Memories of the Royal Gorge Bridge

I have a heavy heart this week with the burning of the buildings at the Royal Gorge Bridge last Tuesday.  I spent so much of my last 24 years in one capacity or another doing music and history shows at the bridge, and it is a shock to have all those stages and buildings where I spent so much time burned to the ground.  I've looked at the pictures and videos many times now that show the grey patches of concrete and ash that remain now where gazebos and restaurants and shops once stood.  There are things in life that just defy your ability to comprehend them, and I will always hold the memories and pictures of these places dearly in my mind.  The gazebo alone on the south side I figured I had done 4000 shows - combining the history show with my solo and band performances.  I started playing in that gazebo in 1989.  Then they built a stage on the north side where the zip line is now where I performed a few hundred times, and then I also played with the band a dozen or more times at the Juniper Junction picnic area on the south side, and of course I can't forget all the gunfights I helped with at the mountain man camp.  (The zip line is still functional, but they tore down that stage to put in the ticket booth and concessions for the zip line.)  And I have tramped all over that park over the years.  That is all gone now.  They say it looks like a moonscape in person, and I believe them.  Only four buildings remain with the aforementioned zip line and Sky Coaster.  But they will rebuild and make it better, and I'm sure it will be improved from the mixture of different generations of buildings that existed before.  Still, it marks a passing of an era that I will not forget.

We had one more weekend booked with the band at the Royal Gorge Bridge that has been cancelled at the end of July.  I guess I'm lucky that this isn't a summer I was booked seven-days-a-week up there or I'd be scrambling to find gigs for the rest of the summer.

So I guess we move on and hold our memories dear.

What does this week bring?

Thursday I start the summer season at the Yellow Pine 6:30-8:30.  This is a community barbecue that is nothing if not a blast!  I see such wonderful folks at these events, and it feels so much like family that I really look forward to returning every year!  If you've never been, it's a Texas-style barbecue in an old barn at the Yellow Pine Guest Ranch which is located in Cuchara, CO just before you reach town on the east side of the road.  They serve brisket, chicken, ribs, corn-on-the-cob, pinto beans and pork, potato salad, tossed salad, rolls, and homemade peach cobbler for dessert.  It's yummy and so much fun.  Afterwards you're welcome to roast marshmallows around the fire and make s'mores.  I play in the barn for the listening pleasure during dinner, and afterwards it quite often turns into a little dancing and hooting and hollering on the old wood barn floor.  It's just a great time all around.  You need to make a reservation by Tuesday at the latest if you want to come because they order food based on the reservations.  The number is 719-742-3528.  I hope to see you there.

Friday night I have a private event at Pueblo Community College.

Saturday night I'll be a back at the La Veta Inn 6-9 in La Veta, CO - hopefully on the patio if the weather permits. The last two weeks there have been fine weather and even finer folks, and we have had some memorable moments.  Come on out!

Sunday I won't be at Shadow Hills.  I wrote last week that I'm going to playing a little less there - about half the dates overall.  It will be kind of random until August when I'll start doing every other week there, so check my schedule or my emails to make sure I'm there when you come.

I'll tell you about Tuesday next week too so you can plan ahead.  I'll be doing the big Concert in the Park in Cañon City Veterans Park 7-9.  I have been playing this for several years now, and it's always a wonderful evening sharing the sunset and the green grass and trees with you all.  I get to stretch my legs a bit in this concert venue, so you'll hear a little different take from my other gigs.  Bring a lawn chair and maybe some bug spray so you can enjoy the open air on the lawn.

Oh, and the Saturday after that is the Song of Pueblo at El Pueblo History Museum starting at 7:00!

That's it for now.  Be good to each other and this old earth, and I hope to see you out and about.

Tom

Details this week:

Who:  Tom Munch
What:  playing & singing at the Barbecue
Where:  Yellow Pine Guest Ranch, Cuchara.  719-742-3528
When:  Thursday, June 20, 6:30-8:30 pm

Who:  Tom Munch
What:  playing & singing
Where:  La Veta Inn, 103 W. Ryus Ave, La Veta.  719-742-3700
When:  Saturday, June 22, 6-9 pm