You get the feeling that Spring is here?

Wow, what a weekend with my son, I’m going to pay for it physically later in the week but three days of what we call ‘street-ball’ includes soccer, football, Frisbee or catch.

Any of you remember being a kid playing street-ball with the other neighborhood kids?

The rules were simple, in street football, your receiver would take off at full speed, then he or she would cut left at the Buick.

The universal cry from anyone of, “Car!” quickly and briefly emptied the street to one side or the other.

Regardless, the game was over when ‘Mom’ shouted ‘Dinner’ or, ultimately, the street lights came on.

I bring this up because I’m starting to see it more and more around town, moms, dads and kids seem to be taking to the streets again for a game of ‘street-ball’.

I hope it continues to grow in our mountain communities.

A picture may be worth a 1000-words — seems it’s why a sunset in Idaho Springs on the evening of March 17 left many locals without words, just awe.

Almost surreal deep blood-orange clouds drifted across the evening sky as the sunset at approximately 7:20 p.m.

Sure, Mountain Life isn’t always easy compared to the advantages afforded to the ‘folks down-the-hill’ but they don’t get to see our 14ers lit like this.

Competition between downtown restaurants and pubs will be heated this year, organizers told The Mountain Life, with every establishment seeking bragging rights for the year, in addition to earning the coveted Wing Crawl trophy.

Participants, armed with wristbands, can sonder and sample wings from at least 10 restaurants and pubs in Idaho Springs on Saturday, May 2.

This year’s Wing Crawl restaurant winner will be determined by popular, public vote and taste-testing following the day-long event.

The real winner again this year will be the Clear Creek Food Pantry because nearly 100% of all ticket sales go to non-profit Loaves and Fishes.

Every downtown Idaho Springs establishment is, as in years past, donating the cost of wings, prep and cooking costs, employee time and retail space during what will be a popular weekend for tourists.

“The fundraiser comes at a critical time for Loaves and Fishes,” Director Rachel Josselyn said. “While the community's need for assistance is increasing, the organization has seen a decrease in general donations during the first two months of the year and substantial cuts in federal resources.”

Individual fire-pits warmed the chilly air on March 22, and all the critical S’mores supplies – Hershey bars, marshmallows, Reese’s, Graham Crackers – and the skewers were provided, for $10, from ‘S’mores Time’.

It’s a business model conceived by Jennifer and Richard De-La-Rosa and will set up shop every other Sunday in the park through the rest of the year, according to the owners.

“You bring the S’mores and the experience to events where some people have never done S’mores,” Jennifer De-La-Rosa said. “So, we are able to bring the community together, everybody around fires, building family memories, it’s just very nostalgic and brings you back to your childhood.”

The Clear Creek Metropolitan Recreation District (CCMRD) has agreed to a lease agreement with the county to establish and operate the Clear Creek County Sport Shooting Park in Dumont.

The shooting range, located at 3204 Stanley Road, has been closed for nearly three years after long-time operator, Clear Creek County Sportsman’s Club, lost its lease with the county after decades of operation.

The lease agreement spells out how drastically different the shooting park will be from its predecessor, including axe-throwing and archery lanes, according to CCMRD Director of Facility Operations Jesse Peros.

“We’ll have an archery and axe-throwing bay, two 25-yard pistol bays with about 15 or 16 lanes, and 13 rifle lanes ranging from roughly 75 to 125 yards,” Peros said.

A tentative date for opening to the public is set for April 30.

Tuesday:

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