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Hi, NOCO Crew! There’s a special energy in the air this week, I think it’s called … rain! It’s finally cooling off a bit and just in time for some epic events.

Comic Con is back, and it’s bringing some local magic with it. Only in Northern Colorado do you see a symphony share the schedule with a NASA astronaut and a legendary puppeteer. What?!?

For those who wrote us last week, thank you for your input. We will keep organizing events by theme and then day instead of just a long list under each day. I loved hearing from so many of you (replies coming soon!), so please keep sharing what you think.

We hope you’ll find something in this edition that brings a little spark to your week, whether you’re into costumes, concerts, or curling up with a new book.

Grab a coffee, and let's dig in!

– Megan

Every contribution keeps us out in the field, digging into local history, and showing up for the towns we cover. We're grateful for every bit of support. Thanks for being part of this.

— Megan & David

👉 MAKE A CONTRIBUTION

From Berthoud to the Wyoming state line, Fort Morgan to Estes, each week we pull together a list of the top events happening all over Northern Colorado. If you'd like to add an event to upcoming issues, hit reply and let us know.

August 14 – 19, 2026

The Big One

Fort Collins Comic Con

Fort Collins Senior Center — Friday noon to 9pm, Saturday 9am to 8pm, Sunday 9am to 6pm

Three days, 150-plus creators, and something north of 75 panels, all of it at the Senior Center on Drake. Twenty-five dollars gets you in.

The guest list surprised me. John Ratzenberger, who has been in essentially every Pixar film ever made. Misty Rosas from The Mandalorian. Dave Barclay, who puppeteered Yoda. Then it swerves: Kjell Lindgren, an astronaut. Michael Wong, an astrobiologist. Melody Starya Mobley, the first Black woman to work as a forester for the U.S. Forest Service. That mix of pop culture and working scientists makes this con feel like it grew up here rather than being franchised in.

It's also a fundraiser, and has been since 2015. More than $155,000 raised so far for youth literacy and mental health programming, with partners including the Poudre Libraries, the Fort Collins Symphony, the Fort Collins Autism Resource Fair, and the Alliance for Suicide Prevention. A portion of every badge goes to the Alliance.

Worth planning around: Geek Lightning Talks run Friday 6 to 9pm, the Symphony plays Saturday at 11:35am, and more than 75 panels are spread across the three days. Volunteers get in free.

👉 Get your badge

📚
A GOOD WEEK FOR BOOKS

Two Bookstore Romance Days, five book clubs, and a poetry release. This is the cluster of the week.

Saturday 15th

  • Bookstore Romance Day @ Old Firehouse Books (Fort Collins) — 7–9pm — Raffles and 20% off the romance shelves, on the one day a year the genre gets its own holiday. 👉 Judge it by its cover

  • Bookstore Romance Day @ Cherry on Top Bookshop (Fort Collins) — 10am — Same holiday, second shop, different end of town. 👉 Make it a double

Sunday 16th

  • Book Release Party: Bone Stacked Oak with Ally Eden @ Wolverine Farm Publick House (Fort Collins) — 6–8pm — A poetry collection out in the world for the first time. 👉 Be there for page one

  • Bindings & Brews Book Club: The Women, Part One @ Loveland Aleworks (Loveland) — 5pm — They're splitting Kristin Hannah's novel across two meetings, so this is the half where nobody knows how it ends yet. 👉 Discuss the first half

Monday 17th

  • Storytime @ Cherry on Top Bookshop (Fort Collins) — 10am 👉 Read to the little ones

  • Little Fairy Tales Storytime @ Grimm Brothers Brewhouse (Loveland) — 10am — Fairy tales at the brewery named for the people who wrote them down. 👉 Once upon a taproom

Tuesday 18th

  • Queer & Loathing Book Club @ Old Firehouse Books (Fort Collins) — 6–7pm 👉 Bring your annotations

  • Queerly Beloved Book Club @ Cherry on Top Bookshop (Fort Collins) — 5:30pm — Listed as near capacity, so don't wander in cold. 👉 Grab the last chair

Wednesday 19th

  • Flick the Pages Book Club @ Old Firehouse Books (Fort Collins) — 6–7pm — Book club for people who want to argue about the movie too. 👉 Read it before you watch it

  • Banned & Brews Book Club: Dangerous, Dirty, Violent, and Young @ Loveland Aleworks (Loveland) — 5pm — Working through the books somebody tried to pull off a shelf. (BOOO to them) 👉 Read the forbidden ones

  • Baby & Toddler Storytime @ Loveland Public Library (Loveland) — 10:15am 👉 Start them early

  • Preschool Storytime @ Loveland Public Library (Loveland) — 11am 👉 Sit on the rug

🥾
OUTSIDE

A bird walk, a sunset walk, a plant walk, and the cabin.

Friday 14th

  • History of Viestenz-Smith Mountain Park Guided Tour @ Viestenz-Smith Mountain Park (Loveland) — 10–11:15am — The canyon park has been rebuilt more than once. This is the walk that explains why. 👉 Hear what the water did

  • Nature Cabin Open @ Viestenz-Smith Mountain Park (Loveland) — 10am–2pm — The little canyon cabin, staffed and open. 👉 Stop in on the way up

Saturday 15th

  • Guided Bird Walk @ Wild Natural Area (Loveland) — 7–9am — Early, because that's when the birds are up. 👉 Bring the binoculars

Sunday 16th

  • Herbal Allies: Medicinal Plant Walk with Brita LaTona @ Golden Poppy Herbal Apothecary (Fort Collins) — 10–11:30am — $30. Learn which of the plants you walk past every day are actually good for something. 👉 Learn what's underfoot

  • Nature Cabin Open @ Viestenz-Smith Mountain Park (Loveland) — 10am–2pm 👉 Stop in on the way up

Monday 17th

Tuesday 18th

Wednesday 19th

  • Summer in a Coniferous Forest: Sunset Guided Walk @ Round Mountain Trail (Loveland) — 6:15–7:45pm — Timed so you're in the trees as the light goes. 👉 Walk into the golden hour

  • Nature Cabin Open @ Viestenz-Smith Mountain Park (Loveland) — 10am–2pm 👉 Stop in on the way up

✋
MADE BY HAND

Saturday 15th

  • Sourdough Workshop @ Loveland Aleworks (Loveland) — 1pm — Learn the starter, take it home, feed it forever. 👉 Adopt a starter

Sunday 16th

  • Bonsai Bar @ Loveland Aleworks (Loveland) — 1pm — Prune a very small tree, drink a full-size beer. 👉 Shape a little tree

  • Sunshine Craft Social @ Stodgy Brewing (Fort Collins) — 1–2pm — $20 per project. 👉 Make a thing

  • Workshop: Collaging for Religious Trauma Deconstruction @ MeadKrieger Meadery (Loveland) — 12:30–2:30pm — Scissors, glue, and something heavier underneath. 👉 Cut it into something new

Monday 17th

  • Dead Pen Drawing Club @ Wolverine Farm Publick House (Fort Collins) — 6–9pm — Bring your own sketchbook. 👉 Bring your own pen

Wednesday 19th

  • Bonsai Bar @ Gilded Goat Brewing, Old Town (Fort Collins) — 6:30–8:30pm 👉 Shape a little tree

  • Tipsy Terrariums @ High Hops Brewery (Windsor) — 10:30am — Build a tiny glass world at a brewery attached to a greenhouse. 👉 Plant it under glass

✍️
WRITE IT DOWN

Tuesday 18th

  • Gulo Gulo Poetry Open Mic and Workshop @ Wolverine Farm Publick House (Fort Collins) — workshop 4pm, open mic 6pm — The workshop is free, and it runs before the mic so you can fix the poem first. 👉 Workshop it, then say it

  • Shut Up & Write! @ Stodgy Brewing (Fort Collins) — 6:30–8pm 👉 Actually finish that draft

Wednesday 19th

  • Creative Writing Group @ The Lyric, hosted by Old Firehouse Books (Fort Collins) — 6–7:30pm — Held at the Lyric on North College, not at the bookshop. 👉 Write with company

  • Sober Poet Society @ The Love Shack – Craft Mocktails (Loveland) — 6–8pm — Monthly writing series at the sober bar. 👉 Write it clear-headed

🎲
CARDS, DICE & PINS

Fort Collins Backgammon Monthly @ Scrumpy's Hard Cider Bar and Pub (Fort Collins)
Sun 11:45am to 2:45pm

A real league, not a casual board-game night. Ten dollars gets you in, 100% of entry fees go back into the prize pool, and points accumulate all year toward a free entry into the Denver tournament. Show up by 11:50 so registration clears and play starts at noon. Beginners are genuinely welcome, and there's free parking in the LaPorte Ave garage on Sundays. 👉 Take the doubling cube

🎬
STAGE & SCREEN

Friday 14th

Saturday 15th

  • High Country Dance Summer Showcase @ The Rialto Theater (Loveland) — 1pm matinee and 6pm evening — Two showings, so there's no excuse. 👉 Pick your showtime

Wednesday 19th

  • Wild Card Wednesdays @ The Lyric (Fort Collins) — 9pm — A free surprise film. You find out when it starts. 👉 Go in blind

🙏
QUIET HOURS

  • Heart Jewel Prayers @ Heruka Kadampa Meditation Center (Fort Collins) — Sun 9–9:45am — Monthly prayer service, no experience needed. 👉 Sit still awhile

  • Rigging and Knots for Trout @ St. Peter's Fly Shop (Fort Collins) — Sun, — The unglamorous part of fly fishing, which is most of it. (JK, this is the fun part imo) 👉 Tie it right the first time

  • Sunday Fun-Day: David Sendros @ Snowy Peaks Winery (Estes Park) — Sun 2–5pm — 👉 Find out when you get there

🎸
LIVE MUSIC

Friday 14th

Saturday 15th

Sunday 16th

Monday 17th

Tuesday 18th

Wednesday 19th

SUBMIT AN EVENT

Running something, or know somebody who is? Hit reply. We're especially short on Greeley this week, the smaller Weld towns, and anything east of Highway 85. If it's happening out there, we want it in here.

That’s it for this one! Stay Curious, NOCO!

See you next week!

✌️

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