Outdoors - The Durango Herald

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Love, prayer and tickets: What we saw at the Rainbow Family gathering in northwest Colorado

Annual gathering drew 10,000 people and lots of online ire

DATE: Jul 6, 2022 | CATEGORY: Outdoors

Colorado ski areas set a new visitor record last season

Visitation to Colorado ski areas surpassed 14 million in 2021-22

DATE: Jul 5, 2022 | CATEGORY: Sports

Alaska’s Denali is finally open to guided skiing, and you have a Colorado company to thank

Permit rules were written with the expectation that mountaineers would stay roped, walking uphill and down

DATE: Jul 4, 2022 | CATEGORY: Outdoors

Colorado’s outdoor industry knows it could be more inclusive

The industry acknowledges that there’s a large population that doesn’t feel included

DATE: Jul 1, 2022 | CATEGORY: Sports

Rainbow Gathering picks remote area in Colorado for its angst-inducing 50th annual meeting of tribes

‘Largest non-organization of non-members in the world’ will reprise in Routt National Forest

DATE: Jun 15, 2022 | CATEGORY: Outdoors

Purgatory Resort welcomes young pup to ski patrol

Ember, an 8-week-old black Lab, begins avalanche search and rescue dog training

DATE: Apr 6, 2022 | CATEGORY: Outdoors

Fishing gear needs spring cleaning too

A clean and organized vest can make the art of fly fishing go easier

DATE: Apr 1, 2022 | CATEGORY: Sports

Authorities respond to report of avalanche on Berthoud Pass

First responders received a report that two people may have been buried but later determined that no one was caught

DATE: Mar 23, 2022 | CATEGORY: Local News

How Crested Butte’s first-ever extreme skiing contests birthed the freeskiing movement

Pioneering athletes transformed the resort industry with a push for wider skis and steeper terrain

DATE: Mar 17, 2022 | CATEGORY: Outdoors

Colorado appeals court revives river access, right-to-wade debate

Angler Roger Hill is suing a landowner over a right to wade in the Arkansas River, arguing that historic commerce on the river proves navigability, which requires public access

DATE: Feb 14, 2022 | CATEGORY: Local News

Following a historic avalanche season, new tools aim to make backcountry travel safer

Durango-area woman creates rescue sleds that have other backcountry uses

DATE: Jan 18, 2022 | CATEGORY: Outdoors

Family of Colorado avalanche victim drops one lawsuit, targets maker of air bag

Peter Marshall was killed in a January 2019 avalanche while taking a class near Red Mountain Pass

DATE: Dec 21, 2021 | CATEGORY: Local News

Haunted house northeast of Durango gets bigger every yearCody Petersen’s Halloween hobby is his escape from the daily grind

Durango resident Cody Petersen said when he moved into his home at 15 Edgemont Way several years ago, his house on the corner looked lonely and spooky.Today, it’s a madhouse. Halloween decorations are splayed practically on every inch of his lawn, in the trees and up and down his home.

A group of school-aged kids stop in front of his house every day to pose with a little gothic doll in the lawn, he said. It’s the favorite attraction amongst hundreds of decorations Petersen bought locally and online as early as July in preparation for Oct. 31, Halloween.He said he doesn’t want to think about how much money he’s spent on fog machines, animatronics and Christmas lights, but the bill easily totals several thousands of dollars.

For trick-or-treaters on Halloween, whom he encourages to visit, jumpscares abound at Petersen’s home, featuring animatronic spiders, growling wolves and other monsters, he said.He’s working on his own animatronic coffin, which shakes and rattles, and a pulley system that will push and pull a ghost up and down the yard, but neither will be ready for this year’s Halloween.He said he has fond memories of his parents decorating for the holidays during his upbringing and he’s a huge horror genre fan. So he enjoys going all out on decorations for the spooky season. He justifies his hobby with the logic his kids will only be in high school a few more years, and it isn’t as cool to decorate the lawn for Halloween when one doesn’t have children living at home.But the neighbors enjoy his haunts as much as the rest of the community. He said his Halloween scene has gradually grown larger every year; at least 50 trick-or-treaters turned up at his home last year.“I'm a home inspector, so I do have a lot of tools and no fear of trying things out,” he said.

He said typical Halloween animatronics cost $400 a piece, but they only last one year or so without breaking. That’s frustrating, he said, and he believes he can do better by building his own.He said this year’s display and experience is more organic than past years thanks to his handiwork. Among his myriad decorations, trick-or-treaters can spot easter eggs referencing “Beetlejuice,” “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and “Pet Sematary.”Among the horror props are real animal bones Petersen said he’s found on hikes across the countryside.“I've got ghosts and spiders and witches and that kind of thing,” he said. “Here in Edgemont, we have giant spiders for real. ... We get these huge wolf spiders that are bigger than my hand. I mean, huge, bigger than tarantulas.”

Petersen said he was motivated to make his first decorations within the first month he and his wife moved into the home on the corner at 15 Edgemont Way.A lone pine tree, a typical Christmas tree that would be strung up with lights and ornaments in December, stood out to Petersen in the yard, he said. He just felt compelled to decorate it and light it up.He said he thoroughly decorated the tree and left it lit year-round. Within a month of moving into the house, his neighbor died. The man was old and suffering from Alzheimer's.

Months later, the man’s wife approached Petersen and told him she and her husband’s last salient moments together were spent looking out at Petersen’s lighted Christmas tree, pretending it was Christmas. In the following hours, the man succumbed to delirium. He died several days later.“I don't know why I had that tree, why I lit it, but that's why that tree, even when Halloween is over, all year round, that Christmas tree always stays lit now,” he said.Petersen is a horror movie fan, and in particular he’s always enjoyed the sinister character Michael Myers of the “Halloween” franchise.

He said every year, after thrilling trick-or-treaters at his home, he takes to downtown and East Third Avenue in his Michael Myers costume, bearing a giant bowl of candy, to continue the fun.The highlight of his yard, the creepy doll neighborhood kids like to pose and take pictures with, is Petersen’s “elf on the shelf,” he said. He likes to move the doll around the house, sometimes propping her up to hold animal bones.“I have a real busy and pretty stressful job,” he said. “I just love the fall so much. And to come home, it's just a good way to wind down and, you know, de-stress, just go out and work in the yard.”cburney@durangoherald.com

Cody Petersen’s Halloween hobby is his escape from the daily grind

Reader-submitted photos of Halloween decorationsLast week, we asked readers to submit photos of their Halloween decorations or a neighbor’s decorations. We received dozens of photo submissions. We have selected some of the most spooky, elaborate and fun photos to share in this gallery. Enjoy!

Photos: FLC volleyball returns homeFort Lewis College volleyball took on Adams State University on Tuesday

Fort Lewis College volleyball took on Adams State University on Tuesday

Photos: Expert leathercrafter and collector estate sale near IgnacioItems belonging to the late Alex Pappas were auctioned for sale on Saturday

Items belonging to the late Alex Pappas were auctioned for sale on Saturday

Photos: Pro boxing in DurangoLegends on the Animas boxing showdown took place on Saturday

Legends on the Animas boxing showdown took place on Saturday

Fort Lewis College women’s soccer loses to Colorado School of Mines 5-1

Photos: Durango Cowboy Gathering draws crowd with Horseback Social and paradeThe cowboys, cowgirls and their horses took center stage Saturday in downtown Durango

The cowboys, cowgirls and their horses took center stage Saturday in downtown Durango

Durango Cowboy Gathering hosts its first ever mechanical bull roping competition

About 1,000 sheep move along down Buck Highway during the annual event on Saturday

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Love, prayer and tickets: What we saw at the Rainbow Family gathering in northwest Colorado

Colorado ski areas set a new visitor record last season

Alaska’s Denali is finally open to guided skiing, and you have a Colorado company to thank

Colorado’s outdoor industry knows it could be more inclusive

Rainbow Gathering picks remote area in Colorado for its angst-inducing 50th annual meeting of tribes

Purgatory Resort welcomes young pup to ski patrol

Fishing gear needs spring cleaning too

Authorities respond to report of avalanche on Berthoud Pass

How Crested Butte’s first-ever extreme skiing contests birthed the freeskiing movement

Colorado appeals court revives river access, right-to-wade debate

Following a historic avalanche season, new tools aim to make backcountry travel safer

Family of Colorado avalanche victim drops one lawsuit, targets maker of air bag

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