The lawsuit, filed Wednesday in Denver District Court, comes as hundreds of foreign students across the country — some who have been linked to pro-Palestine activism — are facing deportation and visa revocation by the Trump administration.

The complaint names as defendants Chief Jason Mollendor and six other members of the Auraria Campus Police Department involved in last year’s arrests on the campus, home to the University of Colorado Denver, Metropolitan State University of Denver and Community College of Denver.

“The truth is that the arrests on April 26, 2024, were never about enforcing campus policies, they were about punishing protesters for their views,” the lawsuit, brought by the Rathod Mohamedbhai law firm, states.

Devra Ashby, director of communications and marketing for Auraria Higher Education Center, said campus officials had not yet been served with the lawsuit Wednesday.

“We are committed to following the appropriate legal processes and will respond through the proper legal channels should we receive notice,” Ashby said.

The plaintiffs — an MSU Denver professor, two CU Denver faculty members, two CU Denver students and three Colorado residents — all either had their charges dismissed by the Denver City Attorney’s Office or entered into a deferred prosecution agreement with the City Attorney’s Office that led to the dismissal of their charges.

“I was taught by this university that we are supposed to raise our voices when injustices are happening,” said plaintiff Sarah Napier, 25, a CU Boulder graduate who joined the protest to advocate for the CU system to divest from Israel.

“I took many classes on civil disobedience at CU and felt called by my personal beliefs that I should be there protesting the university’s complicity in genocide,” she said. “They’re not upholding what they’re teaching. They can’t be educating students and then silencing the truth.”

Encampment met with arrests

On April 25, several hundred pro-Palestine demonstrators established an encampment on the grassy lawn of Auraria’s Tivoli Quad. The Denver protest, which included tents and demonstrators peacefully assembling, was born out of a wave of student activism and college encampments across the country protesting Israel’s war in Gaza.

Demonstrators pledged to stay until University of Colorado officials divested from activities and funding related to Israel.

“Rather than respecting the constitutional rights of those gathered, law enforcement, including officers from the Denver Police Department and the Auraria Campus Police Department, abrogated well-established First Amendment rights through intimidation and mass arrests,” the lawsuit states.

According to the lawsuit, police justified the arrests of students, faculty and other demonstrators as necessary to enforce Auraria’s camping ban that prohibits tents — a policy the plaintiffs’ attorneys said was enacted in 2004 following a protest against the Iraq War in which students set up tents on campus.

The timing of the policy indicated it was created “not as a neutral regulation, but as a tool to restrict expressive conduct and limit speech on campus,” the lawsuit states.

On April 26, Skip Spear, general counsel and chief administrative officer for Auraria Higher Education Center, told several protesters their tents violated campus policy and they needed to leave, the lawsuit alleges.

“It was a peaceful protest,” Napier said. “We were just there with signs and tents. Students were still able to go to classes. It wasn’t disrupting the normal flow of the university.”

The lawsuit alleges Spear did not tell all of the gathered protesters that they needed to leave, nor did he say that they could continue to demonstrate if they removed the tents. Spear then contacted Chief Mollendor, who declared the protest “unlawful” and deployed law enforcement, according to the lawsuit.

The eight plaintiffs, in their lawsuit, contend the Auraria demonstrators did not violate laws or campus policy, other than a few unidentified protesters who set up tents.

“By refusing to allow protesters to move away from the tents and continue their protest, Chief Mollendor made clear that he was there to shut down the protest rather than simply ensure the removal of tents,” the lawsuit states.

Mollendor issued a dispersal warning that failure to leave could result in arrest, the lawsuit said. That order was unlawful, the plaintiffs’ attorneys argue, because “it failed to instruct demonstrators to remove the tents, instead broadly prohibiting all speech on Auraria Campus.”

The lawsuit said officers began dismantling tents and arresting seated protesters who had linked arms. Seven out of the eight plaintiffs were charged with trespass and failure to obey a lawful order, while one protester, CU Denver lecturer Joie Ha, was charged with interference and failure to obey a lawful order.

Denver and Auraria police arrested around 40 people for trespassing and resisting arrest on April 26.

Despite the tents being removed at that time — the only alleged policy violation — the lawsuit said police continued arresting people.

“Once the tents were removed, the protest was entirely lawful and protected under the First Amendment,” the lawsuit states. “The decision to proceed with arrests after the fact demonstrates that the objective was to suppress the protest and retaliate against the protesters.”

The lawsuit noted that a week after the arrests, Denver police Chief Ron Thomas said during a Citizen Oversight Board meeting that he refused to aid in clearing the encampment because there was “no legal way” to do it unless the protest “truly does something that creates an unlawful assembly” and that they weren’t “going to go in and sweep out this peaceful protest just because they’re occupying a space on campus that you’d like to use for something else right now.”

The demonstrators re-occupied the Tivoli Quad after the arrests and stayed 23 days until the campus ordered the dispersal of the encampment.

“This is democracy in action”

Plaintiff Alex Boodrookas, an MSU Denver professor who teaches Middle Eastern history, said he joined the protesters after walking past the encampment on his way back from a faculty meeting and seeing riot police.

“The police presence was stunning,” Boodrookas said. “There were police cars everywhere, fully armored, and armed police and this was a peaceful protest. The dangerous thing that day was the presence of the police. Other than that, the protesters were holding talks and craft circles.”

Attorney Azra Taslimi, who is representing the plaintiffs, said it’s an important time to bring this lawsuit forward amid the federal government’s targeting of student activists. 

“It’s a dangerous message to send out to the public at large that there is some speech that is going to be protected and some that when it challenges government, what our country’s policies are, that is going to be met with police oppression,” Taslimi said. “We are seeing a dangerous unraveling of the rule of law across the country.”

Last month, Secretary of State Marco Rubio said the U.S. State Department already had revoked 300 or more visas from international students across the country as the Trump administration largely targets foreign-born students who have objected to Israel’s war in Gaza.

In Colorado, the Trump administration has revoked at least 22 international students’ visas, including 10 students at Colorado State University in Fort Collins and 12 students across the University of Colorado’s four campuses. It’s unclear why these students — whose identities and countries of origin have not been released — were targeted.

“Student protests are not a disruption of education, they are a reflection of it,” Taslimi said. “This is what civic engagement looks like. This is democracy in action.”

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The Telluride valley will be alive with the sound of electronic dance music this summer when Denver-based producer Of The Trees stops by for a two-night run.

The artist – real name Tyler Coombs – visits the Western Slope Aug. 22-23 for back-to-back performances at Telluride Town Park where other renowned festivals take place throughout the summer. The event is expected to attract about 7,000 attendees and will include camping.

In addition to Of The Trees, electronic acts Tycho, Ott., EPROM, Jade Cicada, Thought Process (live band), Taiki Nulight, Curra and Air Castles are on the bill. Tickets go on sale via an artist presale on Thursday, April 17 before going on sale to the general public on Friday, April 18, via axs.com.

“My team and I are incredibly excited to bring a concert experience to a location where the natural beauty is perhaps an even bigger centerpiece to the experience than the show itself,” Of The Trees, who has previously sold out Red Rocks Amphitheatre, said in a statement. “This is the beginning of realizing the dream I’ve always had of hosting events that bring people together to a place where nature and music are intertwined in a way such as this.”

Of The Trees’ appearance marks the first large-scale EDM concert in Telluride since 2016, when homegrown producer Pretty Lights played the same venue. Pretty Lights also played in 2015 and both shows live famously in local lore because of how different the vibe was compared to the town’s signature events like Telluride Bluegrass Festival and Telluride Blues & Brews.

That was part of the appeal of booking a show with a single headliner, said Zach Tucker, vice president of production company Planet Bluegrass. The company throws Telluride Bluegrass Festival every year and wanted to offer a different kind of concert, in terms of format and genre.

In fact, the company had been in talks to bring Pretty Lights back to Telluride, but couldn’t get approval to use the venue quickly enough to make a competitive offer, Tucker said. (Pretty Lights recently announced a two-night stint in Buena Vista in late June.)

“It’s a challenge that a lot of people who have tried to bring events to Telluride have faced. How do you (the artist) commit without an event? But then how do you approve an event without knowing who’s playing? That is the constant back and forth struggle,” Tucker told The Denver Post in January.

Tucker was happy with the amount of faith the town council put into Planet Bluegrass, which was approved to use Town Park before securing an artist – perhaps a testament to its history running the bluegrass festival for more than 30 years. The idea of bringing a different kind of act also seemed to be appealing to local leaders and as did having a nighttime concert, which allows fans to enjoy the mountains, shops and restaurants throughout the day.

“I think there’s excitement for some fresh, new change,” Tucker said.

Though Of The Trees is projected to bring millions of dollars to Telluride, where the tourism economy is king, the pitch received pushback from some locals. Organizers of the Telluride Mountain Run, which is slated for the same weekend, said having thousands of concertgoers in and around Town Park would impede their event’s success, and maybe even end it altogether by introducing “a completely different and incompatible atmosphere,” the Telluride Daily Planet reported.

The reason Planet Bluegrass chose those specific dates was because almost every other weekend in Telluride is already booked with long-standing events, Tucker said. The company coordinated with the Telluride Mountain Run on camping and logistics to ensure both events could still happen. After August, Planet Bluegrass plans to work with its partners in town to evaluate if the event was successful and could be replicated in future years.

“We’re excited to have those conversations and hopefully they’re all positive and we prove ourselves,” Tucker said.

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The iconic 6-mile roundtrip hike is in a red-ribboned rock formation in the Paria Canyon-Vermillion Cliffs Wilderness (which are actually in Arizona, near the Utah border). But because of its delicate nature, would-be visitors have to enter a daily lottery to get a permit, helping limit the number of people tramping over the sandstone. The in-person lottery has since been replaced by a daily online lottery that is monitored by a “mobile geofence system,” meaning you have to be nearby to fill it out. There is also an advance lottery four months out.

It wasn’t my lucky day, though, and the trip is still a goal.

The Wave may be one of the oldest (since the 1980s) and most familiar examples of land managers instituting a system to protect special places from excessive use, but it’s not alone. Perhaps thanks in part to social media, some spots are just too popular for their own good.

Below is a list of some of the best and most famous lotteries. It’s by no means complete, and you can find more under the “permits” tag at recreation.gov.

UTAH/ARIZONA

The Wave in Coyote Buttes North

As mentioned above, if you want to hike the Wave, plan to spend some time in the BLM office in Kanab, Utah; that’s where you’ll go to pick up the permit and attend a safety lesson. Understand more about the process at blm.gov. If you strike out with The Wave, you can still have a pretty epic day of hiking in this area, though. We ended up at nearby White Pocket. You must have a high-clearance vehicle to get to the trailhead as it is on unimproved roads with sand drifts. Or, speak to the experts at the BLM about how to get to the trailhead or hire a local guide. Other hikes with groovy natural formations in the area include the Sand Caves and Red Canyon Slot.

Angels Landing in Zion National Park

As someone with a fear of heights, I can’t understand the appeal of Angels Landing, but lots of other people do, which is why it is so popular. This 5-mile hike includes narrow strips of rock with sheer drops on both sides. The payoffs are 360-degree views and bragging rights.

To obtain a permit, go to the National Park Service website, and pay a $6 non-refundable fee to enter the lottery up to seven days in advance for up to six people at a time. You will be redirected to recreation.gov, which manages all permits. If you score a permit, you’ll pay $3 per person to do the hike. Note that due to limited cell phone service, you need to print or download the permit before coming to the park. Hiking choices are limited to the next day (not the day of) or a week in advance. Getting to the trailhead requires taking a shuttle, so check the schedule or you’ll miss your time slot.

Colorado River in Grand Canyon National Park

In 2006, the National Park Service switched from a waitlist to a lottery for noncommercial rafting permits on the portion of the Colorado River that snakes through the Grand Canyon. In season, about 450 permits are awarded for 12 to 25-day raft trips. Before the lottery system, the waitlist was exceeding 25 years for some boaters!

This is a “weighted lottery” where a person’s previous experience — or lack thereof — is factored in. This is not a trip for novices, so the permitting process includes meeting park service standards for the skills to raft this river.

Once you get that permit, know that it can’t be traded, deferred, or changed. And bring your wallet — the lottery application fee is $25, a river permit costs $90 per person, and an entrance fee is $20 per person. There is also a trip deposit of $200 to $400.

Havasu Falls in the Grand Canyon

The Havasupai Indian Reservation is in Havasu Canyon, which is part of the Grand Canyon. Supai Village is only accessible by foot or horseback (or mule), and no day hiking is allowed. Depending on your final destination, the village or campground, it’s an 8- to 10-mile hike down into the canyon and along the bottom. Temperatures can exceed 115 degrees in summer.

The attraction here is the icy blue waters that tumble across red rocks, including Havasu Falls. Devastating floods wrecked the area in 2024, but it has since reopened and is still a stunning locale that attracts many more requests to visit than it can handle.

Which is why there is a lottery system; reservation requests are made through the Havasupai tribe’s website and aren’t managed by the National Park Service.

If you aren’t going to set up your own camp, you can make a reservation at the lodge in Supai Village. There are detailed rules for when you can hike in and back out based on your reservation dates, along with a need to have a group leader and to bring your paperwork. Another option, which I used with success, was to go with a commercial guide who secures the permits so you don’t leave it up to chance. You will be camping with your group, and not staying in the lodge, which means carrying more gear on your hike.

For the lucky ones who score a permit for a non-commercial excursion, don’t expect to buy any supplies in Supai Village. Pack in everything you need, and pack everything back out with you.

COLORADO

Maroon Bells

The most photographed destination in Colorado, the twin peaks of the Maroon Bells, outside of Aspen attract 300,000 visitors every year, according to tourism officials in the area.

Once you’re here, there are many hiking options, from easier ones like the one-mile loop around Maroon Lake to harder trails, like the 11-mile one-way trek across 12,500-foot West Maroon Pass to Crested Butte.

Unless you are riding your bicycle here, you’ll more than likely need a reservation to take the shuttle bus from Aspen Highlands during peak months. Reservation costs range from $10 to $20, depending on whether you’re parking your own vehicle or taking the shuttle. Note that there is a fee between 8 a.m. and 5 p.m. to get picked up by a friend, and all commercial ride services are not allowed for drop off or pick-up.

Much harder to get are backcountry permits for the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness, which go on sale each year and allow access to the famed Conundrum Hot Springs, as well as Capitol Lake, Crater Lake and the Four Pass Loop.

Hanging Lake

Tucked inside the White River National Forest in Glenwood Canyon is Hanging Lake, a National Natural Landmark thanks to its exquisite beauty.

The trail is only a little over a mile long, but it is steep and rocky. The reward for your efforts is a waterfall pouring gently into clear, bluish-green lake. A wooden walkway hugs the side of the lake and provides a clear place to remain on land, not in the tempting cool waters.

What could be called a series of unfortunate events — overuse, wildfire, debris runoff — culminated in multiple closures of the trail in the past few years for repair and restoration. It’s now scheduled to reopen as of July 1, 2025. And reservations are required. There is a $12 per person permit cost; no dogs are allowed. Permits are available with rolling availability through visitglenwood.com.

CALIFORNIA

Half Dome in Yosemite National Park

Half Dome is one of the most recognized places in Yosemite National Park for its unique shape: one sheer face and three rounded sides, making it look like a dome cut in half.

The 400-foot climb to the top is one of the more sought-after experiences in the park, so there is a seasonal permit lottery system. The fixed cables that make this climb possible are put in each spring and removed in the fall, so access is limited.

There is a preseason lottery and then the daily lottery for two days in advance with six permits per application. Only 225 hikers are permitted per day through recreation.gov. The cost is $10 for each lottery application and each award hiker pays $10 for their permit.

A climbing harness is recommended, but not provided. This is not a guided experience so each hiker is responsible for their own safety.

TENNESSEE

Synchronous fireflies in Great Smoky National Park

Surprisingly, one of the most limited and dicey lotteries is the one to view the synchronous fireflies in Great Smoky National Park during eight days in June. Everything about this is limited, and then there are no guarantees that the wildlife will perform on cue.

The lottery for a vehicle reservation opens on April 28 at 10 a.m. EDT and closes by 8 p.m. on May 1. Less than 1,000 vehicles are allowed during the entire event, predicted to peak June 4-11. There is a $1 nonrefundable application fee and a $24 registration fee if you win a permit.

For those who do get a permit, there are strict guidelines about the lighting you bring with you, such as using a red flashlight rather than a bright cell phone light.

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Campspot, a website and app that helps campers book campsites, has a few local suggestions. On Tuesday, the company announced the winners of its fourth Campspot Awards, which recognize campgrounds in the U.S. and Canada that offer “unforgettable outdoor experiences,” according to a statement.

Three Colorado camping destinations earned recognition in 2025, including an RV park on the Front Range, a new campground near the Great Sand Dunes National Park and Preserve, and a Western Slope orchard that allows guests to camp among the fruit trees. The award winners were chosen based on data like Campspot’s user ratings and park features, among other criteria.

The Sun Outdoors Rocky Mountains in Granby ranked No. 4 among North America’s top RV campgrounds. In 2023, Campspot named it one of the best glamping destinations and, in 2022, the website touted it as one of the best campgrounds for first-time campers.

Further west, Big B’s Delicious Orchard in Hotchkiss nabbed the No. 5 spot on the list of unique campgrounds. The venue has campsites for tents, RVs and trailers in the shade of its peach, apple and apricot trees. In the summer, the orchard regularly hosts live music.

Ramble, which opened near the Great Sand Dunes National Park in Alamosa in 2023, also earned a shout-out as the No. 5 tent camping spot in North America. The company has since opened a second campground near Mesa Verde National Park and plans to expand significantly in the coming years.

Looking to explore beyond Colorado? Check out the full list of Campspot Award winners here.

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The spectacular Indian Peaks Wilderness, administered by the Arapaho and Roosevelt National Forests, is located along the Continental Divide south of Rocky Mountain National Park and north of Nederland. It includes a string of 13,000-foot peaks, six passes over the divide, 50 lakes, and 28 trails covering 133 miles. Some of the peaks overlook the picturesque Brainard Lake Recreation area.

Backcountry permits cost $5 and are available through recreation.gov.

In the most popular zones — Crater Lake, Jasper Lake, Diamond Lake and Caribou Lake — camping is allowed in designated areas only. There is a helpful map on the forest service website. There also is a helpful eight-minute video on the recreation.gov site, explaining how to obtain permits.

Overnight parking reservations for visitors planning to access the wilderness via Brainard Lake trailheads are now available. ($16) through recreation.gov.

Thorough planning for backcountry trips and knowing the rules is important:.

• Campfires are prohibited at all times on the east side of the divide. West of the divide, campfire restrictions apply when in effect due to fire danger.
• Visitors are encouraged to pack food in bear-safe storage containers, or hang their food out of the reach of hungry bears.
• Visitors should be equipped to pack out trash and be familiar with Leave No Trace principles.
• Dogs must be leashed.

Day use reservations for Brainard Lake will be available on a rolling basis beginning in mid-May. The Brainard Lake entry station will open June 14 if conditions allow. Upper trailheads and parking areas should open in July.

And here’s a reminder: The road to the summit of Mount Blue Sky, typically managed by CDOT and the Arapaho National Forest with a reservation system, will remain closed this summer for repairs.

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That season begins May 1 and runs through October 31. Permits are sold online only — first come, first served — through recreation.gov. The cost of reservations is $36. A general guide to wilderness camping can be found on the Rocky Mountain National Park website.

Unless you already know where you want to camp, you should do some research ahead of time. There are a dozen general areas of the park where wilderness camping is allowed, and the Rocky Mountain National Park website lists them on a page called Wilderness Designated Site Details. That page outlines the number and location of sites within each area, their distance from trailheads, the site elevation and the elevation gain from the trailhead. There are also links to maps of each area showing the distribution of campsites within it.

To purchase a permit, you must first set up an account through recreation.gov. You should be logged into Recreation.gov and be ready to go when permits go on sale. Once logged in, you should search for “Rocky Mountain National Park Wilderness Permits.”

When you are prompted to reserve a site, start by clicking on “Check Availability.” Select your desired dates and the number of people in your party. Then select “Starting Area,” and find the area of the park where you predetermined you want to camp.

Clicking on an area will populate a map showing the backpacking sites within that area. Sites that have already been booked will be marked by a gray box with a zero. Sites that are still available will be indicated by blue boxes with the number of sites open to reserve.

Select the sites you want, click “Book Now,” and pay for your permit. Your selection will be held in your cart for 15 minutes. If you get an error message, that means someone beat you to it, which is why you want to have a priority list of sites ready before you start.

Reservations for developed campgrounds this summer are already on sale. They can be made up to six months in advance at recreation.gov. The Moraine Park Campground is currently unavailable for reservation because of an ongoing construction project there.

“The contractor is working to finish up the project and it is expected to open this summer, however we are unable to predict the start date,” park spokeswoman Kyle Patterson said in December. “We need to be confident regarding the availability of specific sites before we make sites available through reservations.”

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After being evicted from his apartment a year ago, Gurule slept on the streets of Thornton, Lafayette and Boulder before ending up at Mission Arvada, a homeless services nonprofit that operates out of The Rising Church in Olde Town. With its help, he’s now staying in a motel.

“I wasn’t paying my child support and I got backed up on my rent,” said Gurule, who volunteers with his wife at Mission Arvada in the organization’s clothing bank. “We’re in the process of getting a place through this church.”

But Gurule knows that not everyone without a home is necessarily trying to get back on a straight path.

“I understand that some neighborhoods don’t want a lot of homeless people who don’t want to help themselves — who do drugs or who steal,” he said.

Apprehensions like those, Gurule said, are what helped sink an effort by the suburb of 125,000 to stand up a homeless navigation center at 4905 W. 60th Ave., former home of the Early College of Arvada. The city bought the 44,000-square-foot building, which is just east of Sheridan Boulevard, last summer for $6.3 million.

Last month, the Arvada City Council abandoned its plans after hearing numerous concerns throughout the fall from residents in the nearby Arlington Meadows neighborhood. Complaints about the plan ranged from a lack of communication from the city to potential safety problems that a navigation center — which typically provides mental health, addiction and workforce services on site — could bring to the neighborhood.

On Jan. 27, the council put the building back on the market.

“The neighbors, quite frankly, got upset,” Arvada Mayor Lauren Simpson said. “When you’re the house that abuts it or is across the street from it, you ask, ‘Why are you asking me to do this?’ ”

Arvada’s reversal on the homeless facility on the city’s eastern edge shows how fraught the issue has become for communities in Colorado that are trying to get a handle on the burgeoning problem. Arvada is hardly alone.

In January 2024, Aurora approved the purchase of the 255-room Crowne Plaza Hotel with plans to convert it into a facility that temporarily houses and serves individuals who are homeless. Just weeks later, Denver and Aurora residents living near the hotel voiced concerns about crime that might result from such an operation. But city leaders are pressing forward.

In Englewood, dissatisfaction has grown in the last year among some residents living near The Hub at Movement 5280, a homeless ministry on South Grant Street near the Denver line. The city received 125 calls for service at Movement 5280 in 2024, with 15 of those calls categorized as crimes by Englewood police, according to the city.

And five years ago, resident outcry over a proposed 1,000-person regional campus in Lakewood to accommodate those without housing helped defeat the project.

All the while, homelessness is on the rise in and around Denver. Last year’s point-in-time survey by the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative revealed a 10% pop in homelessness across seven metro counties over the 2023 tally.

At Mission Arvada, the increasing strain on services is evident, said the organization’s executive director, Karen Cowling. Seventy to 90 people a day visit Mission Arvada’s day center, where they can do laundry and take a shower.

The organization served 1,400 unique individuals in 2024 and provided 37,000 meals. The facility has opened its cold-weather overnight shelter inside the church on 45 nights since November — a service that has become all the more critical following the abrupt shutdown of the Severe Weather Shelter Network across Jefferson County in October.

“This is definitely the highest we’ve ever been,” Cowling said of clientele numbers at the eight-year-old ministry. “It’s paramount we get something else. We are not a 24/7 operation — these clients need 24-hour case management to get on their feet.”

Olde Town businesses wary

As in the larger region, the Metro Denver Homeless Initiative’s survey showed an increase in those without a home in Jefferson County — up from 854 people in 2023 to 925 last year.

On West 57th Avenue in Olde Town Arvada, a handful of people with backpacks and belongings gathered in front of the library and soaked in the sun on a recent chilly morning, including one accompanied by a small dog wearing a sporty green jacket.

Across the street at The Rising Church, a dozen or more people waited for a free lunch at Mission Arvada.

“This church is home to a lot of people who need food,” Gurule said. “For a lot of these guys, it’s a second home. But the church is in the middle of Olde Town.”

That fact has caused friction, especially among downtown business owners who have heard from customers and visitors that they don’t always feel safe in Olde Town. Alyssa Rossi, the owner of AdiLuna Boutique, said she has found trash strewn around her business on Olde Wadsworth Boulevard on many occasions.

Some people have passed out on the bench in front of her shop. Worse still is the human waste she has had to pick up in the alley next to her store.

“No one should have to clean up feces outside their business,” Rossi said.

She’s given thought to leaving Olde Town, where AdiLuna has been selling women’s clothing, jewelry and gift items for five years.

“I’ve had fellow business owners say they’ve had employees quit because they don’t feel safe walking to their cars at night,” Rossi said. “If you’re not familiar with this area and you think you’re visiting this vibrant community to have dinner and you come across a group of people outside the library doing drugs, it’s different.”

Two years ago, the Arvada Library was closed for days after it was contaminated by meth smoked in the bathrooms, though the culprits were never found. Joe Hengstler, executive director of the Olde Town Business Improvement District, said he hears frequently from business owners who struggle to deal with Arvada’s growing homeless population.

He said the police department’s Community Outreach, Resource and Enforcement Team, or CORE, which sends staff members out to interact with those who need housing in the city, does vital work in this area. Last October, CORE members disassembled an encampment that had popped up in Olde Town and put in a request to replace lights embedded in stone steps that had been broken out by people who used the wiring to charge their cell phones.

“How can we mitigate the effect that this is having on our community?” Hengstler asked.

“Zero tolerance” is what Rossi hopes will be enforced downtown. And a navigation center like the one proposed for the Arlington Meadows neighborhood, she said, would help alleviate the impacts of homelessness on Olde Town.

But it has to be in the right location, said Lily Allish, an Arlington Meadows resident for the better part of a year. Allish started a Change.org petition last fall to oppose the conversion of the Early College of Arvada building to a homeless navigation center.

The petition amassed more than 1,500 signatures as of Thursday.

“The petition was created to advocate for transparency and community input in the decision-making process,” Allish told The Denver Post in an email. “Many residents felt there was a lack of public engagement and unanswered questions about how the center would operate and its long-term effectiveness.”

Some of the “serious consequences” neighbors feared from having a navigation center nearby were “decreased property values, increased crime and the disruption of neighborhood safety,” according to the online petition.

“Neighbors supported services but wanted them implemented effectively,” Allish said. “With Mission Arvada already providing navigation services in Olde Town, residents questioned why existing resources weren’t expanded there instead.”

“Keep doing what we do”

Councilman John Marriott said Arvada shouldn’t be responsible for establishing a homeless navigation center in the first place. He cast the lone vote last year against buying the Early College of Arvada building, which is just under two miles east of Olde Town.

“It’s not our role,” he said. “That’s a human services function that belongs to the county, not the city.”

Arvada has created a plan to deal with homelessness as part of its City Council Strategic Plan 2024-2030. One goal is to “work with community partners to find a suitable location for the provision of homeless services outside of Olde Town.”

But it matters where, Marriott said.

“The distribution of homeless services is a very difficult thing to do,” he said. “There’s no ideal spot for it, but some places are worse than others.”

The launch of several regional navigation centers is underway in metro Denver to help bring a more comprehensive response to the problem.

RecoveryWorks on West Colfax Avenue in Lakewood operates a one-stop shop for people without a home who are in need of a myriad of resources and services. Bridge House in Englewood is scheduled to open a facility in March, with 20 beds for temporary overnight stays and another 47 to 50 beds for those looking for work or undergoing job training.

Conversion of the hotel in Aurora to a homeless navigation center is expected to be completed by the end of this year, though there is no hard date for an opening just yet.

Simpson, Arvada’s mayor, said that despite the city’s scuttled plans for a navigation center, it’s still committed to doing what it can to address a problem that shows no signs of disappearing — especially as home prices and apartment rents along the Front Range remain burdensome to many.

To that end, the city recently reserved 30 to 35 rooms at a hotel in the city to provide shelter to those in need. Harnessing state grant money, Arvada is giving vouchers to people for overnight stays.

“We’re going to catch these folks before they start on that downward spiral,” Simpson said.

Cowling, the head of Mission Arvada, said whatever objections there may be to visible homelessness in the community, the need is not going to go away. And neither will her organization.

“We are going to keep doing what we do. There have to be places where we can do this work,” she said. “We will be here but there are still going to be folks we can’t reach because of mental health and criminal behaviors — that’s going to continue to grow.”

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Gov. Jared Polis announced the collaboration involving CPW, the U.S. Forest Service, the Bureau of Land Management, nearby municipalities, counties and other agencies last week in his annual State of the State message.

The nonprofit Pikes Peak Outdoor Recreation Alliance (PPORA) had campaigned for CPW management of federal lands adjacent to the 14,107-foot mountain, which have been adversely impacted by high visitation pressures and federal funding challenges.

“This is just the first step in a multi-year plan to improve and expand world-class recreation opportunities like camping, fishing, hiking and more on the majestic mountain in a way that benefits the landscape, our way of life and local economy,” Polis said. “Anyone who visits our state parks knows exactly what CPW is capable of delivering.”

The concept was inspired by an existing model. CPW already manages camping, fishing and hiking in the Arkansas Headwaters Recreation Area, a 150-mile stretch of mostly federal land along the Arkansas River from Leadville to Pueblo.

Issues on public lands on and around Pikes Peak in recent years have included discarded trash, dumping, user conflicts, resource damage and overwhelmed restroom facilities.

“Our community has said this is a very special place, and we really need exceptional natural resource conservation,” said Becky Leinweber, executive director of the PPORA, in an interview. “At the same time, we need exceptional recreational opportunities. We have people retiring here, we have people visiting and moving for that reason, and that’s only going to increase.

We have some amazing land managers in multiple jurisdictions, but resources have been challenging,” she continued. “Resources are going down when the need and use are going up. How do we provide exceptional management so we have these great places preserved and to be enjoyed?”

CPW’s first priority is the completion of the Ring the Peak trail around Pikes Peak. Ultimately the trail will measure approximately 95 miles, with 63 miles already in place, according to Mike Rigney, project manager for Ring the Peak. CPW would take over the development and management of the trail.

“We think CPW is a great galvanizing organization that everyone can get behind to coordinate and help manage the project,” said Glenn Carlson, executive director of the region’s Trails & Open Space Coalition. “There are lots of jurisdictions, government entities, non-government entities, forest service, BLM, private landowners. To have one entity that is able to pull everybody together and keep driving this, keep pulling it forward, I think is a critical aspect of it.”

Completion of the trail, which has been a dream of recreation users in the area for two decades, may require the realignment of some existing trails. Routing the trail where there is now a 26-mile gap also has yet to be determined, but Leinweber welcomes CPW’s involvement.

“They are committed to exploring getting this trail completed, and that would be amazing for this area,” Leinweber said. “I’m excited to say this because 18 months ago, I couldn’t have said I think we’re going to see a completed Ring the Peak trail corridor. Now I can say that with some real confidence, we’re going to get this done and we’re going to do it right.”

Leinweber said she expects CPW to develop additional camping in the area as well. “Their funding is largely user-based. Day passes, campgrounds, is what funds a lot of what they do. They will be looking for appropriate areas to do some developed camping. On Pikes Peak, that is a need. I think it will be great to have some additional camping opportunities for folks.”

Federal protections and regulations still will govern the management of forest service and BLM lands under CPW management.

“There are still federal processes that are in place, so even with a partnering manager who may see that there needs to be recreational development such as camping in an area, those federal regulations are still in place and have to be followed,” Leinweber said. “There is no land transfer. There’s no change in ownership.”

In 2020, Polis signed an executive order creating the Regional Partnerships Initiative. Funded by CPW and Great Outdoors Colorado, regional partnerships bring together interest groups and public land managers to balance management, conservation and recreation while relying heavily on local input. The PPORA was one of the first to be created in the state. Now there are 20. Others include NoCo Places, which is exploring land management ideas for northern Colorado, the Summit County Outdoor Coalition, the West Slope Outdoors Alliance and the Eagle County Community Wildlife Roundtable.

“It’s not a top-down process where the state dictates what needs to happen,” Leinweber said. “They recognize local communities can best decide the priorities and values for their local communities.”

On Pikes Peak that will mean balancing the wishes not just of hikers, mountain bikers and campers, but hunters and anglers, too. CPW already manages hunting on forest service land across Colorado.

“To me, it’s a treasured mountain,” Carlson said. “It’s incredibly diverse habitat. You can hike on it, you can ride your mountain bike. You can also get into prime outdoor habitat if hunting and fishing are what you enjoy. I’m an outdoorsman, so I think the wildlife aspect of it is critical. There’s bighorn sheep up there, elk, you name it. That aspect needs to be looked out for.”

CPW’s responsibility will be similar to that of the forest service — managing public land for multiple uses.

“It’s not easy work because all these people have different perspectives, different goals, but there are a lot of similarities with lots of overlap,” Leinweber said of the interest groups PPORA represents. “At the end of the day, I think we all want the same thing. We want beautiful robust natural places and wildlife. We also want opportunities to enjoy them. Working together is what this is all about. It’s collaboration at its core.”

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Zach Tucker, vice president of the fest’s production company Planet Bluegrass, tells The Denver Post there are “a fair amount” of tickets still available for this year’s event at shop.bluegrass.com. That includes passes to two campgrounds outside of downtown Telluride.

The fest (June 19-22) is one of the town’s most popular summer gatherings, welcoming about 12,000 people per day to enjoy live music in the scenic box canyon. The fact it isn’t sold out is unusual since tickets are known to evaporate almost instantaneously once they hit the digital box office.

Tucker doesn’t think the lineup is to blame. Headliners this year include Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit, Allison Krauss & Union Station, Lake Street Dive and, of course, Sam Bush, who has been a staple of the event throughout its 52-year run.

Instead, Tucker suspects part of the issue is that people don’t want to go through the hassle of competing for tickets.

“Some of it might be that we’re fighting that exact thought of, ‘It’s sold out, I shouldn’t even look,’” Tucker said. “It’s very interesting to be like, how do you change everyone’s thought that, ‘oh we can’t go so we’re not going to think about it’?”

Planet Bluegrass has been working in recent years to address the frustration caused by sell-outs. In 2023, when the festival celebrated its 50th anniversary, organizers reclaimed a number of tickets that were purchased by scalpers and bots, and then resold them to fans.

Last year, the company tried to get ahead of the bots by implementing a pre-sale registration system to verify buyers were real people. The day before tickets went on sale, fans made a $10 pre-sale purchase, which granted them access to buy festival passes the following day. (Proceeds benefitted Planet Bluegrass’ carbon offset fund.)

“Once we implemented this new program, we have not had the problems we had in 2023, so it works extremely well,” Tucker said.

According to Planet Bluegrass, the festival didn’t technically sell out in 2024. The town of Telluride allowed the event to increase its capacity late last spring, so there ended up being tickets available to walk-up patrons. It was close to selling out, but not quite all the way there, the company said.

Still, economic factors may be coming into play. Festivals around the U.S., from Coachella to Burning Man, have experienced ticket sale slumps recently. Organizers canceled many small and midsize music festivals last year due to underwhelming ticket sales, as did touring artists such as The Black Keys and Jennifer Lopez.

On Reddit, fans of the Electric Forest music festival in Michigan cite the cost of tickets, unpredictable weather, and a plethora of summer music events to choose from as potential deterrents for ticket buyers. A four-day to that event costs $600 plus additional camping fees.

Tucker acknowledged that no event is immune from the economic headwinds facing the country right now. Still, he thinks Telluride Bluegrass is better insulated than most because of its long legacy and the community it brings together. He sees the availability of tickets as an chance to bring new festivarians into the fold.

“It’s been something so many people want to do,” Tucker said. “This is your opportunity to make this happen.”

Tickets to the 52nd Telluride Bluegrass Festival cost $130 for single-day access and $405 for a four-day pass. Find those and camping options at shop.bluegrass.com.

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Here’s an adventure agenda for you — with a few suggested alternates and fun add-ons:

January: Ice climbing in Ouray

There’s no better place to fully embrace winter than in Ouray, especially during the annual Ouray Ice Festival. Head to the Ouray Ice Park, a free place for beginners and experienced climbers to play on the ice. While a guide is not required, it’s recommended that you engage an expert or take one of their ice-climbing clinics. If scaling the icy walls of the gorge isn’t for you, spend time just watching the ice climbers. Then soak in the hot springs and explore the box canyon. The festival runs Jan. 23-25, 2025, and you can watch gear demos, see movies, and go to a dance party.

An alternate: The annual National Western Stock Show rides into Denver for two weeks every year — it’s here now, Jan. 11-26 — during which you can learn about cowboy and ranching culture. From mutton bustin’ to the themed rodeos, it’s a can’t-miss event.

February: Winter fun in Steamboat Springs

If you’re not an alpine skier, one of the best things about Steamboat Springs is that it offers every other winter activity you can think of, including a Winter Carnival Feb. 5-9. This event features fireworks, skijoring (horses pulling skiers and sledders down the street), free skiing at Howelsen Hill, a ski jumping competition, snow sculptures and more. I’ve also had a blast when I tried dog sledding, swished along the cross-country ski trails, slid down a snow-packed hill on an inner tube, hiked to a frozen waterfall, and soaked in the town hot springs. For the skiers, Steamboat Ski Resort can handle all skill levels, from novice to expert.

An alternate: The town of Loveland has fully embraced its name to become a quasi-capitol of Valentine’s Day with a Sweetheart Festival Feb. 14-15, 2025. Head to the historic downtown for fire and art demonstrations, live ice sculpture making, music, dancing and contests. The Loveland Visitor Center has a large LOVE sculpture where you can buy a lock and attach it here or at the heart-shaped sculpture next to Lake Loveland.

March: Birding in Monte Vista

It’s the beginning of mud season when the freeze-and-thaw cycle of spring can leave hiking and biking trails muddy. So a roadtrip to the San Luis Valley is in order. At the Monte Vista Crane Festival, March 7-9, 2025, you can participate in tours of places such as Blanca Wetlands Wildlife Habitat Area and watch these amazing migratory birds and listen to their distinctive call.

An alternate: Barr Lake State Park in Brighton offers weekday birding walks where you might see everything from bald eagles to warblers.

April: Stargazing a state park

Some of the Colorado State Parks have received International Dark Sky Certification, meaning light pollution is low and stargazing potential is high. While it’s still early for comfortable tent camping, you can make a reservation for an RV spot somewhere like Jackson Lake State Park in Morgan County and then relax with a view of the Milky Way. You’ll be amazed at how much darker the sky is just one hour east of Denver. Pro tip: you want to be there closer to a new moon (March 29 and April 27, 2025) rather than a full moon because the sky is much darker. The Lyrids Meteor Shower is expected April 22-23, 2025, which should also make for a great show.

An alternate: Ridgway State Park in Ouray County is also Dark Sky Certified. Check the Colorado Parks & Wildlife website for other state parks that have been certified. There are also national parks, monuments, and areas that Dark Sky International has recognized.

May: Hit the beach at Great Sand Dunes National Park & Preserve

As the snow melts each spring, it fills Medano Creek, which flows over the sand between the visitor center and the dunes of the Great Sand Dunes. Be warned: this is snowmelt and the water can be freezing. In high-flow years, there can be a current and little waves where people are out with pool float toys; in low-flow years, you can easily walk across the stream and rinse your sandy feet. Tip: avoid Memorial Day weekend, if you can, because there will be crowds.

Fun add-on: Plan ahead and rent a sandboard before you enter the park (the National Park Service website has a page listing all of the places within a 36-mile radius where you can get this equipment). Then hike up the dunes (bring lots of water!) and surf down them.

June: Whitewater rafting in Canon City

You have your pick of outfitters, but my recommendation for rafting the Arkansas River is Echo Canyon River Expeditions where you can rent a modern glamping tent or house with Royal Gorge Cabins, eat a good meal across the road at Mile 8, and take a wild whitewater rafting ride. Choose between a scenic float or opt for Class III and IV rapids–all captured on video by a little camera on your guide’s helmet. Canon City is about two hours south and west of Denver.

Fun add-on: Head to nearby Salida for FIBArk, which bills itself as the “nation’s oldest whitewater festival” from June 12-15, 2025. Watch a costumed boating race, see champion stand-up river paddleboarders compete, listen to live music, and participate in a foot race.

July: Crested Butte Wildflower Festival

This is usually the ideal month to find wildflowers in Colorado, and Crested Butte is one of the finest places to see them. So, check out the annual Crested Butte Wildflower Festival, July 11-20, 2025, when you can take a guided hike, participate in photography or watercolor workshops or celebrate these beauties in other ways.

Fun add-on: If you’re up for it, you’ll find more wildflowers on the 11-mile one-way West Maroon Pass hike between Crested Butte and Aspen. This classic high-altitude trek is challenging — but very popular. You can arrange a shuttle once you get to Aspen to get you to your lodging of choice or back to Crested Butte.

August: Tent camping in the mountains

It’s hard to pick just one spot for tent camping when there are so many incredible places to put down stakes, and you will need to reserve a spot in a state or national park or take a chance with first come first serve on federal lands. Pick up a copy of “Best Tent Camping Colorado,” by Monica Stockbridge or “Colorado Camping: The Complete Guide to Tent and RV Camping,” by Joshua Berman to get some ideas on where to go and what to expect when you get there.

An alternate: If camping isn’t your jam, go to Palisade for the annual Palisade Peach Festival from Aug. 15-16, 2025. There will be a peach-eating contest, chefs making new dishes with peaches, a talk on the history of peach growing on the Western Slope, and more.

September: Eltktober in Estes Park

The natural mating rituals of the elk that inhabit Rocky Mountain National Park were attracting so many tourists that the park’s gateway town of Estes Park created a festival. This year, Estes Park Elk Fest, aka “Elktober,” runs Sept. 27-28. But attending the fest isn’t the only way to see, hear and learn about the elk since you can drive into the park (or many elk wander into town regularly) during this time of year and possibly hear their distinctive “bugle” call for a mate. Remember to keep a safe distance from wildlife, and please don’t feed or touch them.

Fun add-on: Wapiti is the Shawnee tribe’s word for elk, and it translates to “white rump.” After a day of learning about elk, head to the Wapiti Colorado Pub in Estes Park for a bite to eat.

October: Leaf-peeping

Guanella Pass, between Georgetown and Grant, has always been one of the best places for fall leaf-peeping in Colorado. But this 24-mile scenic byway road, especially, and other mountain passes that are abundant with the state’s iconic aspen trees, can be terribly congested with car traffic during fall colors season. So put in your research for destinations and dates. Peak weekends change every year, but are always between mid-September and mid-October.

Fun add-on: If you do decide to join the crowds on Guanella Pass, start your drive from Highway 285 at Grant and then take in the views above Georgetown, where you can also ride the Georgetown Loop Railroad to see still more fall colors from a different vantage point.

November: Soak at Glenwood Hot Springs Resort

Colorado has many hot springs to choose from and I like them all, but you can’t go wrong at Glenwood Springs. They say they are the largest hot springs pool in the world and I have to take their word for it. The Yampah Mineral Baths are the newest addition here of five smaller soaking pools. You can soak in a hot springs any time of year, but November is ideal with a little chill in the air outside–maybe even snow already—as the steam rises off the warm water.

An alternate: Iron Mountain Hot Springs is also in Glenwood, just above the banks of the Colorado River where they have an Upriver section for people 21 years of age and older.

December: Fat tire bike rides

Summer isn’t the only time to ride a bike in Colorado. Thanks to those chunky wide wheels, you can comfortably ride a fat tire bike over a snow-packed trail. Rentals are available in several ski towns, including Winter Park, where this sport has been embraced. There are beginner to expert trail experiences to try (roads to trails to singletrack) as you hone your new skill.

An alternate: Lace up your hiking boots for a scenic winter hike in Rocky Mountain National Park. Winter hiking is different than snowshoeing so depending on how much snow has fallen, you could use snowshoes instead. If the snow isn’t deep, strap some microspikes onto your boots and get out your trekking poles to explore this scenic place in a quieter season for hikers.

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