College is billed as a "teaching rendezvous", lots of demonstrations on flint knapping, finger weaving, tuning your flintlock, etc. There are lots and lots of traders so it is a good place to shop. It is not what I'd call a "fun rendezvous", no canons going off all day, no drunks whooping it up at 3:00 AM, lots of rules. It is in a beautiful area. If it's still at the "Lost Park" site, that is spectacular. About 9000 feet elevation, aspen fringed meadows, rolling hills and dells, tall grass, just looks like a rendezvous belongs there. The weather changes radically and quickly. You may be sweating in the sun when a cloud blows right through camp with rain and hail, the temp drops thirty degrees and fifteen minutes later the sun is back and the ground is steaming. Be prepared for anything from thirty to one hundred degrees. Bugs are generally not bad but bring insect repellent just in case and for sure bring sunblock, high altitude UV can surprise you.
There are two small "fun rendezvous" in the same area, "Bayou Salado" last weekend of July, and "Como" last weekend of August. First weekend of August is the Crested Butte Rendezvous which has long been my favorite. Beautiful site also and great prizes for shooting, knife & hawk, bow and such. You can win a weekend at a ski lodge, dinner for two at a fine Crested Butte restaurant, gift certificates at local businesses, etc.
Hope you can do them all, I intend to but I'm a "local", give or take a hundred miles.
