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Guide to events and activities

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Summer in northern Colorado is a great place to enjoy a variety of entertainment, festivals, ro-

deos and fairs. Fortunately we don’t have to travel far to catch some fun for the family. Following is a list of a few highlights. Check out the Rocky Mountain Senior magazine calendar for more great options. Now get out your family calendar and mark all of your favorite events!

GREELEY INDEPENDENCE DAY STAMPEDEJune 22-July 4Island Grove Regional Park, GRwww.greeleystampede.orgCelebrate Colorado’s western heritagewith professional PRCA and Kids’ ro-deo events, barbeques, flapjack feeds, fun runs, monster trucks, motor sports, a huge Independence Day Parade, star-studded shows which will all be culminating with a spectacular fireworks display over the fairgrounds.

CHEYENNE FRONTIER DAYSJuly 20-29Cheyenne, Wyoming www.cfdrodeo.comDon’t miss this ‘Daddy of ‘em all’ fair and rodeo. Find top riders and great competitions. Check the website for this year’s fantastic line up of music and entertain-ment. Immerse yourself in the at-mosphere of the Indian Villages as you move to the rhythm of ceremonial drums. Peruse the western artisans and craft-speople and enjoy the world-class western art show.

WELD COUNTY FAIRJuly 25-30Island Grove Regional Park, GRwww.weldcountyfair.comThe Weld County Fair benefits 4-H, FFA, Boy Scout and Girl Scout members. The fair gives the youth and adults of Weld County an op-

portunity to exhibit their skills in agri-culture, natural resources, engineering, consumer and family, fine arts, horti-culture and family living.

HIGH PLAINS CHAUTAUQUAAugust 7-11Aims Community College, GRwww.highplainschautauqua.orgAims Community College campus inGreeley, Colorado, will again be the setting for the 2012 High Plains Chautauqua (HPC), a unique blend of theatre, history and the humanities under a Chautauqua tent, in which audiences meet and engage in a conversation with personalities from the past. The 19th and early 20th centuries provided fertile ground for literary and scientific thought to flourish in America and abroad. This era saw an awakening of the humanities and the emergence of modern science. The 2012 High Plains Chautauqua program is drawn from this period.

LARIMER COUNTY FAIR & RODEOAugust 3-7The Ranch, LVwww.larimercountyfair.org

Enjoy the carnival rides, PRCA Rodeos, the pancake breakfast, family movie nights, firework displays, and the multiple 4-H events and exhibits, live music,

food and crafts vendors. Check the website for updated schedules, additional infor-mation and times.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN IRISH FESTIVALSeptember 28-30

Civic Center Park, FC535-9999 www.fortcollinsirish festival.com

In addition to some great music, food and

entertainment, the event includes animals of Ireland, a bubble petting zoo, bungee jumping, magic and so much

more for children and adults to enjoy.

Bravo!Summer 2012 Guide to fairs, festivals and rodeos

S C O T T T i T T e r i n g T O n

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Unbelievable...that’s my reac-tion to the breadth and depth of festivals in mountain towns

this summer. I’ve picked out a few that look interesting. I didn’t have any particular criteria. I just let something catch my interest...events that seemed to offer a unique theme. I dropped most of the music, food and drink festivals from past lists. No doubt these are a great time, but I was look-ing for new fun. To find more about festivals not on this list, search your browser for Colorado Festivals or something similar. Have a festive summer.

Food & WineOlathe Sweet Corn Festival August 3-4Olathe, www.olathesweetcornfest.com Pack in all the sweet corn you can eat on the festival grounds. Plus, a classic cars show, pancake breakfast, parade, music and more.

Palisade Peach FestivalAugust 16-19

Riverbend Park, Palisadewww.palisadepeachfest.com We all love Western Slope peaches! This festival in the park features more than 100 food, art and craft vendors, live music, children’s area, culinary activities, special events (in-cluding an ice cream social and street dance) and, of course, peaches. In ad-dition, take a guided orchard tour, a historical walking tour, a self-guided bike ride or a raft trip.

Colorado Mountain WineFestSeptember 13-16Palisade, www.coloradowinefest.com Toast the grape harvest and raise your glass to Colorado’s finest vintages at the state’s oldest and largest wine fes-tival. Thousands of wine lovers make the annual pilgrimage to Palisade to sample a growing array of Colorado wines and participate in a variety of events including workshops, wine-and-food pairing, chef demonstra-tions, grape stomps, winery tours, bicycle tours, artisan booths, jazz concerts and more.

HistoryRocky Mountain Antique Festival July 20-22Beaver Creek, www.beavercreek.com Some of the finest vendors from around the country will display furniture, rugs, silver dishes, artwork and more. Food booths and culinary demonstrations complement the weekend activities.

Logger DaysJuly 20-22South Fork, www.southfork.orgThis event celebrates the time-honored tradition of logging with competitions such as axe throw, plunge cut, wood chop, accuracy fall and more. Also en-joy music, food, arts & crafts, games, wood carvings and more.

Buffalo Bill DaysJuly 27-29Golden, www.buffalobilldays.comEnjoy nonstop fun with the Best of the West parade, Wild West show, music, vendors and games for kids. Pancake breakfast, mutton busting, a classic car show and more.

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Worth the tripSpend a festive weekend in the mountainsby Scott Titterington

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Leadville Boom DaysAugust 3-5Leadville, www.leadvilleboomdays.comCelebration of the area’s mining heritage features mining competitions, motorcy-cle games and a rod and gun show, plus live music, a craft fair and parade. The 21-mile Leadville Boom Days Interna-tional Pack Burro Race is the second leg of Pack Burro Racing’s Triple Crown.

Buena Vista Gold Rush DaysAugust 11-12Buena Vista, www.fourteenernet.com/goldrushStep back to the days of gold panning, gunfights, square-dance lessons, music, costume parade and Triple Crown Burro Race. Plus logging events, story-telling and the infamous “madams” of Colorado.

True West RailfestAugust 16-19Durango, www.durangotrain.com/events/2012-true-west-railfest This festival showcases cowboy events including the World Fast Draw As-sociation shoot-out and competition, Native American Dancers, and Heritage Train, in addition to exciting rail-related special events and excursions with narrow-gauge railroad equipment.

natureCrested Butte Wildflower FestivalJuly 9-15Crested Butte Nordic Center, Crested Buttewww.crestedbuttewildflowerfestival.com Go wild with wildflowers. They have it all at this weeklong festival: hikes, bike rides, 4x4 tours, photography classes. You can even take a yoga class in a high alpine meadow. Learn to cook, make art and garden with wildflowers.

Elk Fest September 29-30Estes Park, www.estesnet.com/eventsView elk in the wild during the rutting season. Learn more about elk, their hab-itat and how to observe them safely in the wild. Check out the bugling compe-titions, educational areas, seminars, live music, a Mountain Man Rendezvous, Native American storytelling & music, a display of raptors, visits from Wolfwood Refuge & Rescue, and guided elk- viewing tours. Vendors will display art-

work and other merchandise. A food vendor will offer barbecue elk cuisine and more delicious goodies.

Variety Telluride Yoga FestivalJuly 12-15Telluride, www.tellurideyogafestival.comChoose from among a large selection of workshops in this three-day fes-tival. An additional all-day intensive can be added on Thursday. Learn from world-renowned instructors in a world-class setting.

San Luis Valley Arts and Fiber FestivalJuly 13-15Marsh Park, Monte Vista, www.slvfest.comThe festival is a celebration of hand-made and traditional arts. It opens with a series of workshops. Enjoy demonstrations, shopping, music, and contests with prizes, along with folk art and fiber vendors. Several fiber-related contests are planned for the weekend, including a dyed roving contest; a speed-knitting contest; a couple of active spinning contests; and a handspun yarn contest.

Boulder International Fringe Festival August 15-26Boulderwww.boulder fringe.comTwelve-day, unjuried arts event packed with live theatre, dance, circus art, media art, cinema, visual art, spoken word, puppetry, work-shops and story-telling.

Gunnison Car Show August 17-19Gunnison, www.gunnisoncarclub.comKick off the weekend with a ‘50s-style party with live music and cool cars. The car show begins Saturday along with food and music, followed by a poker run. On Sunday morning, cruise up to Crested Butte.

Telluride Film FestivalAugust 31-September 3Telluride, www.telluridefilmfestival.org Spend four days in total cinematic im-mersion, embarking on a viewing odys-sey; spend entire days in flickering dark rooms. The Telluride Film Festival is a tribute to luminaries who’ve propelled the medium forward; it is candid discus-sions with a film’s creator or the histo-rian who champions it; it is discovering that the person in line behind you made the film you just enjoyed; it is engaging in lively debate with every manner of film lover.

Wild West Air Fest and Labor Day Weekend CelebrationSeptember 1-2Steamboat Springs, www.steamboat-springs.comThe Air Fest features remote-controlled aircraft shows, vintage and warbird aircraft displays, classic cars, hang glid-ers, para-gliders, kids activities and more. Also around town, check out the Steamboat Stockdog Challenge, the downtown sidewalk sale, and the Rocky Mountain Bull Bash.

the Monkey Monks and Aerial Ariells “Aaaaahhhhhh”. Photo courtesy Boulder

International Fringe Festival.

Worth the trip

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Summer music venues abound throughout northern Colorado. In fact, one could listen to live

music every night of the week. Besides musical theater, concert series at various locations and summer festivals provide stages and performances with local as well as visiting musicians. Restaurants include music evenings. Find a few of the many possibilities below.

LoVeLandFoote Lagoon, 500 E. 3rd Street, serves as a popular music venue on Thursdays from 7-9pm. Bring a cushion or blanket to throw on top of the stone steps and relax under the stars while listening to jazz/swing, folk, rock/funk, Americana, and a U2 Tribute. Check the Foote Lagoon Concert series dates at www.ci.loveland.co.us/index.aspx?page=737.

The Hammond Amphitheater se-ries at North Lake Park began in June. Only two Tuesday concerts remain: July 4, 7:30pm, and July 10 at 7:15pm. The first of the Foote Lagoon Concert series on Thursday, July 19, will also be held at the Hammond because of the expected large crowd the Elders group draws. You need chairs or blankets in this venue.

The Sounds of Centerra perfor-mances occur on Friday nights, 7-9pm, starting July 15 through August 19. Lo-cated in Chapungu Park’s Great Lawn area just east of the Promenade Shops,

you’ll need a blanket or lawn chair. Lis-ten to such bands as Kenny Cordova and the Olde Rock Band. Others play bluegrass, soul, country, and Celtic rock. Check the schedule at www.centerra.com/pressReleases/display/92.

Support your local teen musicians by attending the “Battle of the Bands”, 3-9pm at Foote Lagoon, Wednesday, August 15. A maximum of 10 teen

bands compete for prizes like studio recording time, lessons, and a chance to play at the annual Corn Roast Festival.

Fort CoLLinsAvogadros Number Restaurant, www.avogadros.com, offers music which features Dixieland Jazz, bluegrass, western, and opera arias to name but a few. Check their website for a schedule of performers.

Old Town Square plays host to sev-eral concert series. Ben and Jerry’s began in June and continues through August 17. Music includes several genres in-cluding high-energy dance. The square offers no seating so bring your chairs.

Thursday nights presents Bohemian Nights Concert series in Old Town Square, www.downtownfortcollins.com/events.php/detail/565/2, from 7–9pm now through August 2.

Have your brown bag lunch Tues-days from 11:30am until 1pm at Oak Street Plaza, Oak and College, while

listening to the Noontime Notes con-cert series. Find their schedule at www.downtownfortcollins.com/events.php/detail/567/1.

FestiVaLsThe 34th Annual Greeley Arts Picnic, www.greeleygov.com/CPRD/EventView.aspx?ID=149, includes two stages where more than 25 of Colorado’s best entertain-ers perform everything from Celtic rock to country swing and rhythm and blues to rock ‘n’ roll. The festival dates are July 28th from 9am–5pm and July 29, 9am–4pm at Lincoln Park, 10th Ave & 9th St, Greeley.

Loveland Loves Barbeque, Band and Brews, 3-10 pm Friday, July 13 and Saturday, July 14, 11am–10pm at 5th and Cleveland. A new band plays every hour. Bands are not the only features. Find information at www.engaging loveland.org/events/featured-events/loveland-loves-bbq-bands-and-brews.

Loveland’s popular Cherry Pie Festival on July 21, Peters Park at 5th and Lincoln, includes three bands: Papa Juke, 4-5 pm; Sammy Dee Morton Band, 5:30-6:30pm; and Dixie Leadfoot 7-8pm. Purchase pie by the slice as well as ice cream and drinks.

The annual Bohemian Nights at NewWestFest, www.downtownfortcollins.com/festivals.php/nwfest, happens August 10-12. This festival offers more than music. The free weekend event showcases over 250 arts, crafts and food booths, Kids’ Area, a children’s carnival, two beer gardens, and eight (8) stages of over 120 performances highlighting northern Colorado and the Front Range’s wonderfully talented artists.

Fairgrounds Park in Loveland hosts the Old-Fashioned Corn Roast Festival August 24-25, www.engagingloveland.org/cornroast. Events include corn shucking, musical entertainment, ven-dors, booths, corn sales, food, waterpark, entertainment, Corn Eating Contest, corn shucking, and a parade.

Mark your calendars and enjoy live music in northern Colorado.

The hills are aliveConcerts series and summer music festivals fill the air

L i n d a L . O S m u n d S O n

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Gem of the mountains Strike historical and recreational gold at Idaho Springs

B e a r J a C k g e B h a r d T

Most people just drive on by. Idaho Springs, 30 miles

west of Denver on 1-70, (90 miles, and 90 minutes away) seems to be one of those accidental little burgs one scoots past on the way to more presti-gious digs, like Aspen, Vail or Paonia.

But slow down. The area around Idaho Springs is what attracted the first big wave of early Colorado immi-grants. In January, 1859, George Jack-son saw what he thought was smoke from an Indian camp. He snuck up, and realized it was a blue mist coming off the natural hot springs in the creek. He decided to stick around.

The next day, he inadvertently kicked off the Colorado Gold Rush when he used his tin coffee cup to pan for gold next to his campsite, where Chicago creek meets Clear Creek, now in the middle of Idaho Springs. Jackson had experience in the California Gold Rush and thought this area looked somewhat similar.

Sure enough, on that first day pan-ning not far from the hot springs he scooped out nine dollars worth of gold, at a time when a factory worker’s daily wage averaged $1.25. He marked the spot, and went back and told his buddy, Tom Golden (after whom the city of Golden was named) about what he’d found. They returned in the spring with a crew and equipment. In the first week they mined $1,900 worth of gold.

In the next several years more than 50,000 men (and a few rough-living women) flooded into the area, filing more than 13,000 mining claims up and down the valley.

Of course these were not the earli-est immigrants. The earliest immigrants were probably the Clovis people, who arrived between 12,000-14,000 years ago. And following them were the Fol-som people and then the Plano people, and the Utes and the Arapahoe. The name Idaho Springs comes from the Ute words, edah hoe, which means,

“Gem of the Mountains.” Indian Hot Springs is now the

name of the historic lodge, open to the public, surrounding the hot springs. The hot springs mineral pool in the lodge is now like an oasis, enclosed in a fiberglass dome with a rich variety of blooming plants and shrubs year round. Next to the pool is a gazebo from the late 1800s. The lodge was built at turn of century and the knotty pine and timbers give it a cozy, settled feeling.

In the basement beneath the swimming pool are steam caverns—which they call thermal tunnels—and Turkish baths. The proprietors brag that the water in the caves has many health benefits because it contains one of most complete mineral combinations found anywhere in the world, with all 12 trace elements.

The downtown area of Idaho Springs was named a National Historic District in 1984. It retains the feel of an old mining town. Speaking of which, at the edge of town is the Argo Gold Mine and Mill Museum. Between 1859 and 1961 more than $200 million worth

of gold and minerals was processed at this site. The Argo Tunnel, completed in 1910 was, at the time, the world’s longest tunnel. It ran between Idaho Springs and Central City, to help drain the area mines and to give a convenient way to move the iron ore to the mill.

To top off the historic venture, drive 10 miles up the highway to the little town of Empire to have dinner, and maybe spend the night at the Peck house, which is the oldest continually running restaurant in Colorado. James Peck and three teenage sons started building the place in 1860, just one year after George Jackson found the first gold. The house, now a bed and break-fast and dinner restaurant furnished with period antiques, was the social cen-ter of Clear Creek County during most of its early years. When a law was passed that bars that catered to miners had to have libraries in them, the Peck’s added a ladies parlor and library.

For a healthy soak, deep his-tory and then an atmospheric dinner, Idaho Springs and Empire are nearby options. It’s gold of a different kind.

People expect to get old. Their teeth wear out and they get fillings and

replacements. Their eyes wear out and they get glasses. Their hearing wears out and they get hearing aids. But somehow people never expect their feet to wear out. Their feet are supposed to go on forever, and yet feet work harder and under worse condi-tions than most any other part of the body.

Older people almost resent the fact that their formerly good, hard-working feet are now giving them all kinds of aches and pains, which prevent them from get-ting around and enjoying life.

The care of the aging foot requires a separate, special set of skills and treat-ment. Improper care and hygiene can very quickly lead to severe infections, ulceration, limited ability to walk, or even confinement to a wheelchair.

Older people want to be independent. For that reason, minor aches and pains, sores, dull aches, cramps, or changes in condition should be cared for promptly. These often are the early warning signs of impending severe foot trouble. So when you see or feel minor aches and pains, inflammation, or changes in skin or nail

color, see your podiatrist. Here are some things that an older per-

son should do to help prevent foot problems:

• Wash your feet with mild face soap and warm water. Do not use hot water.

• Dry the feet with a clean soft towel, without rubbing the skin. Use a blot-ting action. Dry carefully between the toes. Do not force the toes apart. Use a cotton tip swab if necessary to get in between the toes.

• Massage lotion into the skin of the feet, especially the heels after every bath or shower. Keep the feet warm. Use a clean pair of stockings each day. Do not wear circular garters. Use loose fit-ting bed socks if desired.

• Do not cut your corns or calluses. Nev-er use corn plasters or corn remedies. With impaired circulation or impaired sensitivity, damage can be severe before discomfort warns you.

• Do not use strong antiseptic drugs on the feet, particularly Tincture of Iodine, Lysol or Car-bolic Acid.

• Restrict or eliminate the use of tobacco in any form. It con-stricts blood vessels that may be having trouble supplying the proper amount of blood.

• If your eyesight is impaired, have some member of your family examine your feet at least once a day for blisters, sores or wounds.

• If you soak your feet use warm (never hot) water, if necessary have someone check the temperature or use a bath thermometer. Decreased sensation impairs the ability to evaluate temperature.

• Get assistance from a podiatrist at the first sign of a blister, an infection,

ingrowing toenails, or trouble with bunions, corns or calluses.

The human foot has been called the mirror of our body. Many times early signs of such systemic conditions as dia-betes, gout and hardening of the arteries may appear in the foot.

Our most common complaint by far is heel pain. Each year some 40 mil-lion Americans suffer from heel pain syndrome, sometimes called “heel spurs or plantar fasciitis”. A study by the American Podiatric Medical Association has found that nearly 40 percent of all Americans have suffered from heel pain at some point in their lives.

The number one cause of heel pain in a condition called plantar fasciitis. It is often characterized by pain on the bottom of the heel when you take your first steps in the morning, but can also last all day long – with pain often progressing the longer the condition remains untreated. In addition, other common causes of heel pain include tendonitis, stress fractures, neuritis, bursitis, tarsal tunnel syndrome, arthritis, and fat pad thinning.

Plantar fasciitis can be caused by a number of factors, including weight gain, worn-out shoes, walking barefoot, increasing exercise, and walking on hard surfaces without proper support.

Is there anything I can do on my own to relieve heel pain?Absolutely! Heel pain, if detected early, can usually be treated with conservative options. However, the longer you wait to have heel pain addressed by a podiatrist, the more difficult it is to successfully treat. If symp-toms haven’t improved within several weeks, you should consult a podiatrist.

• Wear supportive shoes.• Avoid walking barefoot.• Stretch your feet well prior to exercising.• Ice your heel if pain is felt.• Try over-the-counter arch supports.

YOUR FEET After Fifty

Pa i d a d v e r t i s e m e n t