The Mountain Chile Cha Cha has been one of Pagosa’s favorite fall celebrations for the past 14 years — a no-admission, all-day event featuring a free Latin music concert, a green chile cook-off and tasting, a morning trail race, Margarita contest, and beer garden.
But due to COVID-19 concerns, the organizers have decided to cancel this year’s celebration.
In response to the increased uncertainty that COVID-19 is causing, we have decided to cancel this year’s Mountain Chile Cha Cha and the Patty Aragon Green Chile Classic.
We wish we could come together in our annual celebration of local heritage, green chile, music, and Margaritas. The health and safety of our visitors, volunteers, and community will always be our first priority. We look forward to seeing you in 2021.
Each year, the fall season arrives in the Southwest with shorter days and cooler nights, and bushels of fresh roasted green chiles. The Patty Aragon Green Chile Classic was created by Jacque Aragon — Patty’s daughter — to celebrate the green chile harvest and to pay homage to Patty, a green chile enthusiast who sated Pagosans’ green chile palettes for years with her tasty homemade recipe.
Patty Aragon, along with her husband, former Pagosa mayor Ross Aragon, owned and operated Al’s West and East from the ’70s until 1992, serving traditional American and Southwestern cuisine. The couple were perhaps most famous for their green chile, which they served atop burgers, fries… and almost everything.
“My mother made the best green chile, hands down” explained Mountain Chile Cha Cha organizer Jacque Aragon. “I’m proud to carry on the family tradition and love seeing other people get excited about making and eating green chile.”
Roughly 40 entrants, both amateur and professional, have competed in the cook-off each year. Some cooks get creative; others go classic. The Cookoff gives spectators an opportunity to sample dozens of varieties of green chile from some of the area’s finest amateur and professional cooks. $600 in prize money and awards and medals are given.
The annual event has also featured a 5K,10K, and a half marathon for competitors of all abilities.
Last year, Cha Cha goers enjoyed a Spanish music concert featuring Sangre Joven, a popular band hailing from Pueblo de Las Vegas, performing Rancheras, Cumbias, Corridos, Polkas, and Valses.
Ms. Aragon and her fellow organizers look forward to planning the event for 2021.
Bill Hudson began sharing his opinions in the Pagosa Daily Post in 2004 and can’t seem to break the habit. He claims that, in Pagosa Springs, opinions are like pickup trucks: everybody has one.