I Guess He’d Rather Be In Colorado…

August 14, 2015



Sufjan Stevens



Peter Yarrow

Kasey Chambers

I Guess He’d Rather Be In Colorado…

One of our favorite music festivals to attend is the wonderful, magical, intimate and beautiful Rocky Mountain Folks Festival held each August in the community of Lyons, Colorado. The festival which we have attended off and on for the past dozen years or so was threatened in 2013 when a massive 500 year flood destroyed the property at Planet Bluegrass along with much of the town of Lyons. The tremendous hard work, financial support and dedication of friends of Planet Bluegrass had the property completely rebuilt and ready for the festival season the following year, but the same cannot be said of much of the Lyons community.

2013 Flood









Mary Gauthier

This is why I have attached a link to the efforts to rebuild this wonderful community below, having experienced the disaster of Hurricane Wilma (and Georges and Andrew), I can attest that the need does not go away after the news cycle passes and the attention fades. Please check out the site below and donate if you can.



Taarka









This was our first trip out since the flooding and we started our visit in Boulder, where we got to spend time with my nephew Patrick and explore the city a little before driving up to Estes Park to spend a wonderful evening with our friends Kerry and Matt. It was great seeing Patrick though it went by really fast. Pearl Street is also fun to check out and we made it to a couple of breweries in the neighborhood before heading off.

Kathy and Patrick







Matt

Kerry

Kerry has been one of my favorite people on earth since I meet her some 25 years ago, she moved from Key West some years ago and opened an amazing restaurant in Estes Park, The Rock Inn Mountain Tavern which has been a huge success since opening its doors. Kathy and I spent a wonderful evening at the home where she and Matt live which is on the restaurant property.



Kathy and Kerry

They are the kind of people who just raise your spirits just by being around them and we spent a wonderful evening catching up. Kerry was going to be joining us for the entire festival, but sadly (for us) Matt was committed to some family who was visiting so he could not make it to Folks Fest.

Shane Koyczan

Peter Yarrow



Mary Gauthier

The line-up for day one of the festival was incredible. The people at Planet Bluegrass seem to have outdone themselves in celebrating the 25^th annual festival of music and arts with a line-up that featured local artists Taarka along with the wonderful Mary Gauthier, the incomparable Peter Yarrow from the iconic Peter, Paul and Mary, Shane Koyczan and the Short Story Long, Kasey Chambers and the amazing Sufjan Stevens on the main stage.

Michael & Peter Yarrow

Sufjan Stevens



Kasey Chambers



They were all fantastic, memorable, wonderful, magical moments abounded from Peter Yarrow inviting children on stage to sing “Puff the Magic Dragon” to Shane Koyczan’s incredible spoken word poetry set to music to the wonderful singer songwriters Mary Gauthier and Kasey Chambers all topped off by a terrific set from the dynamic Sufjan Stevens, it was an incredible, wonderful day along the banks of the St. Vrain.











The place had been rebuilt actually better than before the flood and everyone was in such a festive mood to celebrate the 25^th anniversary. It was as good a time as I have had at a musical event in ages, mostly because it is so much more than a music festival, more a communal gathering of some huge like-minded tribe that really does radiate with positivity. It is unlike anything else we do all year.











http://www.lyonscf.org/rebuild-lyons-flood-recovery.html