Lifestyle

[For Wah! click "Play"]

2008_hug1_thumb One singular sensation: "Her Wahness" is featured at the third annual Telluride Yoga Festival."Kirtan with Wah! Sean Johnson & the Wild Lotus Band" takes place Friday night, 7:30 – 10 p.m. at the Telluride Conference Center in the Mountain Village.

Sound as a means of healing is a technique –  or a variety of techniques –  recorded in the ancient Americas, Africa, Greece, China, and Rome, and dates back at least to 5,000 B.C. The Yoga tradition has known for centuries that sound is the new apple a day –  only more so. Chanting mantras has physiological benefits such as increasing circulation to the different parts of the body, balancing heart rhythm, deepening exhalation; emotional benefits, such as inducing relaxation and mood elevation; intellectual benefits such as improving memory function and recharging brain cells.
[click "Play" to listen to Scott Rhea's interview with Susan]

Mstrcopy_w_RoJune 26_for web copy I have covered Telluride cultural life over a career of 18 years and counting, and found that the parade of interesting people who gravitate to our Shangri-La never ends. You may not know the names of many of these people, not because they are not abundantly talented and widely accomplished, but because Telluride is their sanctuary, a place to get away from the faces they meet in the real world. Case in point: Scott Rhea.


Scott, who divides his time between Tinseltown and the Ski Ranches just outside the Town of Telluride, has had a very successful career shooting fashion print and editorial fashion. But it is book of unique underwater images released in 2009 that triggered his coming out party in Telluride.

[click "Play" to hear Susan's interview with Scott Blossom]

Scott Blossom and Chandra Easton arrive in Telluride from Tara Mandala just outside Pagosa Springs, where the husband and wife team teach a week-long workshop on the subject of "Shadow Yoga and Buddhist Meditation: the Pranic Pathway to Stillness," June 30 – July 7. All day on the opening day of the Telluride Yoga Festival, July 8, the couple teach an abridged version of the intensive for those interested in learning a set of practices for circulating and preparing the vital energies (prana) for meditation. They are also on the schedule with a variety of classes for all levels of practitioners throughout the long weekend.


Scott-2-IMG_0211e-print Scott Blossom was the very first  yoga instructor and therapist to sign on the dotted line when Telluride Yoga festival founder Aubrey Hackman needed a respected "brand name" in the industry to attract other high profile teachers to her nascent event. Blossom is also traditional Chinese medical practitioner and Ayurvedic consultant. A premise fundamental to Ayurveda is that all living things are innately interdependent. What sealed the deal for him three years ago was the fact the Yoga Fest would be a zero waste weekend and 25 percent of net profits would be donated to a local environmental non-profit. Blossom is now a Telluride Yoga Festival board member.

Scott is scheduled to teach an Introduction to Shadow Yoga, the Hatha lineage founded by his yoga maser Zhander Remete, a practice for Balancing our Inner Fire, and a session on Healing and Strengthening Bones, Joints and Nerves.

The 9545 Bar at the Inn at Lost Creek is right next to the Sunset Plaza in the Mountain Village above Telluride. Sunset Plaza is the venue for the Wednesday evening Summer Concert Series, starting at 6:00 pm. The first concert of this...

Lama Tsultrim Allione is among the presenters at the 3rd annual Telluride Yoga Festival, all deeply knowledgeable in the field of transformative practices, but primarily Yoga. Lama Tsultrim is the exception. She does not teach Yoga or the related science, Ayurveda. Lama Tsultrim...

by Erik Dalton

Andy Bagnall Surfing The 3rd Annual Ridgway River Festival at Rollins Park in Ridgway, CO on Saturday, June 26, was a huge success and a great day of fun along the banks of the Uncompahgre River. Jagged Edge, as well as the Telluride Kayak School, event sponsors, were there with a fleet of demo kayaks and a series of free kayaking clinics to help introduce folks to the sport.

Junk of the Unc Race As midday approached and the temperature steadily climbed, it was time for a series of fun races open to all species of  river rats: down-river races for kayaks, racing kayaks, inflatables, and make-it-yourself contraptions to compete in the "Junk of the Unc" race. A kayak rodeo in the mid-afternoon rounded out the fun. Imagine whitewater kayakers competing on a set of waves for who could throw the best tricks and impress the judges the most.

Owl gulch hike view

By D. Dion

Telluride residents love the new Owl Gulch cutoff between the Jud Wiebe Trail and Tomboy Road, but they’re not the only locals who have been frequenting the new trail this summer. Bears have also been making their mark on the hiking route.

The young aspen trees all along the highest switchbacks of the trail are riddled with claw marks. Apparently the bruins woke up hungry after their winter nap and have been digging into the trees’ flesh, which is just beneath their bark. The inside of the tree bark has nutritional value not just for bears, but also for people, which is a good bit of information to have should you find yourself starving out in the woods. Of course, the average hiker doesn’t have nails or an appendage anything like a bear does, so you might also want to remember your Swiss army knife if you plan on getting lost and not bringing enough food.