Everywhere you look in Crested Butte, signs of summer are popping up! The sun is shining, purple lupine blossoms are blooming, golden glacier lilies are unfolding their petals, and birds are chirping from their nests. While the summer landscape in Crested Butte offers the same unchanging beauty you’ve grown to know and love, this year’s Wildflower Festival will incorporate some changes to help ensure the safety of the Wildflower Festival Community. Thank you for joining us in following these guidelines to keep the Community we love as healthy as possible:
Social Distancing: Let’s Stand Together – 6 Feet Apart!
The CDC tells us unequivocally that keeping folks from separate parties 6 feet apart is the best thing we can do to keep all staff and participants healthy and safe. Of course, family and friends who are part of the same reservation party may choose to keep closer company. However, all participants must maintain a distance of 6 feet between themselves and Festival staff, guides, and participants from separate groups. While it may feel strange at first to keep each other at two times your arm’s length, keeping our distance physically is a sign that we care for each other’s safety and health. Staying apart shows how close we really are!
Mandatory Face Coverings: Wearing is Caring!
The most recent Public Health Order from Gunnison County requires mask wearing in public both indoors and outdoors at events like the Wildflower Festival. The stunning wildflower bandanas in our Blossom Boutique are one fun option for embracing the Wildflower Festival theme while keeping your fellow participants healthy – you can purchase one at registration or from our friends at Boulder Bandanas here. We recommend bringing your own reusable face covering, as you will need to wear a mask throughout your time in Crested Butte. However, we will also have complementary disposable masks available at registration. Whatever option you choose, please keep in mind that masks or bandanas must cover both your nose and mouth to be effective!
No Carpooling at This Year’s Festival: You Get to Take the Wheel!
As we do every year, the Festival has planned for all events to begin at a predetermined meeting point in Crested Butte. Participants will then caravan out to the trailhead where the fun can really start! Of course, members of the same household and family and friends who are part of the same reservation party may choose to ride together. However, due to social distancing requirements, the Festival will not be able to encourage carpooling among participants who are not part of the same reservation party. So please jump behind the wheel of your own vehicle and enjoy the thrill of the open road as you join the group caravan from the meeting point to the trailhead. Please keep in mind we are reaching out to all participants enrolled in hikes that require a four-wheel drive vehicle to reach the trailhead.
Here at the Wildflower Headquarters, we understand that change can be hard. But the few small changes we’ve outlined above will have a big impact on the health and safety of our entire community. If you have additional questions about the precautions we are taking to prevent the spread of COVID-19 at the 2020 Festival, please view our 2020 Operating Plan here. You can also learn more about community monitoring of COVID-19 in the Gunnison Valley from the County’s infographic here. As always, your friendly Wildflower Festival team is ready to answer your questions via email at info@cbwildflower.com.