Events

Stay in the know of family-friendly Colorado events with our weekly event round-up. Published every Wednesday.

Denver Zombie Crawl 2010 – Yes! A *Family* Event!

OK. Maybe not for *every* family. But there sure were *a lot* of families there this year. If you have never even *heard* of the Denver Zombie Crawl, let me enlighten you. Started 5 years ago by Denver native Danny Newman, the event has grown exponentially every year until this year’s event, held last Saturday in Skyline Park, was attended by over 7,000 of the walking dead. SEVEN THOUSAND! That broke a Guinness World Record, people! I was there. It certainly was a TON of zombies. Everyone gathers mid-afternoon, in the park, and OF COURSE, Michael Jackson’s Thriller is played, danced to, consumed, whatever – before the zombies are released on the 16th Street Mall. Then the Crawl begins in earnest.

Weekly Event Round-up: Bug A Boo, Scream Scram, Central City Creepy Crawl and More!

Saturdays through Oct. 30. Investigate some of Central City’s famous haunts at the Central City Creepy Crawl. A lantern-lit walking tour, the Crawl takes guests through supposedly haunted buildings and other spooky sites. Members of the Gilpin Historical Society lead the tours, telling tales and legends of Central City’s past. Make sure to wear comfortable shoes — the hour-plus excursion includes hills and stairways. No one ever said ghost-hunting was going to be easy. Tours start at 7 p.m. Saturdays and leave every five minutes until 7:30 p.m. Meet at the Century Casino, 102 Main St., Central City. The tour is free; make a reservation by visiting centralcityparkway.com/creepycrawl or call 303-327-2255. Today. Watch out for a herd of ghosts, goblins and other creatures at Washington ...

Field Trippin’, Haunted Hayrides, Fall Festivals & Celebrity Moments at Miller Farms

Hey peeps—I’ll try not to be snotty and talk down to you, however that might take some effort.   I was, after all, on Fox 31 news the other night and am pretty sure there’s some talent agents out there looking for my phone number as I type.  Okay, so I probably should mention that I was in a field about fifty feet from the camera, and the interviewer chose a cute perky teacher with good camera hair instead of  me, but you could see my white shirt from a distance and according to Billy, that counts as being on TV. It’s not every day a stay-at-home mom like me gets on the news, so it was quite exciting.  As soon as the segment came on I screamed for the whole household to come watch. Did I mention my first-born Jack was also around when Fox 31 was about to make me famous?  He came running do...

Event Round-up: Halloween with Horses, Ghosts in the Gardens & More!

Saturday. “Halloween with Horses”, an equestrian seasonal celebration, turns the Colorado Horse Park into a Halloween wonderland. See horses of all shapes and sizes dressed up in silly costumes, from miniature dinosaurs to lumbering pirate ships. Guests are encouraged to dress up, too, and explore the farm’s other fall delights: a pumpkin patch, hay rides, Jack Russell terrier races and, for the brave, the “Stable of Terror.” Horse and pony rides, naturally, will be available as well. Scare up a can of food to donate and get $1 off the admission price. 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Saturday. The Colorado Horse Park, 7375 Bayou Gulch Road, Parker; 303-841-5550, ext. 110. Admission is $14 per person; children age 2 and younger are free. Visit halloweenwithhorses.org for more details. Saturday. Little on...

Scare up some Halloween fun with pumpkins, mazes, haunted houses and more

Fright Fest Fright Fest at Elitch Gardens runs Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays through Oct. 31. There are family-friendly activities during the day, but after dark, it becomes a scream park of haunted houses, ghouls and zombies. At 1 p.m. Oct. 16 is the Pet Parade Costume Contest benefiting the Denver Dumb Friends League. 2000 Elitch Circle, 303- 595-4FUN. $40.99 adults, children 48 inches and under, $27.99. Bring a new or gently used children’s Halloween costume through Oct. 24 and receive discounted admission of $24.99. Ghostly Walking Tours of Denver Local author Phil Goodstein will conduct walking tours of various ghostly sites in Denver: Oct. 22: Ghost Walk, 7-9 p.m. Meet in front of the statue of the Indian on the east side of the Capitol on Grant Street between East 14th and Ea...

Weekly Event Round-up: PumpkinFest, Festival of Scarecrows and more!

Saturday. It’s a sure sign of fall when the scarecrows start appearing, and Arvada is the place to see them: The Festival of Scarecrows fills the city’s historic downtown with the floppy fellows. Businesses, organizations and citizens build scarecrows to enter in a contest — festivalgoers can vote for their favorites in different categories. This year the fest also celebrates the 100th anniversary of the distinctive Arvada water tower, starting at 2 p.m. at the base of the tower. Also on the schedule are a kids’ costume parade, tasty chow, face painting, a corn maze and pumpkin patch. 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. Saturday. Olde Town Arvada, Grandview Avenue and Olde Wadsworth Boulevard and environs. Admission is free. For more information, call 303-420-6100 or visit arvadafestivals.com. Friday....

What does your purse say about you?

An inventory of a woman’s handbag can reveal her age, the roles she plays in her own life and, sometimes, a glimpse of her soul. That’s the thesis of “The Contents of Her Purse,” a documentary that treads the line between wry humor and sociological treatise. The movie is the centerpiece of “The Purse Chronicles,” billed as “a performance event for women,” perhaps with one eye on the phenomenally successful play “Girls Only.” The concept for “The Contents of Her Purse” grew from a one-act play that Denver writer and filmmaker Coleen Hubbard staged in 1987. In the play, two men find a purse and examine its contents, conjecturing about the owner. “I have a certain attachment to my own purse, and I didn’t reali...

Win tickets to Cheyenne Mountain Zoo’s Boo at the Zoo!

CONTEST CLOSED. CONGRATULATIONS TO RENEE DUNN. Cheyenne Mountain Zoo is frequently ranked as the top zoo in the United States and they are ready to party this Halloween! It’ll be all treats and no tricks (except the magical kind!) for your little ghosts and goblins at this year’s Boo at the Zoo. The event is a fun way for families with young children to trick-or-treat and enjoy Halloween festivities in a safe and unique environment. It runs Friday, Saturday, and Sunday, October 22 -24 and October 29 – 3, 5:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. (last ticket sold at 7:30 p.m.) Boo Activities Include: * Haunted fun house and ghoulish graveyard offer frightful fun! * Select animal encounters with shows each evening by education interpreters * Trick-or-treat at more than 20 spooky treat stations * Cr...

Win Tickets to the Butterfly Pavilion’s Halloween Celebration

Question: What do you get when you mix Halloween “Boos” with bugs? Answer: The Butterfly Pavilion’s Bug a Boo! This Halloween celebration will be held October 23 and 24 from 10 a.m.-5 p.m. Follow Rosie and her friends on a search to discover the 8th wonders of the world – arachnids! Discover how fascinating spiders, tarantulas, scorpions and other eight-legged creatures can be while enjoying a safe and educational trick-or-treating experience. Costumes are encouraged. Activities include: * Create a spider craft; Make your very own Spiderweb placemat with a spider attached.

The biggest, baddest listing of Colorado corn mazes, pumpkin patches and fall festivals

Erie Corn Maze Fall Fest 2010 has 7.5 miles of trail through designs of a bear, a bald eagle and a moose. There are also pumpkin patch hayrides, farm animals, a barrel train, small hay-bale maze for youngsters, facepainting, pedal karts, gem mining, food and more. Open daily now-October 31 on 6728 County Road 3-1/4 in Erie. AndersonFarms.com for directions, times and prices. Maze of Mayhem Haunted Corn Maze open through October 31, dusk-10 p.m. Hwy 85 and E. 144th. $14 adults, $11 military, $9 children. Combination tickets to both mazes are $20 adults, $18 for military and $16 for children. [email protected] Corn Maze and Pumpkin PatchCountry Kids FAA kids cut this corn maze in Byers. It’s at

Weekly Event Round-up: Circus, Pumpkin Harvest Festival and More!

Through Oct. 10. The Denver Coliseum becomes a mighty big big-top when the Ringling Brothers and Barnum and Bailey Circus present “Funundrum,” the latest offering from “The Greatest Show on Earth.” Designed to mark the 200th birthday of circus founder P.T. Barnum, the show features all sorts of amazing acts: contortionists, trapeze artists, a strongman and, of course, lots of exotic animals. 90 minutes before showtime, ticketholders can meet the performing animals at an open house, then meet the human performers at an “all-access” preshow. 7 p.m. Wednesdays, Thursdays and Fridays; 11 a.m., 3 p.m. and 7 p.m. Saturdays and Sundays. Denver Coliseum, 4600 Humboldt St.; 720-865-2475. Tickets are $22.45-$95.60 for adults, $16.85-$95.60 for kids age 12 and younger. Ticket prices include fees. Buy...

Pediatric expo lets families test equipment

When a child with cerebral palsy or Rhett’s syndrome outgrows a modified wheelchair or an adaptive tricycle, replacing that equipment costs $2,500 and up. That puts a strain even on families with generous health insurance plans. Since most pediatric medical equipment is sold online or through catalogues, families often must buy equipment without a trial run. Those sales are final, saddling families with equipment that may not fit their disabled child. This Saturday, families will find help at the Colorado Pediatric Durable Medical Equipment Expo and Symposium. There, children can try out different products, including adaptive recreational equipment like tricycles and bicycles. The equipment on display includes