DURANGO — A little more than a year before the retail sporting goods behemoth comes to town, REI Co-op’s impending arrival has raised concerns, especially among those who wonder what impact its 20,000-square-foot store will have on Durango’s eclectic array of local outdoor recreation businesses. While some business owners aren’t sweating it, John Agnew has a less sanguine view of the effect REI’s presence may have on his snowboard and outdoor gear shop on Main Street once it opens in early 2025. The Seattle-based chain has 181 locations and reported nearly $4 billion in revenue last year. “The ..read more

Coffee lovers in the 13,000-person town of Fruita are in luck: USA Today this week named Bestslope Coffee Co. the best in Colorado — and one of the top five independent shops in the U.S. The ranking, first reported by The Daily Sentinel, is a reader-voted award based on nominations from an expert panel, according to USA Today. The shops were chosen “as the best in the U.S. for their cozy atmospheres, friendly baristas, and unique menus,” the newspaper wrote. Fruita, located about 250 miles west of Denver, between Grand Junction and the Utah border, is known for its gorgeous setting but may see ..read more

U.S. Rep. Lauren Boebert is getting squeezed from both sides of the political aisle in the money race as she faces a growing field of challengers hoping to thwart her reelection next year. Third-quarter fundraising totals reported in recent days in Colorado’s 3rd Congressional District show the Republican incumbent was outraised by her most prominent Democratic foe, Adam Frisch, by a factor of 4-to-1. And Jeff Hurd, a Boebert challenger in next year’s GOP primary, posted sizeable totals indicating he also might pose trouble for the two-term congresswoman. Boebert’s haul for the period from Jul ..read more

A new examination of the abuses children suffered at Native American boarding schools in Colorado identified at least 65 students who died more than a century ago at the state’s two most prominent schools, the grim legacy of a federal assimilation program that inflicted intergenerational trauma on Indigenous families. History Colorado on Tuesday released a 139-page report by State Archaeologist Holly Norton that pieces together local and national archival records, newspaper clippings, letters and archaeological findings to illustrate the experiences of Native children who at times were kidnapp ..read more

Coloradans planning to take Bustang buses between Front Range cities couldn’t be certain they’d reach their destinations this week as the state transportation agency’s contractor again canceled rides, inconveniencing travelers at a rate of roughly one in 13 scheduled buses. Bustang service between Denver and Fort Collins has been canceled nearly every day since Sept. 11.  Bus rides between Lamar and Colorado Springs also were canceled on Tuesday, according to the “alerts”  that the Colorado Department of Transportation’s contractor, Ace Express Coaches, posts at ridebustang.com and o ..read more

DINOSAUR — There isn’t much to this town a short drive from the national monument of the same name. A couple of gas stations, a liquor store and a small motel line the two main drags, Brontosaurus Boulevard and Stegosaurus Freeway. But this community of about 315 and its four marijuana dispensaries — one shop for every 79 residents — is a contender for the title of cannabis capital of Colorado. Dinosaur, nestled in the northwestern corner of the state, is a five-minute drive to the Utah line and a couple of hours away from Wyoming, both states where recreational marijuana use is illegal. Dinos ..read more

By DAN WEST, The Grand Junction Daily Sentinel Palisade’s peach growers have long looked for ways to get their fruit directly in the hands of consumers from farmers markets to roadside fruit stands, but this year one grower is expanding into the digital world in a unique effort to connect with buyers. (Courtesy PΞACHES) This summer Drew Harding, owner of Harding Homegrown in Palisade, began selling non-fungible tokens or NFTs of peaches — or PΞACHES as they are calling the artwork — that buyers can redeem for a box of Palisade peaches come harvest. An NFT is a unique digital file that is recor ..read more

Boebert’s antics are unacceptable Re: “Boebert escorted out of musical,” Sept. 13 news story I read with great dismay about Lauren Boebert’s behavior at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts the other night. I’m not sure how many “ordinary” citizens are escorted out of the theater due to bad behavior. However, when one is elected to represent a portion of a state’s population, you might expect that, that representative would be able to handle herself in public in a manner that did not detract from the event that her fellow attendees paid for, let alone draw attention to her self such that ..read more

A chill in the Colorado air and the promise of changing leaves means spooky season is officially on its way. That will be evident at lakes and reservoirs in September and October when costumed groups of locals take to the water for their annual witch paddles. Witch paddles — events in which people dress in costumes to paddleboard, kayak and canoe — have become a hallmark of fall and a fun excuse to enjoy the outdoors before winter sets in. The concept is simple: Don a Halloween-inspired witch or warlock outfit and launch your boat alongside other bewitching characters for a casual paddle. Some ..read more

Palisade has long been known for producing some of the tastiest peaches in the country, but now appears to also grow the largest — with one orchard claiming to have produced the world’s heaviest peach. Related Articles Colorado News | “Not a peachy drive”: Truck carrying load of Palisade peaches crashes on I-70 east near Morrison Colorado News | 15,000-square-foot chicken-and-waffles palace opens in RiNo Colorado News | Here’s how chefs at one of Denver’s best restaurants shop at the farmers market Colorado News | Hidden gems of Colorado’s Western Slope include sandstone arches, James Bea ..read more