderful.
The service was good, but almost unnecessary. I would have prefered to just order at the counter and avoid having to leave a tip. But that's just my opinion. There were only a few other diners, so it didn't seem too busy. They did have a couple of tables set up outside that looked inviting.
In summary, we'll definitely eat there again to try out some other things on the menu. They have many other lunch specials that seem to be great deals.
Tucked away in the hills off highway 24 lives...wolves! Actually, they're not running wild, they're just the primary residents of the Colorado Wolf and Wildlife Center, and share the space with a few coyotes and foxes. The center recently won their hard-earned accreditation from the Association of Zoos and Aquariums, which not only enables them to house and care for these magnificent animals, but also to breed them in the future. A visit to their facility is a great family activity; for a $10 tax deductible donation they'll lead you on a tour where you can see the wolves up close and learn more about them. Or, for more money, you can spend some time interacting directly with one or more of their ambassador wolves (these are the ones that are particularly people-friendly). When I went, the wolves had just finished eating a roadkill deer (it's nice to see roadkill being put to good use like this!). The recently completed visitor's center has a nice selection of wolf merchandise, and some various snack foods. My favorite item in there was a book called "The Three Little Wolves and the Big Bad Pig"...a nice twist on the classic children's story.
To get there, head west on highway 24 and turn left onto Twin Rock Road. If I recall, there's a white barn just before the turn, and just after the turn you see the road sweep gently to the right. If you get to Florissant you've gone too far, but rather than backtrack just head south on Cripple Creek-Florrisant Road and turn left onto Twin Rock Road (CO road 42). Once on Twin Rock Road, you'll see the entrance to the CWWC clearly signed on the north side. Note that reservations are required for tours, see their website for more info.
In a day and age of this espresso-wired population and abundant free wi-fi, it's pretty typical for coffee shops, those businesses which most often advertise free wi-fi, to have a web presence of some sort. A webpage, a listing on MySpace, something. Do a Google search for Java the Hut in Woodland Park, though, and you'll come up empty-handed. It's like a one-way mirror - patrons of Java the Hut are comfortably surfing the net while sipping their cappucino, while the outside internet of the population can't see in. The rest of the world can't see the wood paneled rooms, comfortable couches, and mountaineering gear hanging on the walls. They don't see the outdoors gear offered for sale, nor the plethora of books, maps and pamphlets. If they're lucky, they'll see the large roof using Google Maps, and that may be their first clue that this isn't your average coffee shop.
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Articles 
Located in the Gold Hill shopping center (hwy 67 & 24), 