Wonder what the bent-over group combing the hills of the San Juan mountains around Telluride at dawn is doing? Hunting mushrooms, of course. “Hunting for mushrooms at daybreak has a lot of spiritual meaning,” says Manny Salzman, organizer of the 22nd annual Telluride Mushroom Festival. “At that time of day,…
“Our State Fair is a great state fair. It’s the best state fair in our state.” The title song to “State Fair,” a Rodgers and Hammerstein musical, may have been written about Iowa in the 1940s, but the lyrics definitely apply to the 2002 Colorado State Fair as well. The…
Legend has it that more than 2,000 years ago, Chu Yuan, a poet, warrior and loyal aide to a Chinese emperor, was banished after the ruler died. Chu Yuan could not win favor in the new court, so one day, in despair, he threw himself into the Mi Lo River…
If you want to be like James climbing inside his giant peach and finding a magical odyssey, head to 34th annual Palisade Peach Festival. It’s a guaranteed adventure in fuzzy-fruit consumption. “Without a doubt, we’re the biggest peach growers west of the Mississippi,” says Jeannine Opfal, executive director of the…
If a halftime show is your favorite part of a football game, consider the Drums Along the Rockies your warmup for the fall season. One of the nation’s most recognized drum-corps competitions, the 32nd annual Drums Along the Rockies is hosted by Denver’s own Blue Knights Drum and Bugle Corps…
With biker babes and lots of leather, the sixteenth annual Ladies Run of Colorado roars into tiny Fairplay July 13-14. The yearly festival celebrates some of the finest scooter ladies around. With a population of about 650 people, Fairplay will be overrun, if not run over, when the 3,000 participants…
Pack a picnic and grab a blanket, because there is no better way to wrap up a summer weekend than by listening to live jazz under the stars. The City Park Jazz series is already in full gear, celebrating the summer season with ten hot concerts held on Ferril Lake…
With patriotism at a fever pitch, break out your red, white and blue, because it’s America’s 225th birthday this July 4th — and it’s time to celebrate. So if you’re looking for a cool way to celebrate, head for the hills to Breckenridge’s July 4th Festival. At 9,600 feet, the…
Harking back to an Elizabethan shire, it’s “all for fun, and fun for all” at the 26th annual Colorado Renaissance Festival, which has borrowed from the Three Musketeers’ call to arms for this year’s slogan. “Good morrow to thee, welcome to our shire,” shouts Michael Shaffer, who plays the Marquiche…
With flamboyant costumes and rollicking floats, Denver PrideFest 2002 will march down Colfax Avenue on June 23, for Denver’s annual celebration of acceptance, camaraderie and gay pride. “I just like being able to be myself,” says Bradley James Hein, who has attended Denver’s PrideFest five times. “It’s the one day…
What could be sillier than adults riding Big Wheels down Vail’s main street? Maybe a bunch of otherwise-sane grownups sailing off a three-foot-high jump at the end of that street. During Vail’s annual Big Wheel ‘N’ Chili Festival, June 22 and 23, you can see both. With a fifty-yard racetrack…
Don’t have any major plans for the summer other than maxing and relaxing in your backyard hammock? Then welcome to Westword’s annual Summer Guide! We’re designating ourselves your social coordinators for the next four months, breaking it down for you day by day, hour by hour, minute by minute. Okay,…
When the used antiques from estate and garage sales started taking over their Washington Park home, Kristen Tait and Dylan Moore figured it was either time to open a store or pitch a tent in the back yard. “Every inch of our house was covered — the garage was stacked…
Wanted: signature drink for historic landmark hotel. This winter, the Brown Palace Hotel decided that 110 years was long enough to go without having its very own specialty cocktail. Turning to staff and guests for inspiration, the hotel launched a cocktail contest to fill the void. And the winner is…the…
Part high school mixer and part high-powered cocktail party, the Layoff Lounge is a monthly networking event designed to get Denver’s laid-off workers back on their feet. “It helps people make connections,” says Tracy Laswell Williams, the Denver director of the Los Angeles-based company. “And it gets nonworking people out…
Vesta, the ancient Roman goddess, represented hearth and home. She was also known for her purity — hence the term vestal virgins. But odds are pretty good that you won’t find one of those wholesome ladies sipping sangria at Vesta Dipping Grill. Sangria, a traditional red-wine punch, has become a…
Where can you take a glass-blowing class, buy a painting, look at books and get your bike fixed, too? The Other Side Arts, a nonprofit community center that offers a new twist on one-stop shopping. “We really wanted to give up-and-coming artists an opportunity to show their work, while also…
The annual Girl Scout cookie sale has crumbled, and you’ve probably already torn through your boxes of Thin Mints and Tagalongs. Time to head over to the Funky Buddha for a Dirty Girl Scout, a drink that’s worthy of several merit badges. With a name that no doubt has Girl…
Backyard barbecuers and serious sauce professionals will go grill-to-grill at the sixth annual Denver Blues & Bones festival this weekend. The feast, moved from the Golden Triangle to the south lawn of Invesco Field at Mile High, will feature more than seventy entrants participating in two competitions: the Backyard BBQ…
If an apple a day keeps the doctor away, an Appletini a day should keep you not just healthy, but happy. No tongue depressor, this trendy cocktail (it’s also known as the Original Sin, as in Eve going for the apple) tastes quite a bit like an apple Jolly Rancher…
Dark brown and full of zing, the Bloody Mary at the Lancer Lounge is a patriotic salute to drinking. Bartender Josh Gibson calls his concoction “the National Anthem” and explains that it earned the name “because when I’m sitting on the couch and I drink one, I’m immediately at attention.”…
Evoking visions of hot summer nights in pre-revolution Havana, the mango mojito — sipped regularly by Ernest Hemingway, or so legend has it — is the perfect cool-down as Denver heats up. And the rum-soaked concoction is already a hot commodity at the eight-week-old Samba Room, which also features a…
