Aspen in October Reflections

After the "Goodbye Again" event this morning, Mary and I headed for Denver via Independence Pass.  The trip was as beautiful as we remembered it from prior visits. After our traditional post-Aspen lunch at the Golden Burro in Leadville, we continued east.

As we approached Denver we spotted a large herd of bison by the westbound side of I-70 at the buffalo overlook.  We parked and walked to see them.  I counted nearly 50 head in this group, much larger that the herd we saw last year.  The only bad part of this stop was the very long uphill walk back to the car.  But after a couple of stops, we headed back east.







As we drove we talked about how great this past week was, with all the special events.  Mary said it was the busiest Aspen in October she had experienced since the first one she went to in 2007.  We both agreed that attending at least 3 events a day for 5 days was a lot, but enjoyed every minute of it.

• The three Tribute concerts were excellent
• Loved the Mack and Chris show on Sunday with the special appearance by Sean Della Croce (Erin Huttlinger's daughter)
• The camaraderie starting with the Meet and Greet and continuing through the week. Seeing many people that we only see once a year in Aspen.
• Seeing the Memories presentation and book of photos that went with it.
• Ron Matthews singing "Heart to Heart" to Mary as an encore for his show.
• Seeing the "Great Voices Sing..." video on Saturday.

Overall we're tired, but happy with the experience.

Last Full Day in Aspen

As events wind down for the week, we had our busiest day today.  We both slept in until the alarm went off, then we had breakfast and headed to the Aspen Chapel to hear Mack Bailey and Ellen Stapenhorst provide the music for the service.  To our surprise this was a baptismal service.  Mack and Ellen sang three songs that fit in well with the baptism and the message.

Next we headed to the Cookhouse Event where we enjoyed JD music and an excellent meal.  The view of the mountains from here was picture perfect today.  I've also included a picture of the group we hang out with at these JD events.  We enjoyed an excellent menu of  rainbow trout, chicken breast, twice-baked potatoes, kale salad, and corn bread, with brownies and cookies for dessert.  The music was very good as well, singing along to JD favorites and a few other songs.

After that we hustled back to Aspen for a Mack Bailey/Chris Nole concert in which they took turns playing their own materials.  Mack had his son Hayden sing "Grandma's Feather Bed" and we had a surprise song from Pete Huttlinger's step-daughter, Sean.  She did a great job singing two songs, one of which she composed.   Mack and Chris closed with a pair of JD songs that had the audience singing along. What a super event to have on this last big day of the week.

Our fourth event of the day was a second Chris Westphal concert. This turned out to be a very long concert that was mostly a repeat of his concert last Thursday.  Tomorrow we will attend "Goodbye again" at 10:00 then head over Independence pass to Denver.

Saturday in Aspen

Mary and I got a bit adventurous this morning and headed out to see The Grottos, which was reportedly an easy (all levels) hiking trail.  Located just east of Aspen, we heard it had a view-worthy waterfall.   There were two trails, and we took the one that was marked.  It proved to be quite a challenge over roots and rocks, and was rather steep in places.  But we got some pretty pictures and did see the waterfall.  On our way back we had some time so we decided to see where the other trail went. Sure enough it was a very easy, flat trail that lead to the base of the falls!

This afternoon we went to a showing of the film "Great Voices Sing John Denver" which was very moving. The concept of the film was to have many opera singers sing their favorite John Denver song with full orchestration accompaniment.  It was intriguing to hear how each sang the song, as well as hearing conductor Lee Holdridge's fabulous scores.  After the film was shown, the director, producer, and Lee came on stage to talk about what went into making the movie and for a Q and A session moderated by JD tribute Jim Curry.

We were planning to attend a show by the Aspen Meadows band here at the Limelight, but when we arrived we found all the seats were taken - and most of the standing room - so we headed to our room and opened the window.  The music was so loud that we heard the entire concert at a reasonable volume.

We attended the last Tribute concert tonight. It resembled last nights' concert, but did have a few different songs.  Even with repetition, it was a very enjoyable show and had a lot of energy.   Chris Nole got a nice ovation after playing the piano introduction for "For You" and then accompanying a recoding of John Denver singing it. As usual, Mack played a major role in the show and sang beautifully.

Following the concert, we attended the VIP post-party.  Had a great time with our friends, as well as talking to the musicians who had been in the concert.   The party included appetizers, pizza, and adult beverages.  Tomorrow is a 4-show day as the weeks' events wrap up.  We have a fairly early start tomorrow so time to hit the sack! 

Aspen Day 3

It was another gorgeous Colorado day!  We enjoyed a quiet morning, sleeping in a bit, enjoying the excellent hotel breakfast and talking with friends , then headed out to walk around the town and do some shopping.  Mary bought a couple of souvenirs then we bought sandwiches for lunch.
Our first afternoon event was like an open mic night, with 8 performers each singing 3 of their songs. It was fun to hear the stories about how their songs came about and then to hear the songs.

Next was a concert by musician Ron Matthews who was accompanied by his brother who is also a very accomplished singer and who lives in southeast Michigan! It as a very enjoyable concert, and Ron closed with Mary's favorite song, Heart to Heart, which he said he was playing for her.   Afterwards we talked Ron's brother, and found he often plays open mic nights in Dearborn so we may stop by sometime.

The main event of the day was the Tribute Concert.  It was excellent on all fronts!  Words cannot readily explain how good it was.  Song after song was performed by these excellent musicians and singers. They played many of John Denver's famous songs as well as  a couple of not-so-famous ones.   Mack's son, Hayden, came out on stage in front of the curtain after the concert to wave to the audience, which was cute!

Hayden was also in the area where the performers greet the guests afterwards, as you can see from this picture. That's him at left with Mary and Mack. It was cute that he had a Sharpie and was signing programs.
The concert was followed by a VIP party which included complimentary beverages of the adult variety, pizza, and other snacks.  We talked with many of the performers as well as with John Denver's son, Zach, pictured at right with Mary and with Pete Huttlinger's stepdaughter, Sean.  Overall it was quite the night to remember!  

Aspen Day 2

Today was a fairly full day of concerts and events.  We were able to sleep in a bit and saw many familiar faces at breakfast here in the Limelight - John Denver musicians Chris Nole, Jim and Anne Curry, Diane Ireland - and had an enjoyable breakfast conversation with Janette Frawley of Australia and her friend from Canada.

First up was an "All My Memories" presentation talking about various past JD celebrations with people sharing their favorite memories, and two artists sharing their songs about John. Afterwards Mary received a copy of the book in the photo.  She had submitted a story and several pictures, and was delighted to find the story was included along with some of her pictures.  Mary is in quite a few pictures in the book and she enjoyed finding them this afternoon.  The book is quite a work of art and took many, many hours to assemble - much appreciation to "JP" for this labor of love.

This afternoon was a concert by Chris Westphal who told stories and sang many John Denver as well as few of his own songs.  He put a lot of feeling into each song and we enjoyed hearing him for the first time.

At 6:00 pm we went back to the Sanctuary to mark the 20th anniversary of the time of John's passing.  We were given candles,  and all in attendance lit them during the ceremony. Ron Matthews played his remembrance song, followed by Autograph, then read a short note. The entire ceremony was simple, yet touching.

Tonight was the first of three major concerts at the Wheeler.  It was fabulous!  12 artists were on stage and took turns singing songs and accompanying others. The first set was very good, but the second set after the intermission was superb!   It opened with a tribute to Pete Huttlinger with Chris Nole and Alan Daremo playing Pete's McGuires's Landing song and it took off from there.  It closed with Mack Bailey singing John's "This Old Guitar" while playing John's guitar, followed by "Country Roads" and "Eagles and Horses".  After the concert we talked to many of the performers and I took this selfie with Chris Nole. What a great night!

Aspen, Day 1

We had an uneventful drive to Aspen this morning.  Mt Sopris was stunning, all covered in snow, although this picture taken through the car windows does not do it justice.  We arrived in plenty of time to be at the Meet and Greet, scheduled for 10:00 am.  The weather was perfect!  A bright, sunny morning with a little chill in the air.  We sang a few songs and saw a lot of old friends while meeting a few new people.

After that we headed to The Maroon Bells.  Nearly all the trees had lost their leaves along the road to the Bells as well as once we arrived.  But the sky was clear and it was sunny which made for some great photos.

After a lunch at the Woody Creek Tavern we headed to the Limelight to check in before going to a 4:00 Aspen Meadow concert.  The group was very good and played a lot of John's early songs from 1969 to 1976, including quite a few that you rarely hear played.   Overall a very enjoyable concert.  We ended the day with a cookout hosted by friends at the Mt. Chalet hotel.  A great first day in Aspen! 

Heading to Colorado

We had a beautiful day for our trip to Colorado.  Our Southwest flight got in early and we had plenty of time to see the John Denver exhibit in the Denver airport terminal before heading out. This was a very extensive display of John's guitars, clothing, and other memorabilia.  While there we met up with several fellow JD fans including one we knew from previous years.

Upon arrival in Denver we had a gorgeous, clear blue cloudless sky which made for great scenery as we headed west into the Rockies.  It was so nice to see snow on the mountains, courtesy of yesterday's storm. Here are two of the many pictures Mary took as we drove through the mountains toward Glenwood Springs.
Once we got checked into our hotel we headed out for dinner which, of course, was at the Glenwood Brewing Company  with their award winning Hanging Lake Honey Ale.  We ate with our friend Don Larson -- good conversation, good food, and good beer, what more could we want!
On to Aspen tomorrow for the Meet and Greet followed by at least two concerts.