Get Weird at Crested Butte's Vinotok Festival

Crested Butte is one interesting place to be during the week of Vinotok. This festival happens each year on the autumnal equinox and celebrates the fall harvest. Think of this event as a combination of burning man and New Years eve- it's a celebration that ends in the burning of a large, scare-crow like figure called the Grump and allows people to wipe clean their complaints from the last year and start anew.For weeks leading up to the event, locals write down things they are grumpy about and place them into boxes around town. During the week of the festival, events celebrating storytelling, music and poetry, are held each night to prepare for the autumnal equinox. On the night of the equinox, everyone dons crowns of flowers and crowds onto Main Street for the trial of the Grump. The Grump is found guilty and is marched down to a 30-ft pile of wood and the boxes filled with everyones grumps, which he is placed on top of and kindly lit on fire.Following this, many of the college-age kids head out to a few of the campgrounds in the area and continue the partying, while families head back to condos/houses for a quieter night. It truly is an experience that will leave you laughing and possibly scratching your head in confusion, but overall makes for one hell of a weekend.