September Splendor in Gunnison - Crested Butte (All September)

SEPTEMBER SPLENDOR IN THE ROCKIES EVENTS
*All event dates and times are subject to change. Visit www.gunnisoncrestedbutte.com/events for the most up-to-date calendar.

Guided Heritage Walking Tours by Crested Butte Mountain Heritage Museum, Crested Butte
The museum offers a free, self-guided town walking tour brochure and throughout September there are guided tours. The cost is $10 person and also includes admission to the Museum. Please call 970-349-1880 for more information. http://www.crestedbuttemuseum.com/

Crested Butte Farmer's Market, Elk Avenue & Crank's Plaza
Shop for fresh regional produce, preserves, wine, hard cider, cheese, meat, baked goods and arts and crafts throughout September at the Crested Butte Farmers' Market. Visit http://www.cbfarmersmarket.org/

Gunnison Valley Observatory Open for Public Viewing, Gunnison
On Public Viewing Nights, the observatory's 30-inch reflector telescope (the largest public telescope in Colorado) and outside scopes will be used to observe the night sky. A minimum donation of $5 per adult and $3 per child is requested. Gates to the observatory open at 7:30 p.m. on these evenings. Visit http://www.gunnisonobservatory.org/

Gunnison Farmers' Market, Virginia Ave & Main St.
Shop for fresh regional produce, preserves, meat, baked goods, and arts and crafts on Saturdays throughout September at the Gunnison Farmers' Market located at Virginia and Main Street from 9:30 a.m. - 1:30 p.m. http://www.gunnisonfarmersmarket.com/

First Friday Gallery Crawl & Music, Various Galleries & Locations, Gunnison
To kick off each month right, enjoy great art in Gunnison at the First Friday Gallery Crawl & Music from 5 - 7 p.m. Refreshments, on-site artists and great socializing are highlights. Call Gunnison Gallery at (970) 641-6111 for participating businesses and more information. Free.

Labor Day Sidewalk Sales, Crested Butte, Mt. Crested Butte, Gunnison
Shop to your heart's content and find great bargains at the Labor Day Sidewalk sale in Crested Butte, Mt. Crested Butte, and in Gunnison.

Sept. 1 - 2 - The People's Fair (Arts, Crafts & More), Elk Avenue, Crested Butte
The People's Fair in downtown Crested Butte. Hundreds of locals and visitors stroll Elk Avenue to take in this homespun cultural experience and to soak in the last of the high-country summer. The People's Fair features an eclectic mix of approximately 70 booths showcasing regional arts and crafts, collectibles and antiques, and preserved foods from local gardens as well as live music, a tasty fair food, and nonprofit organization booths selling books, CDs, baked goods and more. Since 1988, The People's Fair has been made possible by the volunteer efforts of the artist members of The Paragon Gallery, a cooperatively owned arts and crafts gallery in downtown Crested Butte, located at 132 Elk Ave. For more information, contact The Paragon Gallery at (970) 349-6484 or visit http://www.paragongallery.org/.

Sept. 8 - Fall Festival of Beers & Chili Cook-Off, Crested Butte Mountain Resort
Get into the spirit of autumn with Mt. Crested Butte's Annual Fall Festival of Beers & Chili Cook-Off held on Sept. 8 at the base of Crested Butte Mountain Resort (CBMR) ski area. Heat up by sampling great chili prepared by area cook-off contestants, cool off with beers poured by more than 20 microbreweries, and savor live music all afternoon. Awards will be presented at days end. For admission costs and more information, contact the Crested Butte-Mt. Crested Butte Chamber of Commerce at (800) 814-8893 and visit http://www.cbchamber.com/.

Sept. 8 - 9 - 36^th Annual Pearl Pass Mountain Bike Tour, Crested Butte
This oldest mountain bike event in the world runs from Crested Butte to Aspen via Pearl Pass. In 1976, the first group of 15 or 20 cyclists from the Butte rode one-speed town bikes over the 12,705-foot Pearl Pass to Aspen in response to a group of Aspenites riding their motorcycles over Pearl Pass and parking them in downtown Crested Butte. The Crested Butte rowdies pulled up in downtown Aspen in front of the historic Hotel Jerome. Celebrate Crested Butte as one of the birthplaces of mountain biking. For information, call (970) 349-6817 or visit http://www.mtnbikehalloffame.com/.

Sept. 9 - 10 - Wooden Nickel Fall Golf Classic, Club at Crested Butte
This annual golf outing favorite for teams of four benefits the junior hockey program in the Gunnison-Crested Butte Valley. Day one is a four-person scramble and day two is a modified best ball. The cost includes cart and green fees for 36 holes of golf, trophies and prizes, complimentary beverages and range balls. For information and registration, call Eric at (970) 349-6350.

Sept. 16 - 22 - 27^th Annual Vinotok Fall Harvest Festival, Crested Butte
The autumn equinox, a time of balance between day and night, heralds in the celebration of Vinotok in Crested Butte, Colo. Meaning "fall wine festival" in Slovenian, Vinotok culminates on Sept. 22 after several days of celebrating and commemorates the bounty of the summer harvest and gathering of the community before the long winter ahead. It is a time of village feasting, of forgetting the woes of yesterday and honoring traditional Eastern European roots. In the midst of the 27^th annual celebration, from Sept. 16 - 22, is a colorful array of medieval characters, a street theatre performance, storytelling, Liar's Night, a community potluck, farmer's market and much more. For more information, contact Molly Murfee at (970) 349-0947 or Marcie Telander at (970) 349-6509.

Sept. 29 - ArtWalk Evening, Studios & Galleries in Crested Butte
To wrap up the month in style, from June to September, Crested Butte's ArtWalk Evenings bring art enthusiasts on a tour of the galleries on the last Thursday evening from 5 - 8 p.m. Light refreshments, music and on-site artists are featured at many of the locations. ArtWalk Evenings also take place December - March. For a list of participating galleries, go to http://www.awearts.org/.

Sept. 27 - 30 - Crested Butte Film Festival, Various Gunnison & Crested Butte Locations
Films, discussions and merriment are on tap for this new festival that takes place during one of the prime leaf-viewing weekends of fall. Look for Academy Award nominees, films from Cannes and Sundance and many unknown gems. Most of the films will be Colorado premieres. For information, visit http://www.crestedbuttefilmfestival.org/ or call (303) 204-9080.

Click here for current lodging packages and discounts.

ROCKY MOUNTAIN FALL FOLIAGE

Nature and the communities of Gunnison - Crested Butte, Colo., are known for pulling out all the stops to let local colors shine in September with outstanding fall foliage and autumn activities during "September Splendor in the Rockies." We're offering lots of great lodging deals for fall as well!

A few highlights include the Fall Festival of Beers & Chili Cook-off, DjangoFest Colorado (gypsy jazz), Vinotok harvest festival, MountainAir Marathon, gallery crawls, mountain biking series, a fun run and more.

Large Aspen groves turning brilliant shades of color, a wide range of outdoor recreation, amazing fall drives, a scenic self-guided heritage driving tour, great deals on vacation packages , and September Splendor in the Rockies fun make the month an ideal time for people who love the sights, smells, sounds and feel of fall.

Take a serene stroll alongside a mountain stream or careening down an exhilarating single-track trail on a mountain bike, the sheer splendor of aspen ablaze in yellow, red and orange provides a stunning setting for recreation, casual drives and the many events that take place in September.

For more information OR to sign-up for any of the September Splendor events please call 877-351-8724, Options 1 & 2 can help you make event reservations and provide destination information, while Option 3 can assist you in making lodging reservations immediately!

When you see the amazing gift of the trees' fall fashion show against the backdrop of pure blue, sun-soaked sky and crystal clear air, you'll get a sense of why people who live in the Gunnison Valley consider September a special time of year.

To see these images and more fall photos, visit our fall photo gallery.

For events beyond September, please visit our event calendar.

Background photo by Allan Ivy