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Plan your Summit County weekend: Frisco’s Gold Rush, Basin’s Beacon Bowl, Keystone’s Bluegrass Weekend and more

Eat, Ski & Be Merry is a progressive ski dinner with bonfires taking place this Saturday at the Frisco Nordic Center. Guests are invited to ski or snowshoe their way along the fire-lit route on the Frisco Peninsula. The evening will end with a party at the Frisco Adventure Park Day Lodge. For more information, visit TownOfFrisco.com.
Todd Powell / Special to the Daily |

Winter bluegrass weekend

Keystone’s Winter Bluegrass Weekend is returning to Warren Station for its seventh year this Friday and Saturday night, featuring some of Colorado’s most talented string bands. Friday night will feature local favorites, including The Pine Beetles, Coal Town Reunion and Tenth Mountain Division. Saturday night will bring more Colorado bands, including Steel Pennies, Ginny Mules and Chain Station. The Pine Beetles are a well-known Breckenridge-based community band that frequents the county’s venues. They will be the opening act for the festival’s first night. The middle act on Friday is Coat Towl Reunion, a Colorado western roots rock outfit that’s been touring the state for the last two years. Lastly, Tenth Mountain Division from Boulder started as a duo — one mandolin player and one guitarist (acoustic and electric). In May of 2017 the group found a permanent lineup by adding a bassist and vocalist as well as a drummer and keyboardist. Though it has evolved drastically, the group has retained its roots in the American musical styles of bluegrass, Americana and progressive rock. Saturday’s opening act is the Steel Pennies, a five-piece group that mixes traditional bluegrass and original string music. Members of Ginny Mules hail from various parts of Colorado and their combined forces create a unique style of bluegrass which infuses elements of Appalachian music, blues, classical and folk. The end result still has the high lonesome sound of traditional bluegrass with tight vocal harmonies with raw, bluesy elements. Saturday’s headlining act is Chain Station from Estes Park. Chain Station originally started as a duo in 2006, when they first started writing music, but were joined in 2010 by a mandolin player and, shortly thereafter, added a banjo player to their lineup. The Denver-based four-piece string band has picking styles that range from lightning fast to mountain mellow. The music starts at 7 p.m. both nights with doors opening at 6:30 p.m. Tickets vary from $15-25. A portion of the ticket sales will be donated to the Dercum Center for the Arts and Humanities. For more information visit WarrenStation.com or call 970-423-8997.

First Fridays in Silverthorne



In an effort to further establish its artsy, downtown scene, the town of Silverthorne is hosting an evening of food, arts and music. First Fridays, an extension of Silverthorne’s strategic vision to further establish the town as a cultural hub, starts at 4 p.m. Enjoy live music and craft beer at Silverthorne’s newest downtown brewery, Angry James, from 4-5:30 p.m. Then, enjoy an artist reception at the Silverthorne Performing Arts Center with more live music and appetizers offered until 7 p.m. For two hours — from 5:30-7:30 p.m. — a dance party will be in full swing at Studio B in Silverthorne. Lastly, a father-daughter date night is taking place at the Silverthorne Pavilion from 7-9 p.m. Lake Dillon Theatre Company’s “Building The Wall” will be showing at the Silverthorne Performing Arts Center and a few doors down, Sauce On The Blue will be hosting a late night happy hour with specials on food and drinks as well as live music. For more information visit Silverthorne.org.

Adventures in Nepal



In August of last year Bob Hinderholtz took the trip of a lifetime to Nepal. He will share that adventure with the public on Friday at 7 p.m. in the Blue River Room at the North Branch Library, 651 Center Circle, Silverthorne. Highlights of the trip will include Nepal’s capital, Kathmandu, where Hinderholtz visited the Boudhanath Stupa, the main pilgrimage site for Tibetan Buddhists, as well as Pashupatinath, the sacred temple of the Hindu god Shiva. Across the Bagmati River from Kathmandu in the ancient city of Patan lies Durbar Square, one of seven UNESCO World Heritage Sites in the country. Along the trade route from Tibet to India at Pokhara, Hinderholtz began a trek through the foothills of the Annapurna mountain range, enjoying views of the Pokhara Valley. The hike continued to the village of Birethanti. A three-day raft trip along the Seti River provided more stunning views. A jeep tour through Chitwan National Park permitted photo ops of one-horned rhinos, Bengal tigers and spotted deer that live in this unique ecosystem. Later a canoe ride through the jungle offered the chance to spot endangered birds. Besides rafts and canoes, Hinderholtz’s trip included transportation by ox-cart as well as elephant.

This slide presentation, sponsored by the Friends of the Summit County Libraries, is free and suitable for all ages. Visit SummitCountLibraries.org for more information.

The Basin’s Beacon Bowl

On Saturday, Arapahoe Basin Ski Area will host its 16th annual Beacon Bowl and Après Party starting at 8 a.m. The all-day event, developed by the A-Basin Ski Patrol, includes a beacon search competition, avalanche dog and beacon demonstrations and a free après party — all to benefit CAIC. The Beacon Bowl is a semi-serious cross between the Super Bowl and World Series that’s made for ski patrollers, by ski patrollers to test avalanche rescue skills. That being said, not only are ski patrollers encouraged to sign up for the contest, but ski professionals, recreational skiers and juniors are all invited to test their knowledge in avalanche responsiveness. To enter the competition a $20 fee must be put down, which includes a raffle ticket, beverage and slice of pizza. Those who plan to compete can register in the A-Frame lodge at 8 a.m., with prelims for both divisions starting at 9:15 a.m. and finals at 1 p.m. Silent and live auctions will commence at 2:30 p.m. and 4 p.m., respectively. In the base area’s Mountain Goat Plaza there will be a sponsor demo village, including gear from bca, The North Face, Osprey, Wilderness Sports, Outdoor Research and more. For more information visit ArapahoeBasin.com

Frisco Gold Rush Festivities

The 48th annual Gold Rush will be underway this weekend starting at 9 a.m. on Saturday. The Gold Rush is the longest running Nordic event in Colorado, consisting of classic and skate races open to skiers of all ages and abilities. Past and present come together in celebration of Frisco’s historical mining heritage and snowy Nordic culture. The schedule of events is as follows: the 5K fun ski (classic and skate) at 9 a.m., the 1K kids ski at 9:05 a.m., the 10K classic at 9:30 a.m. and the 10K and 20K skate ski start at 10 a.m. To follow the Gold Rush, Eat Ski & Be Merry starts at 6 p.m. in the Frisco Adventure Park Day Lodge with food, drink, two bonfires, 300 luminaries and a 2K loop around the fire-lit Frisco Peninsula. Guests are invited to either snowshoe or ski along the loop. For tickets, pricing or more general information visit TownOfFrisco.com.

Meet Author Jane Parnell

Jane Parnell is the author of “Off Trail – Finding My Way Home in the Colorado Rockies,” a memoir that spans half a century. Parnell was the first woman to climb the highest 100 peaks in Colorado. And, although the book does speak of her various mountaineering experiences, the story is also a personal one of growing past gender roles and a quest to overcome a family history of mental illness. Hear more about Parnell and her adventures this Saturday at 3 p.m. when she gives a talk at the Summit County South Branch Library in Breckenridge. This event is open to the public and free to attend. For more information visit SummitCountyLibraries.org.


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