Mountain Almanac 4/16/21

*Many of the following community events, meetings and gatherings must comply with the COVID-19 restrictions, which currently limit attendees. For more details, contact the event sponsors and suggested web sites.

Friday, April 16

Tee-off Time.  The Shining Mountain Golf Course is open for daily play for the 2021 season, weather permitting. In addition, the clubhouse bar is open, along with the driving range.  Currently, the course is a walking-only facility, with pull carts available. Driving carts should  be available shortly.  Call 719-687-7587 for more information and to make tee times.

Saturday, April 17

Fossil Beds Activities.  The Florissant Fossil Beds National Monument in Florissant is open year-round. The Monument is now open daily 9 a.m. to 5 p.m.   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.  Coronavirus restrictions, though, apply, and have impacted some displays. The visitor center is open Wednesdays through Sundays.  For additional information, please call (719) 748-3253 or visit our website: www.nps.gov/flfo or on Facebook or Twitter at /FlorissantNPS.

Mueller Hikes and Activities.  Kick off  spring at Mueller State Park, one of the secret gems of the state’s park system. While most state parks are overloaded with visitors due to the pandemic.  Mueller provides ideal trails without massive crowds. Typical weather this spring at Mueller can provide some great outings.  A full schedule of naturalist programs can help you to look, learn and enjoy the surroundings.  Enjoy guided hikes and special programs.   For more information, call 719-687-2366.

Solar System Self-Guided Tour, Scheduled for April 17 at 9 a.m., at the Garden of the Gods Visitor Center. Pick up a map and follow a 2.8 ,mile  walk through a designated area of the park to explore the scale models showing the relative distance and size of each planet within the solar system.

Sunday, April 18

Take a Sunday Hike. Scheduled for the Garden of the Gods Visitor Center on April 18 at 10 a.m. Join a park educator on a guided nature walk designed for young explorers. Focused on a Science, Technology, Engineering, Art and Math focused look at the natural life along some of the park’s most popular trails. At least one parent or adult sponsor should accompany each registered child.

Upcoming

Business Expo and After Hours. Scheduled for April 20 from 5 to 7 p.m. at the Ute Pass Cultural Center. The public is invited to attend Woodland Park’s largest business expo with a wide range of exhibitors. Meet face to face with local business people ready to talk about a variety of products and services offered including banking, financial, business services, construction, home maintenance and repair, healthcare, senior housing and more. Great fun with door prizes given away at the close of the event. We are combining our April Business After Hours with this Event as well. For more information, call 719-687-9885.

Paid-Parking Plans.  The Green Mountain Falls’ Board of Trustees are tentatively planning to hold a meeting

Paid Parking in GMF. The Green Mountain Falls Board of Trustees are tentatively planning to meet April 20 at 7 p.m. to review contract plans for managed parking system.  These plans call for a pilot program for the next two years on the weekends, with possibly some form of paid-parking for extended visitor stays.  The meeting will be held virtually, and access is easily available through the town’s web site.

The Manitou Springs City Council will  meet on Tuesday, April 20 at 6:30 p.m.

Whiskers, Whiskey and Wine. Join us on April 21 at 6:30 p.m. for stories, photos and videos of TCRAS (Teller County Regional Animal Shelter) programs, alumni, Happy Trails and more. The event is free but we hope you donate to support TCRAS and our programs. There is no sign up or password required to participate.  Join from your computer, phone or smart TV. Bidding for our online auction will start on Monday, April 19 and close on April 21 after the event. For more information, visit the TCRAS website of call 719-686-7707.

The Cripple Creek City  Council will meet on April 21 at 5:30 p.m. at the council chambers at city hall.  Limited attendance is permitted, but people and citizens interested in attending must call 719-689-2502 no later than noon on April 21.  To participate in the meeting virtually, visit the city’s website.

The Teller County Commissioners will meet on April 22 at 9:15 a.m. at the Centennial Building in Cripple Creek. The commissioners currently provide in-person meetings, with limited capacity.  Meetings also are available virtually.  Visit the Teller County government website for more details.

 Ground-breaking for Turrell Trail.  An official ground-breaking for the new Turrell Trail, which will provide access to the new James Turrell Skyspace exhibit in Green Mountain Falls, has been set for April 24 at 10:30 a.m. in the community farm stand, next to The Pantry restaurant. Members of the Green Mountain Falls Board of Trustees and the Green Box Arts group and other community leaders will partake in the ceremony. The new exhibit is expected to debut this summer.

Future Announcements

Call  For Local Artists

The 36th annual Mountain Arts Festival is accepting applications for artists from the Pikes Peak Region.

The festival is August 7 and 8 on the green between the Ute Pass Cultural Center and the Woodland Park Public Library.  Eligibility: Any artist or craftsperson exhibiting his or her own handmade works of art is eligible. A committee comprised of members of the Mountain Artists will judge all applications. Criteria for judging include quality, salability, and uniqueness of item(s).

The Mountain Arts Festival draws art lovers from all over the state, and is highly regarded among artists who have exhibited there. With up to 80 exhibitors, there is a surprising variety of art at the show, including but not limited to paintings, sculpture, woodwork, textile artists, mural artists, metalworks, and jewelry.

The deadline for applications is May 1 and interested artists can download the application from the Mountain Artists website: www.themountainartists.org.

For more information, contact Rita Randolph at  719-502-5085.

Green Box Arts Festival

The 2021 Green Box Arts Festival is thrilled to announce it will welcome a Skyspace installation to the town of Green Mountain Falls, created by internationally-renowned contemporary light and space artist James Turrell. The work will be the first permanent Turrell installation in the state of Colorado, and the first in the world to be positioned on the side of a mountain. The piece joins an exclusive list of more than 85 Skyspaces the artist has designed and built throughout the world, including Argentina, Japan, Greece, Norway and Australia.

The Skyspace, which will be formally named upon completion by Turrell, will be constructed with materials specific to Colorado and launched with the support of the Historic Green Mountain Falls Foundation. Green Box has partnered with the Town to create a new hiking trail from the Town’s entrance that will lead to the installation atop Red Mountain overlooking the town; a unique pilgrimage nestled among the whispering aspens with views of Pikes Peak in the distance. True to its multidisciplinary approach, Green Box will also partner with local schools and organizations to implement educational programming for future visitors to enjoy. Here are a few festival highlights and feature artists and performers:

James Turrell is heralded globally as one of the most significant artists of our time. For more than fifty years, he has created eloquent, deceptively simple artworks that explore the complexity of light as a medium. Best known among Turrell’s completed artworks are his Skyspaces. These observatories — much like all of his work — are designed to be places of contemplative thought. All Skyspaces are specifically proportioned chambers, perfectly positioned in nature, with apertures in the ceiling open to the sky.

American Ballet Theatre is one of the great dance companies in the world and is internationally celebrated as a cultural institution dedicated to preserving and extending the great legacy of classical dancing. This summer, ABT will bring 12 dancers to Green Mountain Falls for a five-week residency, culminating in three can’t-miss, captivating performances. Acclaimed choreographer Silas Farley will join ABT to create a new work to be performed by the Company. Few ballet companies equal ABT for its combination of size, scope and outreach. Recognized as a living national treasure since its founding in 1940, ABT annually tours the United States, performing for more than 300,000 people, and is the only major cultural institution to do so. For 81 years, the Company has appeared in 45 countries and has performed in all 50 states. ABT has recently enjoyed triumphant successes with engagements in Paris, Singapore and Hong Kong. On April 27, 2006, by an act of Congress, American Ballet Theatre was designated America’s National Ballet Company®.

Cal Balco is a  New Haven, Connecticut, based artist and writer who has exhibited her work nationally at venues including Rick Wester Fine Art, NYC; Pulse Art Fair, Miami; The Painting Center, NYC; and Real Art Ways, Hartford, Connecticut. Her essays and art criticism have been published in Art New England and she has served as a visiting artist at institutions including the Maine College of Art, Swarthmore College, Pratt Institute at the Munson Williams Proctor School of Art and Yale University where she is also an Associate Fellow. She is currently preparing for a solo show of paintings at Rick Wester Fine Art. Her latest creation, Red Over Blue, will be on view at the Lake Street display this summer for all to view.

Collective Grove, part of  the annual 4th of July Block Party will be held on Saturday, July 3, and will once again deliver its promised upbeat tunes and dance beats.Collective Groove is  a full-frontal dance assault forged from the timeless horn-powered grooves of the golden age of soul and the “baddest” contemporary beats, Collective Groove is sure to be a booty-shaking throw down. Comprised of some of southern Colorado’s finest musical muscle, these party rocking specialists provide an over-the-top good time with a contagious mix of dance tunes from the 60s to modern day including Bruno Mars, The Temptations, Chicago, Earth, Wind & Fire, Daft Punk, Michael Jackson, Prince and much more. Put on your dancing shoes and get ready for a fun Block Party with this can’t-miss concert!

 The Reminders.  Festival revelers will also enjoy the rare and remarkable musical duo The Reminders who seamlessly blend soulful sounds and roots music with insightful messages and thoughtful lyrics. The group has established a firm place in today’s ever-evolving music scene, garnering international acclaim while paving a path all their own. Their stage presence and high energy shows leave crowds in awe the world over, allowing the duo to uplift and entertain all at once. Their unique mashup of razor-sharp rhymes; raw, soulful vocals; and reggae-tinged hip-hop beats form the perfect backdrop for their relevant and inspiring themes, leaving a lasting impression on listeners with audiences always wanting more. The Reminders take their hip hop foundation and move it beyond genre, time and space to create a global musical experience that is classic and speaks to all those willing to participate. Accompanying the inspiring dance, music, art, conversations and comprehensive lineup of classes, camps and culinary arts experiences, the festival welcomes new events this year that are free and open to the public: Friday Film Nights, Sunday Sing-Alongs and a Pooch Parade!

These events are free and open to the public with social distancing measures in place. Visit greenboxarts.org for more information.