The aspen leaves are starting to turn gold and the morning air is getting crisper every day.
But before you start getting too amped up for powder days and shredding gnar on the slopes, there’s plenty to enjoy about fall in Colorado — apple picking, football, pumpkin porters and leaf peeping, just to name a few.
There are also some pretty awesome festivals happening around the state. Whether you love tasting craft spirits or eating green chilies, there’s a little something for everyone at these festivals that celebrate all things fall in Colorado.
Denver 49th Annual Oktoberfest
Location: Ballpark Neighborhood between 20th and 22nd streets on Larimer
When: Sept. 21-23, 28-30
Website: thedenveroktoberfest.com
Break out your lederhosen and your dirndl: It’s time to celebrate Oktoberfest in Denver. Though this festival started small in 1969, today nearly 350,000 people make the trek to enjoy the six-day festival most years. There’s tons of live music, stein-hoisting competitions, brat-eating showdowns, silent discos and more.
See the ultimate list with all Colorado Oktoberfest events.
Fall Wine & Food Classic
Location: Gerald Ford Amphitheater, 530 S. Frontage Road, Vail
When: Sept. 22, 4:30-7:30 p.m.
Cost: $67-$85
Website: Tasteofvail.com
Our mouths are watering just thinking about The Fall Wine & Food Classic Grand Tasting, where you can explore amazing Southern Hemisphere wine and food. This event features more than 25 wineries and 20 restaurants from the Vail Valley, so you know your mouth (and your stomach) will be happy when you leave. You’ll also enjoy some south-of-the-equator music while dining.
3rd Annual Craft Beer & Wine Festival
Location: Orchard Town Center Square, 14697 Delaware St., Westminster
When: Sept. 22, 4-8 p.m.
Cost: $40-$50 general admission; $75 for VIP
Website: theorchardtowncenter.com
Crisp fall air, beer, wine and tasty food — where do we sign up? If you head over to the 3rd annual Craft Beer & Wine Festival in Westminster, you’ll enjoy tasters from local breweries and wineries, plate samples from Orchard restaurants, live music and more. Plus, all of the proceeds from the event benefit the Marc Jr. Foundation, which supports children who have been diagnosed with brain cancer.
MORE: Everything you need to know about Great American Beer Festival
10th Annual Denver Beer Fest
Location: Various places throughout Denver
When: Sept. 14-22
Event lineup: Denver.org
Calling it a festival really doesn’t do it justice, since Denver Beer Fest is a smorgasbord of more than 160 beer-related events spread out over nine days — and it all caps off with the Great American Beer Festival. Events include live music, brunches, special tappings, karaoke and tons more.
Fruita Fall Festival
Location: Downtown Fruita, 432 E. Aspen Ave.
When: Sept. 21-23
Website: fruitafallfestival.com
There’s plenty to do and see at the annual Fruita Fall Festival, which features a parade, a baking and canning contest, wood carving demonstrations, a carnival and more than 125 vendors selling arts, crafts, food, beverages and more. There’s also a quirky outhouse race (yes, you read that correctly). To participate, you’ll need to gather up a team of people, construct an outhouse (with wheels) and push it down the race course. Of course, there are some unique rules, too, like your outhouse must contain a roll of toilet paper and one person on your team has to ride inside the structure during the race. Count us in!
24th Annual Chile & Frijoles Festival
Location: Union Avenue Historic District, Pueblo
When: Sept. 21-23
Cost: $5 daily admission; children under 12 are free
Website: Festival.pueblochamber.org
Just because the weather is starting to cool off doesn’t mean your mouth has to. In Pueblo, fall is synonymous with green chilies and pinto beans. At the annual Chile & Frijoles Festival (presented by Loaf ‘N Jug), you can eat green chilies to your heart’s content while checking out tons of street vendors, chili and salsa cooking competitions and live entertainment. There’s also an impossibly cute chihuahua parade, a jalapeno contest and a fun run (you can do a 5K, 10K or two-mile race).
Autumn Gold Festival
Location: Bond Park, 170 MacGregor Ave., Estes Park
When: Sept. 22-23
Website: visitestespark.com
Even the local elk know the Autumn Gold Festival in Estes Park is a good time. In addition to listening to elk bugling (it’s what they do when they’re mating), you’ll have the chance to listen to plenty of live music while noshing on bratwursts, corn on the cob, funnel cakes and more. Plus, there will be beer (obviously), a classic car show and fun kids’ activities, including a bounce house, face painting and a corn bag toss. If you’re not sold yet, we should mention there’s a festival raffle where you can win up to $5,000.
Mountain Harvest Festival
Location: Downtown Paonia
When: Sept. 27-30
Website: mountainharvestfestival.org
You’ll truly get to experience the essence of the North Fork Valley when you attend the Mountain Harvest Festival in Paonia, which brings together musicians, poets, writers, comedians, dancers and artists for four days of inspiration. There’s also a farmers market, a harvest-to-table dinner, a chili cook-off, pub crawl, tours of local farms and wineries, craft vendors and workshops. You can also learn more about local nonprofits, do some yoga and ride your bike with other festival-goers.
Breckenridge Strings, Ciders & Sours Festival
Location: Main Street Station, Breckenridge
When: Sept. 28-30
Cost: $20 to $115
Website: rockymtnevents.com/breckenridge-strings-ciders-sours
If you can’t get seem to enough of sour beers and ciders, you’ll definitely want to check out the Breckenridge Strings, Ciders & Sours Festival. In addition to tasty beverages and gorgeous views of the mountains, there’ll be bluegrass, food pairings and other activities.
Morrison Ciderfest
Location: Bear Creek Care & Rehab, 485 Summer St., Morrison
When: Sept. 29, 10 a.m. until dark
Website: morrisonciderfest.org
Is there anything more fall-like than apple cider? Maybe that’s why the folks in Morrison have created an entire free festival around cider, featuring cider presses, hay rides, pony rides, arts and crafts exhibits and a silent auction. For kids, there’s a bouncy castle and other activities. You can also jam out to live music performances by groups like Graham Good & The Painters and Royal Aces.
Farm to Bottle Fall Festival
Location: 1000 Block of South Gaylord St., Denver
When: Sept. 29, 3-7 p.m.
Cost: $55-$65 for general admission; $125 for VIP
Website: oldsouthgaylord.com
If you’re fixing for a good time, the 3rd annual Farm to Bottle Fall Festival has all the ingredients. The event features a large live music lineup as well as a tasting of more than 40 local breweries, wineries and distilleries. Plus, delicious far from local food vendors. If you want to get really fancy, there’s even a VIP ticket that gets you early access and other goodies.
Applefest
Location: Various venues, Cedaredge
When: Oct. 4-7
Website: Cedaredgechamber.com
Love apples? Of course you do. Then you’ll definitely want to check out Applefest in Cedaredge, which offers everything you need to celebrate the arrival of fall 2018. There’s a beer garden, a pin-up girl contest, a junior rodeo, a pancake breakfast, a 5K race and lots of live music. Plus, there will be vintage motorcycles, classic cars and tractors to peruse while you’re there. Event organizers are anticipating more than 25,000 people to show up.
43rd Annual Cider Days
Location: Lakewood Heritage Center, 801 S. Yarrow St., Lakewood
When: Oct. 6-7
Cost: $5 to $8
Website: lakewood.org/CiderDays
Cider Days in Lakewood has been going strong for 43 years, so you’re guaranteed to have a good time at this quintessential fall festival. There will be family-friendly entertainment options all weekend, including a magic show and square dancing, plus tons of activities for kids like a balloon artists, a craft zone, a petting zoo, train rides and more. The festival is also a great opportunity to learn something new by watching historical demonstrations of blacksmithing, wood carving, quilting, chair caning and sawmilling, just to name a few. Of course, you can munch on (and drink!) all the apple-inspired foods and beverages you can think of — freshly baked apple crisp and hard cider, here we come.
Punkin Chunkin Colorado
Location: Arapahoe Park Racetrack, 26000 E. Quincy Ave., Aurora
When: Oct. 6-7
Website: Auroragov.org
If you’ve never watched a pumpkin catapult through the air, you are seriously missing out (the record in Colorado is 4,970 feet!). For the uninitiated, punkin chunkin requires teams of people to design a device, like a trebuchet or a catapult, to launch a pumpkin as far as possible. While you’re there, be sure to check out the Corvette car show, beer garden, pony rides, pumpkin patch and fall crafts. Plus, there’s going to be a new chainsaw carving competition this year.
Telluride Horror Show
Location: Various venues, Telluride
When: Oct. 12-14
Cost: $15-$150
Website: telluridehorrorshow.com
Calling all horror-lovers: This is the film festival for you. For three days, you can watch all the suspenseful thrillers you want at a handful of super cool theaters in beautiful Telluride. The festival features more than 20 feature-length films, plus 50 shorter movies, events and programs. All the movie venues are within walking distance of one another, so you can really get to know this eclectic mountain town on foot.
Botanic Gardens Pumpkin Festival
Location: 8500 W. Deer Creek Canyon Road, Littleton
When: Oct. 12-14
Cost: $4 to $10; children 2 and under are free
Website: Botanicgardens.org
Prepare to come home with a pumpkin (or two) from the Botanic Gardens Pumpkin Festival at Chatfield Farms. In fact, festival organizers recommend you bring a wagon with you so you don’t have to lug your pumpkins around all day as you enjoy tons of family and children’s activities, live music, beer and wine vendors and delicious food (they even offer “free pumpkin daycare”). There’s also an antique tractor exhibit from the Front Range Antique Power Association, horse-drawn hayrides, pony rides, photo booths and face painting. Of course, you may also want to check out the famous corn maze for an extra fee.
The Bloody Mary Festival
Location: EXDO Event Center, 1399 35th St., Denver
When: Oct. 13, 10:30-6 p.m.
Cost: $45-$55
Website: thebloodymaryfest.com
The tangy taste of tomato juice, a little kick if you like yours spicy, plus a veritable vegetable garden in a cup — has a more perfect cocktail been invented? This event is a good reason to do a little day drinking on a Saturday morning or afternoon (there are two sessions) for an outing with friends. Tickets include two hours of unlimited tastes of Denver’s most creative and innovative Bloody Marys, plus other food and drink samples. You also get to cast your vote for The People’s Choice Award for the best Bloody Mary in Denver.
Breckenridge Craft Spirits Festival
Location: Riverwalk Center, 150 West Adams Ave., Breckenridge (and other locations)
When: Oct. 19-21
Cost: $45
Website: breckenridgecraftspiritsfestival.com
The main event of the Breckenridge Craft Spirits Festival is the “grand tasting” on Saturday, where you can sample delicious craft spirits and cocktails while listening to live music and snacking on some tasty morsels. Other festival activities taking place throughout the weekend include a scavenger hunt, several tours, a cooking class and brunch.
Looking for other cool events to check out? Visit The Know’s full events calendar for more fun finds.
