Buena Vista Holiday Festivities
Articles - Life In BV

by: John Abdelnourchorus

Clouds advance over the mountains, silently dropping flakes of snow to the brown earth beneath. Stepping outside, I smell the smoke from fireplaces down the street mixed with the fading scent of decaying leaves. “Finally!” I think, remembering the summer days playing in the Arkansas River and the autumn hikes through stands of yellow aspens that feel like recent moments. “Finally the snow is falling!” I love winter. I actually love all of the seasons and the distinctequineparade qualities of each that come with living in the mountains. My sister lives in Florida and I relish the times when I call her and remark about the accumulation of snow out my window. The fire crackles behind me as she answers that she is lounging by the pool in 85 degrees of sunny bliss. Hmmmm… not for me. I need the warm sun and river park in the summer, the crisp air in the fall and the opportunity to wear gaiters and snow boots in the winter.santa

Buena Vista welcomes winter and the holiday season with open arms. On December 1st, Buena Vistans will gather on Main Street for the annual Equine Parade. Horses, fuzzy with their winter coats and steamy breath will escort their bundled riders down the people-lined streets while Santa makes his grand appearance in a wagon pulled by a team of draft horses. Folks will then meander over to the Festival of Trees to witness the beautiful ornamented trees provided by local sponsors. Accompanied by hot spiced cider and cookies, they make their way through the sparkling lights until they find Santa for a photo shoot and anornament opportunity to plea for their biggest holiday wish. Once warm enough to venture back out to the street, folks can head over for a free Christmas movie at the Pearl Theater or enjoy Christmas carols sung by the angelic voices of the Buena Vista Children’s Chorus. People are also welcome in participating businesses to enjoy fine chocolate treats during the Chocolate Walk. When the sun ducks behind the mountains, Main Street becomes aglow with the festive lights of the Parade of Lights.

Another Buena Vista tradition is the Holiday Home Tour presented by the Buena Vista Chamber of Commerce. This year’s tour takes place on Sunday, December 9 and will feature six fabulous homes – two which are newly completed homes in South Main and another is the historic Bonney House on Princeton Street. The homes are open for viewing from 1-4pm with a reception at Trail West Lodge from 3-5pm. This event is a fundraiser for the betterment and beautification of Buena Vista.

The rest of the month is filled with music, dancing, art shows, high school basketball games, night skis and finishes off with a brilliant fireworks show at Monarch Mountain on New Year’s Eve.

December is a month of balancing fun snow filled days sledding, snowmobiling, skiing, snowboarding, snowshoeing and occasionally snowball fighting with wonderful holiday festivities that involve good friends, family, warm drinks, good music and a fire in the fireplace. Please take a look at the ChannelBV Calendar for more events to fill the holiday season!

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