First day of AUTUMN. That perfect time of year when Aspen blaze yellow & we don morning jackets.
Smack in the midst of Fall run season [marathoning Cheyenne tomorrow] – no time for hikes? How bad do you want it? Autumn’s once a year, summer’s retreated. Anything is possible 😊
4am crack-of-dawn start Saturday a.m. Backpack readied outside my front hall closet. Bottled water, snacks for Pup. No 14er attempt this day, purposely staying tree-line. Leaf peep slow-soak.
West on I-70, HIKE DAY destination: Silverthorne. Haven’t been since May last year, Ash & Tom’s Colorado wedding. Town will always tug at my heart. Whatta life memory!
Fast forward 15 months: mountain HIKE, no wedding. Angler Mountain. Trailhead start tucked outside a residential subdivision, notta lotta parking. Arrived early – early enough to watch the sunrise/crest the Divide. Slow, deep breath. Magic. Colorado HIKE celebration.
Sunshine poured thru tall naked groves of Aspen. More leaves on the ground than on the trees themselves. UP, UP, UP. We’d hike 2 ½ miles above Silverthorne, snap scenic shots of Lake Dillon – and SURROUND ourselves with YELLOW. Colorado aspen ablaze.
Filled an old swag bag with mementos of the season while Ro ran off-leash. Thanksgiving, Christmas, Easter – all celebrated, shared with family & friends. Why not Autumn? Idea💡
Purchased cards in Georgetown. Stuffed each with a piece of the day – Aspen leaves, pine cones, burnt thistle. 8 of you received impromptu LOVE from Colorado. Gonna DOUBLE that count next year.
‘Tis the season, my personal fave. Happy Autumn 2018! 🍂🍁
[Confession: day’s hike – Ash’s plan. They’d repeat my trek Sunday morn with Grandpup Marty.]
-
- first day of Autumn
-
- dog SMILE
-
- Aspen YELLOW
-
- Fall foliage
-
- Lake Dillon
-
- tree-line elevation
-
- Grandpup Marty
-
- Wilp wedding bridge
-
- Silverthorne CO
-
- Sunday ROMANCE hike
-
- season SHARING
Haggis & Chips
50/50 mix of guys sporting their family tartans. Might have been outnumbered today. Whole lotta man skirts. Folk music, Highland dance, Scottish sports & FOOD.
Walked thru the crowded Clan tent, to find out EVERYONE is Scottish this day. 23andme must have missed my Highland ancestry. Guy opened his secret Harry Potter Book of Tartans & revealed I am Family Dundee. Good to be Scot – if only a day 🙂
Mesmerized, stood/gawked watching two of the Games’ early sporting events. Stone throw & Sheaf toss (hay bale pitch). BIG guys; BIG guys in kilts.
FOOD. Bellied a plate of traditional haggis & Chips then jockeyed for a seat in Estes Park’s Fairgrounds arena. Opening Ceremonies.
Family Clan march, multiple troops of bagpipers, festival Speeches & a military flyover.
Day’s WOW moment. Military trumpet, first line of ‘Amazing Grace’. Moments later its single voice accompanied by tens of bagpipes. Backdrop: our Colorado Rockies. Magic. Found myself holding my breath. Life imprint, moment memorized.
-
- Opening Ceremony
-
- hundreds of bagpipers
-
- Scot for a day: Clan Dundee
-
- festival FOOD ❤️
Festival & Highland Games
Opening Ceremonies
Amazing Grace
Estes Park, Colorado
Who doesn’t love a parade? Friend invited [me] to tag along Saturday.
Scottish Highland Festival? ABSOLUTELY.
Neighbor Larry arrived in native Scot regalia. You think you know a guy. Man skirt?
Estes Park Fairgrounds, festival gates open at 11. PARADE MARCH down Elkhorn an hour-half earlier. Closest I personally come to being Scottish: wearing PLAID the next THREE seasons. Probably more BRAWNY MAN than BRAVEHEART. LOL>
Bring on the BAGPIPES! Show me some KILTS! LOVE LOVE a parade.
Each clan sported their own unique FAMILY plaid.
SCOTLAND the BRAVE played — over & over & over ♪ ♫ ♬
GREAT weather, GREAT energy, GREAT time!
Thanks neighbor 🌞
Every man dies, but not every man really lives – Braveheart 🏹
-
- gateway to the Rockies
-
- Estes’ Elkhorn Ave
-
- men in KILTS
-
- unique FAMILY PLAID
-
- BAGPIPES ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬
-
- parade LOVE ❤️
Scottish Highland Parade (Part I)
Scottish Highland Parade (same song/one song mix)
Longs Peak Scottish Irish Highland Festival
SEPTEMBER 6-9, 2018
For more than three decades, Estes Park has been the backdrop for one of the nation’s largest celebrations of the heritage, the sounds, the tastes, and the arts of the Scottish and Irish cultures.
Held annually the weekend after Labor Day, Estes Park’s Longs Peak Scottish-Irish Highland Festival is the largest gathering of its kind between the Mississippi River and California, and traditionally hosts bands – from the marching kind to the rocking kind and everything in-between – hailing from Great Britain, Scotland, Ireland, Canada and, of course, the United States.
With jousting knights, dancing girls, hoisting athletes and calling bagpipes, groups and families of all ages will catch the Celtic spirit at this festival – surrounded by the scenic peaks of Estes Park!
One of the weekend highlights is the free hour-long parade on Elkhorn Avenue, Estes Park’s main street. Bagpipes, drummers, dancers, clans in tartan, Dogs of the British Isles, brass military bands and precision drill teams give a preview of what can be seen on the festival grounds.
