Tuesday, June 26
Election Deadline. All ballots must be returned to designated drop-off spots in Teller and El Paso counties for the primary election by 7 p.m.on June 26. For Teller County, these drop-off areas are at the courthouse in Cripple Creek, and the county’s government offices in Woodland Park and at the Woodland Park Public Library. For more information, call 719-689-2951.
The Green Mountain Falls Planning Commission will meet on June 26 at the GMF Town Hall at 6:30 p.m.
Wednesday, June 27
TSC (Teller Senior Coalition) Transit is excited to announce our bus service on Wednesdays and Fridays in Woodland Park and the lower Ute Pass area. TSC also offers a joint venture with Cripple Creek Transit on Wednesdays to provide much needed transportation service between Cripple Creek and Woodland Park. TSC Transit will be picking up from the Senior Center and will be making stops at Pikes Peak Family Medicine, Pikes Peak Regional Hospital, City Market, Safeway, Walgreens, Walmart and the Department of Social Services upon request. In addition, new ride services are available on a limited basis to Green Mountain Falls, Cascade and Manitou Springs. Call 719-687-0256 for more details or visit the TSC website at www.tellerseniorcoalition.org. for a full schedule of pick up and drop off times.
The Cripple Creek City Council will meet on June 27 at 5:30 p.m. in the CC Council Chambers at city hall. This is part of a make-up meeting for a cancelled session earlier in the month. Also, due to the Independence Day holiday, no meeting will occur on July 4.
Town Meeting. The town of Green Mountain Falls will host a town meeting for year-round and summer residents on June 27 at the Sallie Bush Community Center, starting at 7 p.m.The meeting is part of the new comprehensive plan project. This plan deals with such issues as land use, growth, annexations and hazard mitigation. Presentations will occur by the planning contractor, Logan Simpson of Fort Collins. The meeting is being co-sponsored by the Ute Pass Triangle Chamber of Commerce and the Green Box Arts Festival.
Thursday, June 28
U.S. Senior Open Kick-off. The 39th U.S. Senior Open will kick off on June 28 and will extend through July 1 at the Broadmoor East course in Colorado Springs. The event features the best senior (players 50 years of age and older) pros and amateurs in the world. For the first two days, the field will consist of a little more than 150 players, but this lineup will be reduced to about 60 for the final two days. See related story in this week’s TMJ News.
Tops, Take Off Pounds Sensibly. The original nonprofit weight-loss group is an educational support group providing weekly weigh-ins and programs to help members to make positive changes in the role food plays in their lives. The local chapter meets every Thursday at 9 a.m. in Green Mountain Falls at the Church in the Wildwood. Call Evelyn at 719-748-8383 for more information.
The Teller County Commissioners will meet on June 28 in the Centennial building in Cripple Creek at 9:15 a.m.
The Woodland Park City Council will meet on June 28 at 7 p.m. in the city council chambers, next to city hall. This represents a change in their normal meeting times.
Friday, June 29
The Pikes Peak Rotary Club will meet at 7 a.m. at the Woodland Park Public Library every Friday.
The Bella Vista Restaurant at Shining Mountain, one of the town’s favorite restaurants, has great weekend specials and events. Don’t miss their great entrees for lunch and dinner and special entertainment during the weekend. Live music occurs every Friday night. Plus, the course is now open for play for the season. For more information, regarding activities at the Shining Mountain Golf Course and Event Center, visitwww.shiningmountaingolf.com.
Melodrama celebration. The Butte Theater in Cripple Creek will feature its summer melodrama, “Hot Night In The Old Town,” on the evening of June 22. This classic melodrama runs until August 25. This classic melodrama and olio brings in the exciting history of Cripple Creek’s wild west days of the past. For ticket information, and to make reservations, call 719-689-6402 or visit buttetheater.com.
Saturday, June 30
Gold Camp Trolley Tours, which started in early June, continue every Saturday through September 1. Sites, stories, and reenactors will cover both history and happenings of Cripple Creek, Victor, and The CC&V Gold Mine.The trolley will leave from the Cripple Creek Train Welcome Center next to the District Museum at both 11am and 2pm. (No morning tour on June 23rd during Donkey Derby Days.) Tours are $10 for adults and $5 for children. Sponsored by the City of Cripple Creek and The Gold Camp Victorian Society. For more information, call 719-439-0462 or 719-423-9481.
Fossil Beds Activities and Hours. Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument is open year round. The Monument is now open from 9 am to 5 p.m. Be prepared for outdoor conditions by taking a sweater/coat, wearing a hat and sunscreen, etc. There are no additional fees for any park programs beyond the daily entrance fee of $7.00 per adult (15 and younger are free). Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument offers 15 miles of beautiful, yet lesser known, hiking trails to explore, a free Junior Ranger Program, three short self-guided trails, a park video and museum exhibits, and bookstore. For additional information, please call (719) 748-3253 or visit our website: www.nps.gov/flfo or on Facebook or Twitter at /FlorissantNPS
Cripple Creek Art Show. The 23rd annual Once Upon A Time In The West Art Show continues at the Cripple Creek Heritage Center until July 4. This show has been a popular hit for a number of years. It kicked off last week. For more information, go to visitcripplecreek.com.
Upcoming.
Independence Day happenings. A variety of festivities will occur in Woodland Park, Cripple Creek and Manitou Springs on July 4. In Woodland Park, this is the time for the Old Fashioned July 4th celebration, with a variety of games and contests in Memorial Park. Cripple Creek also will feature a variety of festivities and live music. See visitcripplecreek.com for details. Both towns are planning on doing fireworks shows, along with Manitou Springs. These latter shows, though, could be determined by the weather and any pending fire dangers.
Ute Pass-Woodland Park Kiwanis Bingo. Join the fun at Shining Mountain during the 1st & 3rd Thursday of each month at 6:30 p.m.Twenty dollars buys a packet for 10 games, 6 cards for each game It’s a great opportunity to have fun and socialize with your friends and neighbors. Come early and have dinner! Food and drinks will be available for purchase during the games! This event is sponsored by the Ute Pass-Woodland Park Kiwanis club. The proceeds benefit the children of Teller County. For more information, call Rita Randolph at 719-502-5085.
Mining tours. Experience mining old and new this summer and explore gold rush history past and present at the Victor Lowell Thomas Museum. Tour experiences, sponsored by the Newmont Mning Corporation, will offer the chance to see giant haul trucks, shovels and drill rigs in action in the large surface mine between Victor and Cripple Creek, Colorado. Learn about the modern refining methods while helping to preserve the district’s 1890’s history – all tour proceeds go to the Museum to help offset operations and building renovation costs. This summer the mine tours will be available May 26 through Sept. 3 at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m., daily except no tours will be held on Thursdays. In addition, tours are offered Sept. 8 and 9, 15 and 16 at 10 a.m. and 1 p.m. Check VictorColorado.com for additional tour times and dates during the summer weekends. The cost is $8.50 per person plus a small online booking fee – an affordable way for the entire family to see a real working gold mine. Only children 5 years of age and older are allowed on the tours. Please be sure to reserve your tour dates (June is the slowest and the best time to make a reservation) as they are very popular and fill up quickly. Reservations may be made online at VictorColorado.com or by leaving a message at 719-689-5509. The maximum on each tour is 13. The best way to reserve a mine tour is online at VictorColorado.com – online reservations receive first priority.
Cemetery Tours. Step back in time and learn about Victor’s 1890’s cemetery, its residents, and the history that brought them to the gold mining camp. These walking tours of the Sunnyside Cemetery are sponsored by the Victor Lowell Thomas Museum and will be held two Saturdays of each month from June 9 through the end of September as weather permits. Remaining tour dates are June 23, July 14, 28, Aug, 11, 25, Sept. 8, 22.Local historians Veldean Myers and Alicia Petri will provide insights into the cemetery and its history. The event will be held at the Sunnyside Cemetery which is south of town on Seventh Street. Meet just outside the gate in Pauper’s Field by 11 a.m. Tickets can be purchased at the gate or at the museum at 298 Victor Ave. For more information, visit VictorColorado.com, email museum@victorcolorado.com or call 719-689-5509.
Ute Pass Historical Society Annual Cemetery Crawl. Take a walk around the Woodland Park Cemetery on July 4th and meet some of the old pioneers who are resting there. Tours run every 15 minutes from 1 to 3. Cost is $5, and tickets are available at the gate. The cemetery is located at 650 Short Street in Woodland Park.
Please call UPHS at 719.686.7512 or e mail uphs@utepasshistoricalsociety.
Love Your Libraries Fiesta. Join us at the 4th Annual Love Your Libraries Fiesta on Sunday, July 15, 2018 from 11:00 – 2:00 pm. Support your local Libraries as we raise money for our All Decked Out fundraiser.
Hosted on the beautiful patio of Woodland Country Lodge, located at 723 W. US Hwy. 24, and featuring live music by Teller County’s own F-150 band.Cash bar and Fiesta Brunch menu available. So come out and support your Libraries where there is Something for Everyone.Tickets only $10 Available at Woodland Park and Florissant Libraries, Woodland Country Lodge and Gold Hill Wine and Liquor For information: 719-687-9281
Tickets for Ute Pass Mansion Tours Kick Off. The much anticipated tours of the historic Marigreen Pines Estate in Cascade will be held on Saturday, July 14 and Sunday, July 15. Ticket sales for the popular event have begun. The tours of the estate are hosted by the Ute Pass Historical Society. Marigreen Pines was the home of the Thomas Cusack family from 1895 until 1978. The tour includes their original home, Ellinor Cottage, as well as the elaborate Marigreen Pines mansion built in 1923. In 1978, Mrs. Anne Cusack Johnson stipulated that the mansion and grounds should be open for tours every three years for the benefit of the Ute Pass Historical Society. The tour is the biggest fundraiser for the non-profit group. Adult tickets are $25, and UPHS Patrons and groups of 10 or more are $20 per person. Tickets do sell out quickly, so get your order in soon!
For more information, call UPHS at 719.686.7512. Ticket order forms are also available at our website: utepasshistoricalsociety.org.
Manitou Springs/Colorado Springs
Music on the Labyrinth Series. On Saturday, July 14 at 6:30 p.m., First Christian Church at 16 E. Platte Avenue is presenting the next program in their summer Music on the Labyrinth series, featuring the Academy Jazz Ensemble, a full-sized big band with a love for jazz. The program will be held outdoors on the labyrinth on the south side of the church, but will move indoors for inclement weather. You may bring a blanket or chair, or just sit on the labyrinth wall. A free will offering will be taken. For more information, call 719-633-8888.
Good Ole Summertime Ice Cream Social and Pie Baking Contest. This event is scheduled for Soda Springs Park in downtown Manitou Springs on July 2 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. For more information, contact the Manitou Springs Chamber of Commerce at 719-685-5089.