Be there, do that in the Pikes Peak region 

April

Earth Month Kick-Off Party at the Big Cool Science Festival

6

Colorado College, Barnes Science Center, 1030 N. Nevada Ave., tinyurl.com/Earth-Day-Kickoff

A day of earth and science followed by a month of sustainability events including bike rides, trail restoration gatherings and more.

Rocky Mountain Women's Film Festival Shorts

13

Stargazers Theatre & Event Center, 10 S. Parkside Drive, rmwfilmfest.org

A night of award-winning short films to benefit the full Rocky Mountain Women's Film Festival in November.

Celebration Metaphysical Fair

19-21

City Auditorium, 221 E. Kiowa St., celebrationfair.com

An affordable weekend with about 200 professional psychic readers, healers and exhibitors.

Pikes Peak Writers Conference

19-21

Colorado Springs Marriott, 5580 Tech Center Drive, pikespeakwriters.com

A weekend for writers of all levels of success to share, network, and promote.

May

Pikes Peak Herb Fest

4

Beth El Mennonite Church, 4625 Ranch Drive, peakherbfest.com

Up to 50 vendors on hand and complementing classes on all things herb: cooking with herbs, herbal body care, herbal remedies, etc.

Reebok Spartan Race: Military Sprint

4-5

Fort Carson, spartanrace.com

Two days wherein civilians run through mud, crawl under barbed wire, jump over fire and generally exhaust themselves in the name of feeling like a soldier for a day.

Hummingbird Festival

11

Starsmore Discovery Center, 2120 S. Cheyenne Cañon Road, facebook.com/tfocc

Celebrate the unofficial opening of North Cheyenne Cañon with bird banding demos, craft vendors, family hikes and more.

Wild Wild West Festival

17-19

Various locations in downtown Pueblo, pueblochamber.org

Get yer cowboy on for three stages of continuous live music, street vendors and entertainment, carnival rides and a chili cook-off.

MeadowGrass Music Festival

24-26

La Foret Conference & Retreat Center, 6145 Shoup Road, meadowgrassmusicfestival.org

A three-day event (drop in or camp out) showcasing roots, bluegrass, Americana, cowboy, folk and acoustic music, all in a gorgeous pastoral setting.

Territory Days

25-27

Old Colorado City, shopoldcoloradocity.com

More than 180 craft, commercial and food booths packing the streets of Old Colorado City over Memorial Day weekend.

June

Manitou Springs Colorado Wine Festival

1

Memorial Park, 500 block of Manitou Avenue, Manitou Springs, manitousprings.org

Twenty-five wineries from Colorado, as well as vendor booths such as Gypsy Pizzeria, La Baguette, Rocky Mountain Outback Hats, and more.

Colorado College Summer Festival of the Arts

June 6 to mid-August

Various locations at CC, 14 E. Cache la Poudre St., coloradocollege.edu

Opera, classical music (for adults and children), visual art, dance, world music, film, and much more.

Taste of the Springs

9

Care and Share Food Bank for Southern Colorado, 2605 Preamble Point, careandshare.org

For the 25th year, roughly 40 food and beverage vendors will serve up their best, all in support of Care and Share.

Heuberger Subaru Starlight Spectacular

15

Garden of the Gods Visitor and Nature Center, 1805 N. 30th St., trailsandopenspaces.org

Fun nighttime bike ride suitable for all ages and abilities, with music, food and drink, and prizes for best illuminated bike and best costume.

Springs Spree

15-16

Memorial Park, 1605 E. Pikes Peak Ave., springsspree.org

A family-friendly event with three entertainment stages, 20 carnival rides, the Father's Day 8K run, a car show, human hamster ball rides, and a whole lot more.

Colorado Renaissance Festival & Artisans Marketplace

June 15 to Aug. 4, weekends only

650 W. Perry Park Ave., Larkspur, coloradorenaissance.com

Entertainment in the form of jousting, juggling, comedy, acrobatics and turkey-leg-eating, and shopping for handmade leather, Raku pottery, sculpture and other fine art.

Pikes Peak International Hill Climb Fan Fest

28

Tejon Street, between Colorado Avenue and Bijou Street, ppihc.com

An annual celebration with live entertainment, beer and more, showcasing the top race qualifiers and their vehicles.

Mountain of the Sun Music Festival

29

Aspen Valley Ranch, 1150 S. West Road, Woodland Park, ppcf.org

A family-friendly event with live music from groups like the Tony Furtado Band and the Flying W Wranglers, workshops, the Mobile Music Project, food to purchase and space to picnic.

Ride for the Brand Rodeo

29

Norris-Penrose Event Center, 1045 Lower Gold Camp Road, championshipranchrodeo.com

Bronc riding, wild cow milking and general Western-style fun. Don't forget your 10-gallon hat and spurs for the post-rodeo hoedown.

Pikes Peak International Hill Climb

30

Pikes Peak, ppihc.com

12.4 miles, 156 corners! They say they're racing to the clouds, but who knows how many will make it.

July

Pikes Peak Art Fest

5-7

America the Beautiful Park, 126 Cimino Drive, pikespeakartfest.com

This free downtown arts festival offers more than 100 national, regional and local artists, three days of music, food, drink, and everything art.

Pikes Peak or Bust Rodeo

10-13

Norris-Penrose Event Center, 1045 Lower Gold Camp Road, coloradospringsrodeo.com

"Traditional rodeo at its Colorado best": gold panning and mechanical bull rides for the public, bareback riding and steer wrestling for the brave.

Rocky Mountain State Games

19-21, 26-28

Multiple venues, coloradospringssports.org

Arm wrestling, bowling, dog agility, karate, rugby and table tennis are among the 35 sports included in this year's games for Colorado residents.

Blues Under the Bridge

20

218 W. Colorado Ave. (under the Colorado Avenue bridge), bluesunderthebridge.com

A continuation of the annual music festival, showcasing blues, soul and more. Watch the Independent's Reverb column for this year's lineup.

PrideFest

20-21

Acacia Park, 115 E. Platte Ave., cospride.org

Saturday is Family Day, Sunday's for the LGBT parade. Along with dancing, music, food, info and vendors, it's Colorado Springs Pride's largest event of the year.

El Paso County Fair

20-27

County Fairgrounds, Calhan, tinyurl.com/EPC-Fair

A summer tradition since 1905, with 4H animal shows and exhibits, a petting zoo, funnel cakes, a demolition derby, rodeo, truck and tractor pull, and more.

Pikes Peak Cycling Hill Climb

21

Crystal Reservoir on Pikes Peak, Manitou Springs, ridepikespeak.com

Formerly "Assault on the peak," this challenge is a 20-kilometer race with more than 154 turns that starts at 9,390 feet in elevation and ends at 14,110.

Fiddles, Vittles, and Vino

28

Rock Ledge Ranch, 3202 Chambers Way, fiddlesvittlesandvino.com

Fun to say, fun to do, with live bluegrass music, local food tastings and beer and wine galore, all to support Rock Ledge Ranch Historic Site.

August

Craft Lager &Small Batch Festival

10

Memorial Park, 502 Manitou Ave., Manitou Springs, craftlagerfestival.com

An outdoor love letter to craft beer and spirits, with numerous vendors, live music, giveaways and food.

Pikes Peak Ascent and Marathon

17 (ascent), 18 (marathon)

Barr Trail, Manitou Springs, pikespeakmarathon.org

The annual races up (or in the case of the marathon, up and down) Colorado Springs' own fourteener; feel free to watch the massacre and cheer.

Colorado State Fair

Aug. 23 to Sept. 2

State Fairgrounds, Pueblo, coloradostatefair.com

Older than Colorado itself (the first stock and ag show happened in 1872) the fair is all kinds of concerts, horse and livestock shows, rodeos, carnival rides and parades.

Mountain Music Festival

23-25

Soda Springs Park, 1016 Manitou Ave., Manitou Springs, manitousprings.org

Family fun with live bluegrass and "mountain music," music workshops, arts and crafts, and food from local vendors.

The Dirty Dash

24

Pikes Peak International Raceway, 16650 Midway Ranch Road, Fountain, thedirtydash.com

Teeming with family activities, this mud-slick, obstacle-filled race attracts locals who want to benefit local charities.

Commonwheel Artists Labor Day Arts & Crafts Festival

Aug. 31 to Sept. 2

Memorial Park, 500 block of Manitou Avenue, Manitou Springs, commonwheel.com/festival

About 110 artist booths showcasing handmade things, live music all day along, and face-painting and balloon creatures for the young.

Colorado Balloon Classic

Aug. 31 to Sept. 2

Memorial Park, 1605 E. Pikes Peak Ave., balloonclassic.com

Hot-air "Balloon Glo" in the evening, and mornings of waking before the sun to watch dozens of balloons launch.

September

Indy Music Awards & Festival

5

csindy.com

A chance to catch more than a dozen of the best individual musicians and bands in our area, as voted by readers of the Independent.

What-IF ... A Festival of Innovation and Imagination

7

Various locations downtown, whatif-festival.org

A takeover of downtown by "thinkers and tinkerers" of all sorts, and their contraptions.

Loaf 'N Jug Chile & Frijoles Festival

20-22

Various locations in downtown Pueblo, pueblochilefestivalinfo.com

Pueblo's annual chili harvest festival, with street vendors, music, cooking competitions and "chilies, chilies, chilies."

SRL Spears Southwest Tour Series race

29

Pikes Peak International Raceway, 16650 Midway Ranch Road, Fountain, srlsouthwesttour.com

A tour stop for the Supermodified Racing League, featuring NASCAR Elite-type cars.