The 88th annual Cañon City Music and Blossom Festival is slated to kick off next week, and organizers are gearing up for a once-in-a-lifetime sort of celebration.
Though the much-loved carnival went on hiatus in 2025, the festival will feature a brand-new attraction: a Brightflight Drone Show, slated to grace the sky over Cañon City, starting at 8:30 p.m. on May 2.
The show, coordinated with the Denver Tourism Office, is affectionately called “Stories in the Sky” and features a 15-minute performance with scenes from across Colorado — including Fremont County icons such as the Royal Gorge Bridge.
According to Blossom Festival organizers, the best viewing opportunities will be at Centennial Park.
The carnival, which spent many years at the grounds at Elm Avenue and South Ninth Street, will not be back for the 2026 celebration, as noted by board member Greg DiRito, but they hold out hope for the future.
He noted that trying to find a new, acceptable ground for a carnival, as well as locking in a new company (after Wright’s Amusements declined to return), was a bit like trying to hit a moving target. He went on to say that, even if the Blossom weekend carnival is in the rearview mirror, they may be able to secure a Fourth of July carnival or Harvest Festival carnival.
Blossom Ball
The fourth annual Blossom Ball will be Friday at The Annex, with a cocktail hour beginning at 6 p.m. The theme, “Under the Bigtop,” will combine the event’s signature black-tie attire with vintage-circus-inspired fun.
Originally founded in 2013 under the alias of the Blossom Alumni Banquet, the banquet has since been renamed the Blossom Ball and welcomes people from across Colorado to enjoy the long history of the Blossom Festival.
Though tickets for the event have already sold out, organizers encourage possible attendees to look out for tickets to next year’s event.
“It’s really a beautiful, fun event that people always enjoy,” said Blossom Board President Cassie Grow.
The ball is the festival’s biggest fundraiser of the year and offers a good chance at some colorful fun.
Blossom Ballers Bowling Tournament
The second annual Blossom Ballers Bowling Tournament is slated for Sunday at Cañon City
Lanes. Slated to take place throughout the day, the event welcomes mixed teams to partake in a 9-pin, no-tap bowling tournament to win cash prizes. Additionally, there will be drawings, door prizes, and much more.
According to co-organizer Matt Martinez, the event welcomed more than 40 teams in 2025 and, though the 2026 tournament will be a bit smaller, he still encourages the public to come out and watch the tournament.
Funds raised from the event will go toward next year’s Music and Blossom Festival.
Band and choir competitions
An oldie but goodie, and perhaps the longest-held tradition of the festival, will be the band competitions that are slated to take place throughout the week and weekend.
Event organizer Mike Nolan noted that a remarkable 55 schools are slated to participate in the competition, and 25 are registered to march in the parade.
Concert bands, orchestras, and jazz ensembles from throughout Colorado are slated to travel to Cañon City for a weekend of musical entertainment. Performances will begin at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday at the Lou Del Pizzo Performing Arts Center at Cañon City High School.
The band competition will stretch from Wednesday to May 2 and will take place at multiple locations throughout Fremont County.
The competitions are free and open to the public.
For a detailed list of performance dates, times, and locations, visit the Blossom Festival website.
Blossom Parade
The centerpiece of any Blossom Festival, the 88th annual Blossom Parade, will take place at 1 p.m. May 2 on Main Street.
This year’s theme, “Stars Over the Rockies,” was chosen to honor the commemorative 250/150 celebration slated to celebrate the United States’ 250th anniversary and Colorado’s 150th anniversary.
This year, a record-setting number of floats, acts, and bands are slated to partake in the parade — 104 to be exact.
Led by this year’s parade marshal, Adam Arnold, the parade, full of bands, floats, and community partners, will proceed down Main Street from west to east. Grow assured anxious attendees that, despite the current construction project on Main, the parade and festivities will go on.
Grow went on to detail that the parade lineup will begin at Third Street and run to 14th Street.
Parade organizers want to remind both community residents and festival first-timers that parking will be strictly off-limits on Main Street beginning at 9 a.m. on the day of the parade. There will be handicapped parking available at the Fremont County Public Health building and the Cañon City Middle School.
RunBlossom
The festival’s premier 5k race, RunBlossom, is slated to begin at 7:45 a.m. May 2. Several waves of runners will run throughout the day. In previous years, more than 800 runners partook in the fun and organizers anticipate this year to be no different.
Register for the race at https://www.joinfar.org/runblossom.html.
Craft Fairs
No Blossom Festival would be complete without the menagerie of local goods available at craft fairs in Cañon City.
The first, affectionately called Blossoms in the Park Craft Fair, will open at 9 a.m. May 2 and 9 a.m. May 3 at Veterans Park. In addition to 130 longtime favorite vendors, there will be a special kids zone that will have a mermaid’s lagoon, Big Ballin’ Entertainment, face painting, and at least one mechanical bull. Several food trucks will be on site to provide a variety of delicious eats for attendees and live music will take place throughout the weekend.
A variety of live entertainment will play throughout the weekend, so swing by with a lawn chair to enjoy the festivities.
Enjoy Yoga in the Park at 11 a.m. May 2 and Sunday Church presented by Catalyst Church at 9 a.m. May 3.
The Daily Record reached out to the Royal Gorge Chamber Alliance, which hosts the second craft fair located at Gateway Depot Plaza, but had not yet received details at the time of this article. For more information, visit the Chamber’s website.
Cluster Duck
After the parade, festival-goers can disperse to the Cluster Duck, the festival’s premier concert that will run from 3:30-11 p.m. May 2 at Centennial Park.
Entry to the event is $7 for adults and $3 for children under 14.
Families are also invited to attend Cluster Duck, as this year will be the first that a Cluster Duck kids zone will be on site. Gotta Bounce CO LLC will bring several bounce houses to the event and provide a fun evening out for families.
Tickets are available at the gates, and both cash and cards will be accepted.
Below is the band lineup:
- Rowdy Brass Band
- 6 Bucks and a Flight
- Breanna Nix
Royal Gorge Rodeo
Last, but certainly not least, the Cañon City Rodeo Association will present the 153rd Royal Gorge Rodeo at 7 p.m. May 2 and May 3 at the rodeo grounds, located at 1595 S. Ninth St. Mutton bustin’ begins at 5 p.m. The rodeo will feature nine rip-roaring events, including wild horse races, extreme bronc riding, barrel racing, and bull riding.
Entry to the event is $15 and there will be food trucks and a mechanical bull throughout both evenings.
For more information, visit https://www.facebook.com/RoyalGorgeRodeo/.
‘ The preceding article may include information circulated by third parties ’
‘ Some details of this article were extracted from the following source www.canoncitydailyrecord.com ’
