Boat town, boom town

58th FIBark Festival helps energized Salida revel in riverfront roots

David O. Williams, Special to the News

Published June 10, 2006 at midnight

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SALIDA - In the 1980s this former railroad, agriculture and mining hub literally was crumbling around the edges, with more than 100 century-old Victorian buildings in varying states of disrepair.

The city's downtown park and riverfront area along the Arkansas River had deteriorated badly during a statewide economic recession, and construction debris and trash littered the banks of one of the state's great rivers.

A major preservation push led to the creation of the state's largest historic district, a move that brought businesses and a burgeoning arts community back into the core commercial area along F Street.

And later a new white-water park - it was one of the first in the state - re-energized the waterfront with a riverwalk, restoration of Riverside Park and one of the best play holes for kayakers anywhere in Colorado.

Now Salida bills itself as the "Boating Capital of the World," and its 58th Blue Paddle FIBark Festival is expected to attract about 25,000 visitors Thursday-June 18.

"This hole is amazing," said Seth Yearout, of Colorado Springs, as he prepared to join six kayakers taking turns playing in a wave right downtown. "It's everything you want it to be and I think because it was one of the first that was built in Colorado, they really did it right."

Yearout, who spends his summer weekends boating in Salida after instructing soldiers at Fort Carson in outdoor recreation during the week, said he loves the small-town vibe of Salida, where the population hovers right around 6,000 in town and just more than 18,000 in all of surrounding Chaffee County.

"It's very community-oriented, so pretty much everyone knows each other, so it's got a different feel than the Front Range and the Denver scene and the play parks that they have there," Yearout said. "The lifeblood of the town is the water source, whereas some of the Front Range towns it's their sewer line. Everybody knows and appreciates what they have here."

FIBark, the state's oldest boating festival, dates to a 1949 bet between two friends over who could canoe the fastest between Salida and Cañon City, about 56 miles through the daunting Royal Gorge.

That downriver race still is part of FIBark, although it has been shortened by more than half, but numerous other events have been added, including a pro kayak rodeo that will attract some of the world's best pro kayakers.

Chad Hixon grew up in Salida and owns his grandfather's old business, Arlie Dale's Jug Liquors on F Street. Hixon, an accomplished kayaker and vice president of the FIBark board, loves all the changes Salida has undergone during its waterfront renaissance because it has made his job promoting FIBark that much easier.

"More and more young people are moving here and trying to make it here, and with more of that happening, the majority of our board are kayakers and have been to other festivals, so there's just much more going on (at FIBark)," Hixon said. "Former board members didn't have anything to do with water. And it's a pretty unique festival experience in that it's totally free."

Live bands, running races, kids' crafts and a carnival are just a few of the things going on to keep nonboaters entertained throughout the weekend. And even the town's older residents appreciate what boating in general and FIBark in particular have done for Salida.

"It brings money to the town," said Jean-Maurice Lacroux, who moved to Colorado in 1965 and retired to a home along the river four years ago. "I think it's an attraction, and even if you're not kayaking, it's nice to see those guys spending their time doing this. It's really survival for this town since mining is gone, the railroad is gone. So it's good you have these kinds of activities here."

According to the Colorado River Outfitter's Association, the Arkansas is the most rafted river in the United States, with 228,091 of the state's overall 504,622 user days last year, so it accounts for nearly half of the record $135 million in revenues that flowed into the state from the rafting industry last season.

Lacroux's wife, Sally, a retired public school art teacher from Denver, Boulder and Jefferson County, loves seeing the boats float by their house during FIBark, but for obvious reasons she's more involved in Salida's growing reputation as one of the best small art towns in the West.

She cites a number of reasons Salida continues to attract artists: "The light is wonderful for those people who like to paint outside and the fact that you have all these beautiful old buildings."

Sally Lacroux said one of the same reasons artists are attracted to the town is a big factor in drawing boaters and anglers.

"It is the banana belt here, and the misconception is that we have snow all around us all winter, which is really not the case. In fact, we have a blue hole. There's snow and cold around us and nothing here."

Which means all the snow from the surrounding 15 peaks exceeding 14,000 feet nearby melts and flows right through Salida's sunny backyard.

Perfect for a play date in a play boat.

Where to watch

If you are going to view the downriver race (begins at 10:45 a.m. June 18), here are a few places from which to watch:

• Between Salida and Bear Creek Rapids

• Bear Creek Rapids

• Flume Rapids

• Red Rocks

• Howard Bridge

• Tin Cup Rapids

• Cottonwood Rapids

• Cottonwood to Cotopaxi