Mel Blumenthal, Aspen Daily News Columnist

Voces Unidas: These times require more courage from state lawmakers

The 2026 legislative session left a bitter taste among those of us who spent 120 days with lawmakers under the gold dome advocating for policies to improve the lives of working folks. For Latino advocacy organizations like mine, Voces Unidas Action Fund, the session was largely defined by missed ...

PHOTOS: Power of Four Trail Run kicks off valley’s busy race season

The Roaring Fork Valley’s summer race season hit another level on Saturday with one of the area’s most prominent foot races, the Audi Power of Four Trail Run. Produced by Aspen Skiing Company, there were 50k, 25k and 10k race options. In the featured 50-kilometer run — that’s just over 31 mile...

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Willoughby: Piano tuning heaven

The orchestra tunes, and then, in a piano concerto, the conductor and guest pianist enter, and the concert begins. You have not likely thought about the piano being tuned. You can watch and hear four-string instruments like a violin, bass, viola or cello tune, but consider what needs to happen fo...

Galerie Gmurzynska returns to The Aspen Art Fair

Galerie Gmurzynska returns to The Aspen Art Fair from July 29 to Aug. 1 at the historic Hotel Jerome, 330 E. Main St.  The booth will mix modern masters with contemporary highlights: Dan Basen’s Box with Paint Brushes (1968), Sonia Delaunay’s “Projet pour l’affiche Chocolat (1916–1917), Wifred...

How a science experiment to grow native plants on Copper’s slopes is inspiring collaboration in the ski industry

Katherine Riesberg, a graduate of Middle Park High School in Grand County, has been skiing since the age of two. Riesberg said her love for outdoor recreation is a big part of what led her to pursue a Masters of Science and Ecology at Western Colorado University, where her thesis project led h...

Aspen Acres fire surpasses 100,000 acres as crews increase containment to more than 60%

Rain fell across parts of the state Friday, bringing mixed results for Gold Mountain, Ferris, Willow, Fishhook and Elk fires.

What Goes Around Comes Around: Vintage pop-up debuts in Aspen

Vintage luxury retailer What Goes Around Comes Around will debut in Aspen with a pop-up inside The Aspen Times building at Hotel Jerome from July 25-Aug. 2. The pop-up, at 330 E. Main St., will be open daily from 11 a.m. to 7 p.m. “We are so excited to embark on this partnership with the i...

Local news in brief, July 18

Willow Fire was 36% contained as of Friday

The chance to dance for you

Ahren Victory stars as Cassie in ‘A Chorus Line’

Security Forum panelists debate wisdom of Iran war

Sen. Chris Murphy calls $100B spent by U.S. a mistake

Couple’s argument leads to shooting in Snowmass

Husband was shot, but deemed the aggressor

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“A Chorus Line” won nine Tony Awards and the Pulitzer Prize when it premiered on Broadway in 1976. Theatre Aspen’s revival of the play concludes on July 25 at the Hurst Theatre.

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Ahren Victory stars as “Cassie” in Theatre Aspen’s production of “A Chorus Line.” Victory grew up in Colorado Springs.

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U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, D-Conn., speaks at the 2026 Aspen Security Forum on Thursday. He was joined by moderator Jim Sciutto, Robert Greenway, Karim Sadjadpour and Roxana Saberi.

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CNN’s Jim Sciutto, left, moderates a panel on the Iran war at the 2026 Aspen Security Forum on Thursday. He is joined by Robert Greenway, U.S. Sen. Chris Murphy, Karim Sadjadpour and Roxana Saberi.

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Margo: Let’s get louder and shake things up

“You have definitely lost your mind,” my friend Erica says, without flinching. I was telling Erica how I really want to learn...

Grueter: Infinite growth is the ideology of the what now?

I have a delicate flower confession to make. When I was a kid, the smell of lawnmower gasoline made me so nauseated...

Council kicking can down the road on housing

Ziska Childs — (Re: “Guths withdraw request to expand home’s livable area,” July 16, Aspen Daily News) By doggedly quoting code...

In support of increased airport parking fees

Michael Maple — I wholeheartedly support an increase in Aspen-Pitkin County Airport parking rates. Parking, and indeed all...

Opinion | Climate Action Collaborative: After a dry winter: What El Niño means for the Eagle River Valley

Climate change is becoming harder to ignore in Eagle County. Over the past nine months, its effects have touched nearly every aspect of our lives. We experienced a record-low snowfall last winter, followed by a dry spring that worsened our long-term drought. Unfortunately, the trifecta of histori...

Wildfires have scorched over 200,000 acres in Colorado this summer

Wildfires continued to ignite and burn across Colorado this week as widespread drought continues to plague the state. The Colorado Wildland Fire Status Dashboard showed seven large fires and a total of 28 active fires that had burned around 214,000 acres as of Friday afternoon. The wildfire ri...

Saddle Sore: It’s worth remembering what Woody Creek has been

Woody Creek is easy to misunderstand. To many people passing through, it’s little more than a post office, the Tavern and a bend in the road. But to those who have spent much of their lives here, it is something else entirely. It is a collection of dreams and memories — of ranches, hayfields,...

Hiker rescued by helicopter from Maroon Peak

Mountain Rescue Aspen successfully rescued an overdue hiker from Maroon Peak on Thursday night into Friday morning. According to a press release, the Pitkin County Regional Emergency Dispatch Center received a satellite text message at approximately 7:39 p.m., reporting an overdue hiker in the...

Eagle County Open Space tax en route for possible 2027 election

Almost two weeks ago, the Eagle County Open Space Program approached county commissioners about putting a property tax on the table for the 2026 election. After much discussion, shelving it for the 2027 election was proposed. On Tuesday, Eagle County commissioners picked the timeline that coul...

Leadville Race Series gets green light for final 4 summer events as Willow Fire reaches 40% containment

With the Willow Fire currently holding steady at roughly 6,800 acres and 40% containment, the Leadville Race Series announced Wednesday plans to move forward with its final four events of the summer, including the Leadville Trail 100 MTB and Run. “The smoke is lifting and the hundreds of perso...

From big wealth to bigger impact: How a Colorado billionaire is solving the paradise paradox

David Weekley, a Texan and part-time resident of Crested Butte, was a multimillionaire by age 30 after founding his homebuilding company David Weekley Homes in 1976. But when he almost lost everything in his mid-30s, he said one of his biggest regrets was not the overnight disappearance of his we...

SoL Theatre brings ‘The Prom’ to Carbondale stage

Prom dresses, tiaras and plenty of opening-night energy filled Thunder River Theatre Company on Thursday as SoL Theatre Company kicked off its run of “The Prom.” Some audience members dressed for the occasion, arriving in prom gowns and tiaras before posing for photos on the set after the perf...

Eagle County files petition of condemnation on private land in Edwards it wants for public park

Attorneys for the Eagle County commissioners on July 10 filed a “petition of condemnation” in Eagle County District Court to acquire a disputed parcel of land in Edwards adjacent to land the county owns west of the Eagle River Village mobile home park and wants to convert to a park. “The subje...

Foodstuff: In a pickle

The dog days of summer are officially upon us, and while we need the moisture, I’m about to start doing a drinking game for every time someone says, “We need the moisture.” My box fan has been pointed directly at my face for much of the past two weeks, and my cooking has been limited to easy reci...

Low flows, hot temperatures force fishing closures on 4 Western Slope rivers

Extremely low flows and high water temperatures have prompted Colorado Parks and Wildlife to implement voluntary fishing closures on the Colorado, Eagle, Crystal and Roaring Fork rivers beginning Friday, July 17. Severe drought conditions have driven river flows well below 50% of normal, and d...

12-year-old dog dodges mountain lions, travels 50 miles over 33 days in Colorado mountains before reuniting with owner

Brinley, a small terrier mix, weighed 28 pounds when she left Dallas, Texas, with her owner for a summer road trip last month. Thirty-three days after stopping in Summit County, the 12-year-old dog weighed just 17.2 pounds. She survived mostly alone in the wilderness after becoming loose near...

Anderson Ranch Arts Center sets scholarship fundraising record

On July 15, Anderson Ranch Arts Center held its annual Ranch Gala and Live Auction in Snowmass, welcoming more than 200 guests from art, design and cultural communities. The event raised a record $1.6 million through ticket sales and the live auction. Proceeds support Anderson Ranch scholarsh...

Back in Time | Aspen

“At 6 o’clock tonight the people of Aspen and all visitors are cordially invited to enjoy their supper at the Jerome Hotel — not a banquet or a spread — just the regular 6 o’clock supper with a few Home Coming frills and a good fellowship gathering,” The Aspen Democrat-Times announced July 20, 19...

Aspen Acres containment climbs to 48% as crews focus on protecting Colorado communities

The state's largest currently burning wildfire remains active near the communities of Rye and San Isabel. Plus: Updates on Gold Mountain, Ferris, Willow, Fishhook and Elk fires.

Unlimited no more: Colorado imposes new daily limits on wildlife hunted for fur

The Colorado Parks and Wildlife Commission narrowly passed a new daily hunting limit for the 17 species it classifies as furbearers at its Thursday, July 16 meeting in Ignacio. Recreational hunters can now only kill two per day — down from the previous unlimited precedent — of each of the fur...

Colorado skiers and snowboarders look to qualify for freeride debut at 2030 Winter Olympics

Freeride skiing and snowboarding will debut at the 2030 Olympics in the French Alps — and Colorado athletes are among those hoping to compete. Shayne Blue Sandblom, a 23-year-old Silt native and Freeride World Tour competitor, described freeride — a discipline where athletes rip down steep, un...