The snow was just the thing to get holiday shoppers at Telluride’s Noel Night into the spirit this week, and it came down in thick and glorious flakes, holding aloft the amber glow of the street-lamps and shop windows along Colorado Av.  

In a long-running annual tradition, retailers stay open late on the first Wednesday of December serving up the best deals of the holiday season. Early in the evening, owner of Jagged Edge Erik Dalton says shoppers can find deep discounts either by picking a number out of a boot or turning out some pull-ups on the store’s pull up bar. 

“Yep, you can get there by pulling out of a boot or two percent [off] per pull-up if you’re feeling frisky. It’ll get real crazy here probably from 5:30 on, but we’ll stay open till people stop shopping tonight,” says Dalton. 

 Walking out of Jagged Edge, Telluride resident Kathy Green carries a prized new purchase. 

I found a great deal in here, I got 25% off! I was getting new binoculars so it was really a good deal, I’m very feeling lucky,” shares Green.

Green says it wasn’t the pull-ups that got her the goods, but drawing a lucky number, with some credit to her late husband Chuck Kroger. 

“No, I flunked pull-ups in the Second Grade — I'm not sure I’ve ever done one. I was just lucky in my draw. But maybe Chuck was helping me with pull-ups up in the sky, who knows, he could do a lot,” Green says.

Meanwhile, Juniors at the Telluride High School Zofia and Pippa say their best shopping advice is to not think too hard or long. 

“[Buy on] impulse! Impulse for sure. Just go in and buy what you can because you’re not gonna buy it later,” they say. 

With the holidays ahead and the ski area open, town is slowly emerging from the quiet of the Fall shoulder season. As the night goes on, the streets begin to fill with shoppers. Mollie Theis says this Noel Night is her first. 

“It's so good to be here, and see all of your friends out on the streets. I’ve also never been to a vast majority of these stores, and it's cool to check them out,” says Theis. “Yeah, I’m in a new place with new people, a new sense of home and family, and it feels really good!”

Kathy Green, reflecting on what makes this year unique, says she feels the world emerging from the pandemic.  

“Well, we’re out and about a little more and hopefully we're not going to have a rude surprise in three weeks,” says Green. “I'm very hopeful that we’ve turned the corner on COVID — we’ll always live with it, always need to be careful with it, but maybe it's not going to devastate us anymore, so I’m hopeful about that.” 

Tyra Lindel, in town from North Carolina visiting her son, says this holiday season is, for her, full of hope. 

“I think, in light of the history of the last three years, I think we’ve made it simpler and more meaningful with more love, kindness, and giving to those who need it. And that’s what I’m hopeful for” Lindel says. 

In Elks Park a small crowd takes a rest from shopping and gathers to see the lighting of Telluride’s Ski Tree. In the blue darkness, thick with drifting snow, the tree is lit and the holiday season begins. 

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