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
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.