Photo by Jeff Laydon, Pagosa Photography.
ColorFest weekend will officially close out the summer season… with the Equinox welcoming the Fall, as we celebrate the blaze of gold and red hues that will fill our landscape. As we close out summer, the sky will be filled with colorful balloons to remind us of the peaceful beauty all around us as we prepare for a bustling Fall.
ColorFest weekend also celebrates the harvest season, with the Passport to Pagosa Wine and Food Festival and the Pagosa Springs Bands and Brews Festival paying tribute to numerous local and regional foods, microbreweries and music. This year we will be at Yamaguchi Park where we will enjoy the crisp and glorious Colorado weather, and you have a weekend of fun, friends and unparalleled beauty.
On Friday, September 19, beginning at 6:00pm the popular Passport to Pagosa: Wine and Food Festival will be held. Scrumptious food provided by many of Pagosa’s superb restaurants, caterers and specialty food trucks is paired with delicious wines chosen for this event. This event is certainly an epicurean delight, and tickets often sell out. Max Miller will round out the evening with fantastic live music.
The Bands and Brews Festival on Saturday afternoon, September 20, highlights some of the best breweries in Southwest Colorado, other parts of the state and Northern New Mexico, with many of the breweries bringing in specialty quaffs just for the season. The festival opens at 4:00pm. We will have the fabulous Sol Over Luna and Bo DePeña for our live music performances, delicious beverages, food vendors and activities for the children to make it one of Pagosa’s favorite events.
The Saturday evening balloon glow will be held where the Microbrew Festival is held at Yamaguchi Park. Bands and Brews attendees will be able to continue their party while watching the glowing balloons adjacent to the festival as the evening grows dark which will be around 7:00pm. This balloon glow is contingent upon the weather.
Aspen House and Aspen Services will host the 5K ColorFest Color Run on Saturday morning, Sept. 20th. Get doused with color as you walk or run the designated trail in the downtown area where volunteers welcome you with every color of the rainbow and you can view the hot air balloons as you navigate the course. Check for the festivity status at https://aspenhousepagosa.org/color-run/
The Geothermal Greenhouse Partnership will be hosting Breakfast with Balloons on Saturday morning September 20th at Centennial Park at the Geothermal Greenhouse amphitheater. Rise and shine for an unforgettable morning filled with a sky full of balloons. There will be a catered breakfast, adult beverages and live music. Please check out all the Breakfast with Balloons fun at https://www.pagosagreen.org/
You will enjoy the magic of the hot air balloons as they ascend around 8 a.m. on Saturday and Sunday mornings. A mass ascension on Saturday, Sept. 20, will take place in the downtown area south of The Springs Resort with the beautiful San Juan River in the foreground and the San Juan Mountains as a backdrop. The west side of town will host the balloon ascension on Sunday morning, September 21, with the balloons ascending from the Aspen Village area near Walmart offering fabulous photographic opportunities and plenty of parking. All balloon-related activities are dependent upon the weather.
Please be event conscious and arrange for designated drivers or book a ride with one of our transportation companies in advance of the event. In addition, when viewing the balloons, do not park on the highway, especially Sunday, September 21 on our roadways. Each launch has plenty of parking at nearby lots or approved street parking.
For more information about ColorFest, event locations and the status of the weekend’s activities, call the Pagosa Springs Area Chamber of Commerce at (970) 264-2360 or find information at www.Pagosachamber.com