7/21/2019 Celebrating Colorado, and Girls Named Heidi

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Berthoud Weekly Surveyor April 30, 2015 Page A7

& MAKE IT A GREAT DAY 

SUDOKU SOLUTION

beatcalendarBoulder Dinner TheatreForever PlaidThrough May 10303-449-6000BDTStage.com5501 Arapahoe Ave., Boulder

Candlelight Dinner Playhouse Singin’ in the RainThrough July 12970-744-3747coloradocandlelight.com4747 Marketplace Dr., Johnstown

 Jesters Dinner Theatre & Schoolfor the Performing ArtsLe MiserablesThrough May 10303-682-9980jesterstheatre.com224 Main St., Longmont

Rialto TheaterLoveland Choral Society:

 An Evening with Tony & Oscar Through May 3, $17970-962-2000rialtotheatercenter.org228 E. Fourth St., Loveland

Sudoku is anumberplacing puzzlebased on a 9x9grid with severalgiven numbers. The object is toplace the num-bers 1 to 9 in theempty squaresso that each row,each columnand each 3x3box contains thesame numberonly once.

Celebrating Colorado, and girls named HeidiLocal travel writer hosts

her own festival in OurayBy John GardnerThe Surveyor 

If anyone knows about a greatsmall-town festival in Colorado,it’s Heidi Kerr-Schlaefer, oras avid Surveyor readers mayknow her, the Mayor of Heidi-Town.

 As a travel writer and blog-ger of Colorado festivals, whenthe Mayor of HeidiTown goeson a weekend trip, over 3,000people accompany her on her ad-ventures through her social mediaposts and her blog; Heiditown.com.

“I probably love Colorado more than most peoplebecause I lived in the Pacic orthwest,” said Kerr-

Schlaefer. “I’m so amazed at how many different kinds oflandscapes we have in this state; you have mountains andplains, small towns and big. It’s just so dynamic.”

HeidiTown.com is a blog focused on Colorado festivalsand travel, which Kerr-Schlaefer started in 2007; review-

ing books, movies and restaurants. It wasn’t until

about 2010 that she dedicated the blog to coveringColorado festivals. If it’s ice climbing in Ouray or

drinking beer at the Winter Park Beer Festi-val, HeidiTown subscribers get all the detailsof adventure and relaxation around Colorado.

“I always hear people say, ‘I live vicari-ously through you,’” Kerr-Schlaefer said.

So, after a several years of traveling tofestivals, the mayor decided that she may

as well have one of her own. HeidiTown Fest,scheduled for Memorial Day weekend (May 23-

24), is a festival celebrating Colorado, as well asgirls named Heidi, according to Kerr-Schlaefer.

“It’s really not a festival in that we’re going to have aband or anything like that,” said Kerr-Schlaefer. “It’s achance to visit Ouray and live life like the mayor.

HeidiTown Fest offers two unique packages: Guestscan choose between two hotels, the Ouray Chalet Inn orthe Matterhorn Inn; and two excursions, including a four-wheel-drive excursion with Alpine Scenic Tours, or raft-ing with RIGS Adventure Company. Each package alsocomes with passes to Ouray Hot Springs Pool and ticketsto the HeidiTown Fest VIP party on Saturday night.

Packages start at $280 and include two nights for twopeople. A third night can be added for $80.

“This is your chance to come do a weekend as I do aweekend,” she said.

On Friday and Saturday nights there will be socialevents at locations around town.

Kerr-Schlaefer, who lives in Loveland, chose Ourayspecically to get people to travel to some of Colorado’smost remote and beautiful destinations.

“Ouray is thrilled to be the location for the rst an-nual HeidiTown Fest. icknamed The Switzerland of

 America,’ we are the perfect Coloradomountain location for unique gather-ings and festivals,” said Heidi Pan-kow, public relations manager at theOuray Chamber Resort Association.

Being the inaugural HeidiTownFest, the mayor is unsure as to howit will be received, but she hopes tocontinue the festival, popping up indifferent towns across the state eachyear.

“The thing that sets this eventapart from anything else in the stateis the fact that it will be mobile,” shesaid.

But the goal is what the mayor’sgoal has been from her rst blog postget people interested in the thingsthat happen in their home state.

“Get around your state and seewhat’s out there, you know” Kerr-Schlaefer said. “If HeidiTown Festis the only way you do it every year,then alright, cool. Every year we’llnd a new, cool place to bring youto.”

Photo by Ryan Schlaefer

Ice climbing at Ouray Ice Park in March 2013.