It’s easy to fall into a slump in a ski town when it doesn’t snow. The buzz around town is gloomy, and all anyone can talk about is why the storms aren’t coming. Global warming? Arctic pressure? La Nina? But one great activity you can still...
It’s easy to get overwhelmed with the amount of things to do in Telluride. But among your many winter activities, make sure to carve out a night for Telluride’s Lifesavers' Ball on Saturday, January 14th. As Chief Paramedic, Emil Sante, put it, “The ball is...
When we think of Telluride’s Noel Night, we often think shopping. We think of deals and discounts and raffles. But to say Noel Night is about shopping is like describing Telluride as just a ski town. Telluride’s Noel Night falls during the bitterly cold and short...
by Emily Brendler Shoff
There are some things in life that you just have to bow down and give thanks for, even if you’ve never had an interest in praying before. For me, it’s my friend Molly and Avalanche Ranch.
Molly and her family’s ranch just outside of Carbondale is one of those places where the stars have aligned, and a river runs through it. It’s right at the base of Mt. Sopris and nestled in the foothills along the Crystal River, has just the right blend of farmland and mountain topography. When I first visited it on a weekend away from Colorado College, I wanted to cry. I missed my family in Baltimore, and my heart felt frozen with pain. But more than anything, I couldn’t believe that Molly had grown up here. My god, to think, she got to see this everyday?!
by Emily Brendler Shoff
The Telluride Blues and Brews Festival always falls at the time of year when anything can happen weather-wise. It can be sunny and 70, or it can be snowing. This weekend was both. 
Saturday, it rained and snowed so hard that even long-time locals were questioning why they call Telluride home. At the beer tasting, people were dressed in every imaginable combination they could think of to stay warm. Those who’d thought to bring rain jackets and rain paints were the happiest but equally happy were those in trash bags, snap-up Carhartt suits, and polypro onesies. I even saw one guy wearing his ski clothes, including ski boots.
The weather didn’t seem to dampen people’s appreciation for the beer or the music. If anything, it just added another layer of appreciation. People discussed others’ outfits as much as they discussed the beer.
My rubber xtra-tuf rain boots from my Alaska NOLS trip in 1994 got the same amount of praise as I imagine the latest handbags do in New York.
by Emily Brendler Shoff
It’s easy to come up with reasons not to go to Shakespeare in the Telluride Town Park. You’re broke. You’re afraid of Town Park after dark. You’re afraid of Shakespeare.
But here are a few reasons why you should dig more deeply into your wallet and soul and go see this year’s Repertory production of As You Like It.
For starters…. Hockey talent in the summer. It’s not often that you see many killer hockey players that can also act. It’s rarer still to see killer hockey players perform Shakespeare. This year, the Rep has two such stars, and they’re as successful on the stage as they are on the ice. Buff Hooper is a surly and charming Jacques, one whose melancholy energizes the stage. Emily Koren is a playful and puckish Touchstone, a fool who reminds us at once to reflect and to laugh.
Learn How to Make Blueberry Brandy Crepes With Peaks’ Chef Lynn Tilyou
by Emily Brendler Shoff
The new brunch at the Peaks Resort is one of the best-kept secrets in town. Andy and I went up there last Sunday and were blown away. Once glance at the menu made us wish that we had gone mountain biking before brunch. How do you honestly decide between a poached egg with a root beer barbeque beef hash or a bacon waffle topped with duck confit and apple cider syrup? We couldn’t and so ordered both. 
We also ordered squash blossoms stuffed with goat cheese and an heirloom tomato and watermelon salad to start. Everything was as visually appealing as the backdrop view of Palmyra Peak from the deck. But as we know, the views of our mountain scenery are just the start; it’s what inside that matters. Everything Chef Lynn Tilyou concocted in her kitchen that morning was equally outstanding, a perfect balance of salty and sweet.
by Emily Brendler Shoff
#1: Learn How to Make Thailandaise with Siam’s chef, Jeff Badger
(ed. note: Emily begins a new series on Telluride Inside... and Out, featuring local chefs working with the bounty of the Friday Telluride Farmers' Market, and the Mountain Village Wednesday market. Be sure to watch the video at the end of the post.)
I love summer in Telluride. I love watching the snowmelt into tiny threads on the trails. I love the transformation from mud to wildflowers. And I love the Telluride Farmers' Market.
To me, the Telluride Farmers' Market screams life. The colors and smells of the market have a way of seducing me. Indeed, after only a few strolls up and down Oak Street, my basket is always overflowing. It’s only then that I realize I’ve done it again: I’ve bought far more ingredients than I know what to do with.
I first met Abigail Washburn in a basement studio in Packard Hall at Colorado College. We were hosting tryouts for our female a cappella group, Ellement. She showed up and needless to say, tryouts were done for the day. Her voice was so beautiful that we actually started rehearsing with her that same afternoon. We’d found the final member of our group.
After a somber morning service at the 16th Street Baptist Church, the place where four little girls died in a bombing in 1963, we have just stepped out of the Civil Rights Institute and into its sculpture garden. One of the sculptures depicts a girl who struggles to free herself from the jaws of a police dog. The dog holds onto her tightly, gripping the hem of her dress.
For the first time in a while, the group is silent. The girl speaks to them. She is not much older that any of them, perhaps even younger, and yet she risks her life for freedom. This has been a revelation for everyone as we learn more about the protest movements of the 60’s—learning about the children’s efforts in Birmingham and elsewhere. Across the South, children went to jail and risked their lives in order to draw attention towards the hatred and mistreatment of blacks. 
