Happy Wednesday, Scouts. Welcome to Edition XIII of Scout & Tell.
Shoutout to you this week, the readers of this newsletter. When I started this a couple months back, I wasn’t sure the type of respond it would get. Overwhelmingly, people have been supportive, giving suggestions, opinions and the feedback has been extremely helpful.
I will always ask, if you have an interesting story to share, don’t hesitate to reach out. I’m always up for it. This newsletter isn’t stone, but will continue to evolve as time lapses. Sections will change and new ideas will emerge. And the content will get better. That’s the goal, at least.
We’ve got Halloween coming this Saturday, so in honor of this hallowed tradition, let’s gather around the campfire and read some spooky experiences and places to visit in northern Colorado.
We will see you out there,
Matt McConkey
Editor
Talk of the Town
Bingham Hill Cemetery, Fort Collins, CO
***This photo was taken during the day and has been edited for the purposes of looking scary for Halloween.
We Asked Northern Colorado Where the Creepiest Spots are Located. You Answered.
A week ago, I logged on to Reddit and asked the Loveland and Fort Collins subreddits the burning question everyone has this time of year:
Where are the haunted places around northern Colorado???
The answers are not disappointing. Some are obvious, while some might be new to you.
The Farmhouse at Jessup Farm
A former employee of The Farmhouse at Jessup Farm says they would clean the upstairs windows at closing, then return half an hour before opening to find children’s handprints on the glass.
“I didn’t believe in ghosts till working there,” said the user.
Decorative objects, including a book, got flung down the stairs with no one at the top, they added, and coworkers had odd experiences too. We haven’t confirmed the account with the restaurant. It’s still the best ghost story anyone sent us.
No Shocker Here, A Cemetery
Bingham Hill Cemetery got a couple of mentions. No shocker here. A cemetery dating back to 1862 has reported having ghost and orb sightning.
Oh my landa I couldn't imagine!
The cemetery is located between Fort Collins and LaPorte, right off Overland Trail and less than a quarter mile west on Bingham Hill Road.
I went out there on Tuesday. It's a sight to see. There are a couple of parking spots and easy access to walk up and to the cemetery. The cemetery is tucked back behind property and has many headstones.
The first burial was 1862, making it the oldest cemetery in Larimer county. There are an estimated 130 graves, but possibly 300+ unmarked.
Take an hour, head out and pay your respects, but only go during daytime hours! It's strictly off limits at night!
Old Town Fort Collins Hotel
The Armstrong Hotel came up for its alleged sightings. The hotel opened in 1923 as one of the tallest buildings in town, declined from the 1970s, closed in 2000 and reopened in 2004. One anonymous online guest review describes footsteps, shadows and a lamp that switched itself on. Treat that as rumor.
Legend, checked
“The Hell Tree,” answered one user. And that's all we got.
The legend says a goat farmer hanged his workers from a cottonwood. Then, he got a taste of his own medicine when they handed him from the same tree.
A 2009 post on the blog (Old) Lost Fort Collins found the story on a supernatural website. The CSU student paper had repeated it the year before.
There were disagreements on where the tree is located, with some saying Horsetooth Road, others saying North Overland Trail.
This one remains a mystery.
The One Everyone Knows
The Stanley Hotel in Estes Park anchors every Northern Colorado ghost list, with the second floor having some supernatural events, according to one commenter.
According to legend, head housekeeper Elizabeth Wilson was lighting lanterns during a storm in June 1911 when a gas leak exploded in the room. She survived, went back to work and lived into her 90s.
Room 217 is also where Stephen King and his wife spent a night in fall 1974, the only paying guests, before he wrote The Shining. The story goes he had a nightmare about his son running through the hallway corridors and boom, the famous scene from the Shining was born.
The hotel’s after-dark ghost tour runs 60 minutes, costs $30 and caps at 20 people.
If You Want a Guide
Put on your walking shoes and get ready to experience Old Town Fort Collins like never before.
Fort Collins Tours founder Lori Juszak added ghost tours in 2011 after Old Town business owners kept telling her their buildings were haunted. The Ghost Tour is an evening walk in and under Old Town, for ages 12 and up.
The Haunted Pub Tour runs about 90 minutes and is 21 and up. Book at fortcollinstours.com.
Now You
Got a spot we missed? Reply to this email with the place, the story and whether we can use your name. We’ll chase down the best ones. And yes, bring the receipts.
THE WEEKLY SCOUT
Stories Worth Reading, Trails Worth Following
🏐 Moby Arena Is Hosting the Whole League
CSU volleyball is a perfect 9-0 in its first Pac-12 season, and Saturday’s sweep of Boise State clinched hosting the conference tournament (semis Nov. 24, final Nov. 25). The Rams also average 3,359 fans a game, 14th in Division I and tops in the Pac-12.
🦌 Moose Gives Hammock Life a Hard Pass
Rocky Mountain National Park is asking visitors and neighbors to stash hammocks, clotheslines and the like after a moose got tangled in hammock fabric and rope and a bull elk got caught in metal wire. Rangers found and helped both animals, and the park says the fall rut is peak risk season.
ON THE TRAIL
🟥 Red Mountain Open Space is 15,000 acres of red rock and sandy wash 25 miles north of town. Fifteen miles of trail, no dogs, closed December 1 to March 1. more here
🛹 Eastman Park in Windsor is 25 acres with a pavilion, restrooms, fishing pond and skate park, right on the Poudre Trail. Good base camp for a lazy afternoon. more here
HOME OF THE WEEK
Photos courtesy of listing photos on RedFin
Mountains to the west, water to the eas and 11,435 square feet in between. This 3.56-acre Berthoud estate has a Thermador chef's kitchen, two primary suites on the main level and room for the whole extended family. And it just sold two days ago, so enjoy those pics, because this one is off the market.
TLDR: 7 bed / 7.5 bath, 11,435 sqft, 3.56 acres, built 2006, $2,999,900. Contact: Kathleen Winegardner, Kearney Realty, (303) 440-6464$449,900. Contact: Christina Mueske, milehimodern - Boulder, (970) 999-4239
This newsletter is built on your tips, pets and porches. We'd love to hear from you:
🐾 Submit your pet for Scout & Tail
🏡 Nominate a home with a story
🏪 Recommend a local business
📝 Suggest a story we should chase
📅 Submit an event
Drop us an email: [email protected]
SCOUT & TAIL
Photo courtesy of NoCo Humane
Eclair, Age 3 Months - Domestic Shorthair
Meet Eclair! At just 2.2 pounds, this three-month-old kitten is still finding her courage, coming into her new home a bit of a wallflower who's fearful around new people. Give her a quiet space, soft voices, and plenty of patience, and shelter staff expect her to come out of her shell in no time.
Eclair is available for adoption at the Greeley Adoption Campus, with a $200 adoption fee. Find out more about this good girl at the NoCo Humane website.
Shawty, We in the Club
Photo courtesy of A Little Help
Rake It Till You Make It
Somewhere in Windsor right now, a pile of leaves the size of a Buick is feeling very confident. The homeowner is 80, the gutters are two stories up and A Little Help would like a word.
The Colorado nonprofit has been serving older adults since 2005, and every fall it rounds up volunteers for Service Saturday. Crews show up at neighbors’ homes to rake, pull weeds, trim bushes, wash windows and get the yard ready for winter. It’s about three hours of work. Check-in is around 9 a.m. with coffee and donuts, tools are provided, and there’s a free drink at the celebration afterward.
Bring the family, your rec league team, your scout troop or your coworkers, or come solo and they’ll place you with a group. Groups top out at six people, and you can claim up to two homes, so pre-register early. Berthoud, Loveland, Johnstown and Milliken head out Saturday, Nov. 7. Fort Collins and Windsor follow Saturday, Nov. 14. Pick your date and grab a rake here.
Contact: alittlehelp.org/service-saturdays | Northern Colorado office: 970-412-9396
What’s Happening
Thursday
🖼️ Old Town Library Art Gallery: Artists at Larimer County Jail @ Old Town Library - Thu-Sat (through Oct 31) - Art by people who are or have been incarcerated at the Larimer County Jail, on view on the second floor during library hours. Details here
🔔 Thursday Mind Body Reset Gong Journey @ Rocky Mountain Restore & Stretch - Thu 6:15pm - A weekly gong-only session featuring Iris, billed as the largest sacred healing gong in Colorado, from $43.45. Details here
💘 Speed Dating @ Odell Brewing Co. - Thu evening - Hosted by Randie for ages 21-40, with two pints included, $33.85. Details here
🎷 Midnite Cruiser: A Tribute to Steely Dan @ Salt Road Brewing - Thu 7-9pm - The tribute band’s inaugural show, mixing jazz and rock with tight vocal harmonies. Details here
🧟 Halloween Pops Concert: Frankenstein @ The Lincoln Center - Thu 7pm - The 1931 classic on the big screen with a live score by Michael Shapiro, with costumes encouraged and Fort Collins Comic Con fans in the crowd, $33-$51 and $10 for students and kids. Details here
🎤 Prince Daddy & The Hyena @ Sound Bar - Thu, doors 7pm - With Combat and Walter Etc., from $30.31. Details here
🎸 Melvin Seals & JGB @ Aggie Theatre - Thu 8pm - Presented by Odell Brewing Co. and KRFC 88.9 FM, from $60.76. Details here
Friday
🥬 Fermenting Vegetables @ Larimer County Extension Office - Fri 12:30-3:30pm - Learn the science and history of fermentation and how to prepare and store sauerkraut safely; register by Wed Oct 28. Details here
🎃 Trunk or Treat @ Playcrafter Kids & Foothills Unitarian Church - Fri 3:30-5pm - Costumed trunk-or-treating for all ages, hosted with The Canopy Collective, free. Details here
👻 ’80s Haunted Halloween @ Backyard Tap, Loveland - Fri 6-10pm - An outdoor party under tents and heaters with Hairaiser, Saving Ferris, FrankenRyan, and Elvira, plus a costume contest and games, $10 in advance and $15 at the door. Details here
🌿 she’s green @ Sound Bar - Fri, doors 6pm, music 7pm - The Minneapolis band that calls its sound “moss music” plays with witches exist and Starling, from $20.37. Details here
🎺 Skaloween Party @ Island Grill - Fri 7pm - Two ska bands, Coloradix and The Opalites, plus a costume contest and prizes. Details here
🎶 Ansel and the Brain Tattoos @ Salt Road Brewing - Fri 7pm - Dancing shoes, a food truck, beer, and jams. Details here
🍻 The Fright Crawl (location TBA) - Fri 7:30pm-2am - One wristband gets you into 4+ bars with drink specials, prizes, and no cover; 21+, from $17.79. Details here
🦖 Dinosaur Jr. @ Washington’s - Fri 8pm (doors 7pm) - All ages, with special guest Stef Chura, $44.04. Details here
🤠 Chaparelle @ Aggie Theatre - Fri 8pm - With Shovelin Stone, from $36.55. Details here
🔥 Inferno @ Sound Bar - Fri, doors 10:30pm - The 3rd annual 18+ rave from MBM Rave and Bass Control, running until 1:30am, from $10.08. Details here
Saturday
⚽ CSU Soccer vs. Washington State @ CSU Soccer Field - Sat noon - The Rams host Washington State in a game billed as “Kick or Treat.” Details here
🎲 Crit or Creep with NOCO Tabletop @ Foxfire Games - Sat 1-5pm - A spooky afternoon of tabletop role-playing horror, with creepy one-shot adventures led by local game masters. Details here
🏺 Dirty Date Night: Adult Wheel-Throwing Class @ Flingin Pots Basement Studio - Sat 5-6:30pm - A beginner-friendly class for ages 18+ where each student makes two pieces, glazes and firings included, $92.55 for two. Details here
🧙 Witch Bitch Fest @ Sound Bar - Sat, doors 6pm - A Halloween mini festival with live music, drag performances, a costume contest, and vendors, hosted by Yungraccoon, from $24.75. Details here
🦇 6th Annual Local FoCo Boo Crawl @ The Exchange - Sat 7pm-1am - Old Town Putt’s crawl hits 10 local venues with a costume contest and drink specials; check in at The Exchange, 21+, from $7.18. Details here
🎧 Digable Planets @ Aggie Theatre - Sat 8pm - The Blowout Comb 30th anniversary tour with DVNEHPPY and Thin Air Crew, from $60.76. Details here
Sunday
🧘 The Capacity Reset @ The BIPOC Alliance Space - Sun 10-11am - A free reset with Whole Being Coach Kris Mon to start the week more grounded. Details here
🥕 Fort Collins Farmers Market @ Harmony Rd. & Lemay Ave. - Sun 10am-2pm - The Sunday market in the Ace Hardware parking lot runs through Nov 8. Details here
🧶 Hand Knitting Chunky Blankets @ Our Town Market, Loveland - Sun 11:30am-1:30pm - A workshop to make an oversized chunky-yarn throw blanket, $65.87. Details here
✍️ Anti-MFA: A Writing Workshop for the Rest of Us @ Wolverine Farm Publick House - Sun 1-4pm - A monthly writing workshop with Jake Friedman. Details here
💀 Muertos Crawl 2026 Fundraiser @ Old Town Square - Sun 1-4pm - Alianza NORCO’s 3rd annual Día de los Muertos crawl with tastings, altars, bites, and raffles, $20-$35. Details here
🎉 The Neighbor 2-Year Anniversary @ The Neighbor - Sun 3-5pm - A party with special guests Tumbledown Shack, plus food and drink specials and merch all day, 9am-5pm. Details here
🧚 Faetooth, Feverishh, Fainting Dreams @ Sound Bar - Sun, doors 7pm - The Los Angeles “fairy doom” band Faetooth plays with Feverishh and Fainting Dreams, from $24.75. Details here
🍲 Community Potluck @ Horse & Dragon Brewing Company - Sun (time TBD) - A two-hour first-of-the-month potluck; bring a dish to share if you can. Details here
