Escalante Days

In Flanders Park, at Central Avenue and Fifth Street in Dolores, a tribute to Father Silvestre Velez de Escalante notes that he slept on that spot Aug. 13, 1776. Escalante Days is traditionally held the second weekend in August to match the time he first came through, and the park is its center. The 2026 edition, the 50th, fell on Saturday, August 8, under the parade theme “golden.” The Dolores Chamber of Commerce hosts it with local organizations. Its executive director, Mimi Genheimer, told The Journal, “It’s really just a big celebration of Dolores and our community, and it brings people in from the county too.”

Pancakes, a 5K and a parade on Central Avenue

The day starts early. At 7 a.m. in 2026 the K-9 Search and Rescue Team served a pancake breakfast at 35 Railroad Ave., across from the Dolores Fire Department. The chamber called it the team’s only annual fundraiser. At the same hour the Escalante Days softball tournament got under way at Joe Rowell Park. It ran through August 9, with a home run derby at 9 p.m. Saturday for a winner’s belt. At 8 a.m. the fifth annual Escalante Days 5K left Flanders Park, with proceeds going to the Dolores Middle and High School cross country programs. Strollers were welcome, but the race page explained that “insurance says no dogs.”

Parade lineup begins at 9 a.m., and the parade starts at 10, heading east on Central Avenue to 11th Street. The chamber’s parade page and The Journal give Third Street as the start; the chamber’s schedule page gives Second. The judges’ table stands at Flanders Park on the corner of Fifth. Three judges award certificates to the top three entries, scored on appearance, originality and theme. Entry is free, and anyone may join. Riders may hand out candy as long as it does not hit the ground, because the chamber does not want children running into the road after it.

Sawdust and watermelon in Flanders Park

From 9 a.m. to 7 p.m., more than 35 local vendors, food trucks and organizations fill the park, by the chamber’s count. The Galloping Goose Historical Society opens its museum from 10 to 4, and the historic Galloping Goose No. 5 gives rides through the same hours. Both are free, and the chamber presents them as the history of the Rio Grande Southern Railroad. From 1 to 4 the Clampers Tractor Train gives free rides of its own.

The Bill F. Ragland Chainsaw Competition starts at 11. Debbie Valerio organized the 2026 contest. Shultzes took first place in all three divisions: Joey Shultz among the women, Mike Shultz in the men’s small saw, and Kyle Shultz in the men’s big saw. Michelle Ragland placed second among the women, and Doug Ragland third in the small saw.

The afternoon runs by the clock:

• 12:30 p.m.: watermelon eating contest, sponsored by the Dolores Food Market.
• 1 p.m.: arm wrestling.
• 1:45 p.m.: line dancing class with Hattie Miller.
• 2:30 p.m.: water balloon toss.
• 3 p.m.: marshmallow-in-spoon race.

Anyone of any age can sign up for the games at the Information Booth. In 2026 the band Vanishing Breed played from 2:30 to 4, and there were face painting and a dunk tank. At 3:30 the Kiwanis Club of Mesa Verde ran its annual duck race at Riverside Park, with tickets sold at the Kiwanis booth in Flanders Park.

Evening music was expected in the park and at the Dolores River Brewery. Four businesses next to the park extended their bar hours: the brewery, Kelly’s Kitchen, the Dolores Bike Hostel and the Italian. “People can go there if looking for a nice place to sit, have an adult beverage, and can get some shade,” Genheimer said.

A ruin, a governor and the River of Our Lady of Sorrows

The first Escalante Days was held in 1976. According to a 2016 Journal account, it began as a way to commemorate the nearby Escalante Ruin. Gov. Richard Lamm attended as part of Colorado’s Centennial celebration, which also named nearby Centennial Peak. The festival later came to honor the Spanish explorers Dominguez and Escalante as well. They passed through the area in 1776 and gave the Dolores River its current name, “El Rio de Nuestra Señora de Los Dolores,” the River of Our Lady of Sorrows. The Journal places the expedition on a route from Santa Fe, New Mexico, to California. A 2008 Flickr caption says the explorers were looking for a route from Santa Fe to Monterey. The festival’s own page describes it as a commemoration of the founding of the Dolores area.

Days and Nights, and a reunion

By its 40th anniversary in 2016, the event was called Escalante Days and Nights and ran over two days.

• Friday: a kids’ parade, an ice-cream-eating contest and a kids’ bike rodeo, where Dr. Allan Burnside again gave away bikes and helmets.
• Saturday: a mountain bike race, plus 12 bands on two stages at the Dolores River Brewery from 2 p.m. to midnight, all for $10.

“We have a super-wide variety of music, from Spanish, blues and reggae, to rock, country and bluegrass, plus belly dancers!” said producer Aaron Lemay of Inner Orbit Sound Systems. An adult beverage tent stood on the site of the original Hollywood Bar, which burned down in 2012 and was never rebuilt. The parade had a 1970s theme. “Dress up in your best ‘70s style, that should be easy for a lot of us,” said chamber director Rocky Moss. “It’s going to feel like old times at the Hollywood.” Radio station KKDC “D’Crow” broadcast live with play-by-play of the competitions. Town attendance had been estimated at 1,200 the year before, up from 1,000. Music tickets had grown from 200 in 2012 to 550.

The 2017 theme was “Where the Wild Still Lives: The Great Dolores Outdoors.” Citizen of the Year Dan Heeny led a parade of Wild West entries, outdoor gear and boats of all kinds. The Four Corners Community Band played for a three-legged race, a hula hoop contest and a Dolores Fire Department water fight. The Rotary Club of Dolores ran its mountain bike race to raise money for student scholarships. That year its longer courses added the new McPhee Overlook trail, along the cliffs above the reservoir. “It gives racers views of the lake not normally seen,” said racer Shawn Gregory.

In 2020 COVID restrictions on crowds canceled most of the event. It returned in full on Aug. 13 to 15, 2021, with a parade themed “Find Your Adventure,” a public salsa tasting and a street dance on Central Avenue between Fourth and Fifth. “We consider it our founders day, when our town celebrates our heritage,” said organizer Susan Lisak, then director of the chamber.

That weekend also brought the Dolores All School Reunion. Frank and Ruby Gonzales started it, and it has been held every five years since 1976. Alumni were invited to march in the parade. Vic Sundquist, 101, of the Class of 1938, and Annabel Stickle, who turned 100 that September, of the Class of 1939, were honored as alumni royalty.