Aspen Colorado Food & Wine Shopping Telluride Telluride Festivals: Aspen Colorado Food & Wine Shopping Telluride Telluride Festivals
by maribeth
Comments Off on Summer Sipping 2014
Summer Sipping 2014
Chloe Wines
Summer is the season for wine festivals throughout much of the United States, especially in Colorado. June is particularly big in our Rocky Mountain state since the Food & Wine Classic in Aspen is taking place this weekend and the Telluride Wine Festival—under new direction—is happening next weekend. They’re both long-established events, terrific for sampling and savoring food and libations among the pros. Typically one walks away from these festivals with a go-to list of wines, spirits and restaurants to experience in the upcoming months. They also offer wonderful opportunities for socializing among fellow foodies and wine lovers in beautiful mountain settings.
For me, however, summer sipping feels best outdoors while gazing at a gorgeous mountain vista or inside relishing a delicious dinner of grilled meats and vegetables after having done a big hike. I’ve also been known to pack a good bottle and snacks and share a near-sacred moment with someone special out in a remote place. These treasured times create memories that last the longest for me.
Colorado Music & Dance Telluride Telluride Festivals: Colorado Music & Dance Telluride Telluride Bluegrass Festival Telluride Festivals
by maribeth
Comments Off on Telluride Bluegrass for All on KOTO
Telluride Bluegrass for All on KOTO
A Quintessential River View of Telluride Last Week Before the Crowds Arrived
Oh yeah, it’s that delightfully delicious time of year again. It’s warm and sunny, lush and green and the rivers are running as fast and deep as a Peter Rowan refrain on a summer solstice night. For many, this is the best time of year in Telluride, Colorado and by tomorrow the population of town will swell to its annual peak as festivarians disembark for the 41st annual Telluride Bluegrass Festival.
Colorado Hotels & Lodging Restaurants Telluride The Rockies: Colorado Hotels & Lodging Restaurants Telluride The Rockies Weddings
by maribeth
Comments Off on Colorado: A Stunning Place for Weddings
Colorado: A Stunning Place for Weddings
A Telluride Wedding by Merrick Chase
Graduations, anniversaries, engagements, weddings. ‘Tis the season for gatherings—big and small—to mark momentous occasions. I’ve noticed an influx of people from all over the country to Telluride to celebrate milestones, especially weddings, now that the weather has turned beautiful. Telluride, in fact, has become quite the place for destination weddings year-round with perhaps the exception of mid-spring since the leaves don’t typically pop until late May. I frequently meet people in and around Telluride and Telluride Mountain Village—often on the gondola which joins these two towns—that are here for a wedding. Many of the couples that opt to have weddings here and in other parts of Colorado have no particular attachment to the area except for their love of its beauty, the perfect backdrop for making a special day even more awe-inspiring.
Colorado Mountain Living Outdoor Adventures Podcasts Telluride Telluride Festivals Writing & Books: Colorado Mountain Living Mountainfilm Outdoor Adventures Podcasts Telluride Telluride Festivals Writing & Books
by maribeth
Comments Off on Talking Wild with Cheryl Strayed
Talking Wild with Cheryl Strayed
Cheryl Looking Down at Crater Lake During Her Trek on the PCT
I consider a movie to be good when I find myself thinking about it the next day. My barometer is the same for a book although with most good reads I find myself thinking about them while I’m reading them as well as in the days or weeks after I finish them. That’s been the case with Wild: From Lost to Found on the Pacific Crest Trail, by Cheryl Strayed, a superbly crafted memoir that dazzles your senses every step of the way. Her story moved me so much that I plan to read it again, something I never do. Although why wouldn’t I? From beginning to end, I was gripped by this powerful tale of transformation, this raw account of one woman’s life-changing journey both literally and figuratively. Plus, as I learned in Wild, Cheryl often reads books more than once, so I’m eager to crack hers second time around.
Podcast (bonjourcolorado): Play in new window | Download
Colorado Mountain Living Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride Writing & Books: Colorado Mountain Living Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride Writing & Books
by maribeth
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Reflections on My Ten Years as a Ski Instructor
Celebrating My Tenth Anniversary with Ski School Top Dogs
As I ease back into my writer’s life, I’ve been considering my other life: that of a Telluride Ski & Snowboard School instructor. The mountain closed just over two weeks ago and I again turned in my uniform with a big sigh of relief. I’m always grateful when I finish the season without having had an injured student or client on my watch. And I’m always relieved when I wind up unscathed myself (except for a variety of aches and pains and gross fatigue). I’m grateful that this has been the case for the past ten seasons: My sterling record of safety has remained intact.
That’s not to say I don’t challenge my charges and sure, I’ve had some tricky moments of over-terraining just like all the other instructors on our mountain and elsewhere. But fortunately, everyone has come “back to the barn” safe and sound and seemingly happy from their ski experience with me.
But way beyond my actual job as a ski instructor, I can’t help pondering what this newly adopted profession means to me, especially after a decade of working day after day on the mountain with children and adults beneath sunny skies, bitter cold, balmy weather and blustery snowstorms. It has made me a better person; it has made me more whole. I was never very athletic and the physicality of this job has given me strength and confidence that spills over to other areas of my life. I have embraced the notion of self empowerment through sports, a concept that I came to know late in life, one of the themes of my travel memoir/love story A Tour of the Heart: A Seductive Cycling Trip Through France.
Colorado Podcasts Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride: Colorado Podcasts Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride
by maribeth
Comments Off on The Joy of Nordic Skiing
The Joy of Nordic Skiing
Steve Hindman on His Skinny Skis
I sat down with DeAnne Gabriel and Steve Hindman, two professional nordic ski instructors, back in February to do a Travel Fun interview. They shared a wagonload of tips about cross country skiing from how and where to do it in and around Telluride, Colorado to recommendations for first timers.
As we approach the end of the alpine ski season here in Telluride, I thought I’d post the interview below as a podcast since April and May provide many great opportunities for heading out to embrace the glide.
Podcast: Play in new window | Download
Aspen Colorado Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride: Aspen Colorado Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride
by maribeth
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Skiing with Rock Stars: Schussing with Telluride’s Synchronized Ski Teams
Southern Synchro Skiers Practicing in Telluride, Colorado
My View of the Ghostriders’s Last Run Just as the Sun Was Peeking Over the Mountain
OK, well I wasn’t exactly skiing with these elite snowsports professionals. I was actually tagging along to watch them perform. I’ve been telling many of my fellow Telluride Ski and Snowboard School friends these past couple of months that I’d come out and watch them do their stuff. But I admit that the idea of getting on the slopes before the sun rises over the mountain hasn’t thrilled me, especially since I’ve been working as a ski instructor myself almost nonstop since mid-February. But I set my alarm earlier yesterday and greeted members from theses two teams—Telluride Ghostriders and Southern Synchro Skiers—in the locker room and at the top of the gondola before I had time to have my second cup of coffee. A few warm exchanges were shared but from the get-go, I could tell they were all business. The task at hand was to charge down the mountain three times, accomplishing a total of six expertly coordinated formations, within a half hour before Telluride Ski Resort officially opened for the day and before they had to go to work as ski instructors potentially teaching every level of student from first-time beginners to level eight all-mountain skiers. Wow, what a way to kickstart your morning.
Colorado Hotels & Lodging Mountain Living Restaurants Shopping Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride Trip Planning Writing & Books: Colorado Hotels & Lodging Mountain Living Restaurants Shopping Skiing & Snowboarding Telluride Trip Planning Writing & Books
by maribeth
Comments Off on KOTO Fundraising: Fun and Great Giveaways
KOTO Fundraising: Fun and Great Giveaways
KOTO Radio: The Soul of Telluride, Colorado
Join me today, Thursday, March 20, A LITTLE EARLIER at about 6:20 pm (through 7pm) in Telluride, Colorado and within the outlying area and on the internet for my Travel Fun talk radio show. This will be a special live show for KOTO fundraising featuring a variety of movers and shakers from Telluride’s hospitality/tourism world. I will be giving away lots of great premiums including lodging stays, restaurant and retail gift certificates, books and even ski lift tickets in exchange for a donation to KOTO.
KOTO is a local NPR station and one of the few entirely community supported radio stations in the country. Please consider making a contribution to KOTO, so that we can keep community radio alive and well in America. That’s also a way of showing your support for Travel Fun! Please email me from my Contacts Page with your pledge or donation. Many of my Travel Fun interviews are posted on this blog as podcasts here.
