I see my fair share of bizarre occurrences in Denver every day. It is a booming, populous metropolitan area, after all. We’ve got movers and shakers, free spirits and fakers, and well, of course we’ve got bakers. Here are some of the weirdest things to happen in Denver to date. Definitely things that make you go, “Hmmmm?”
1. In 2013, the Denver Gorilla Run set a new world record for the largest gathering of people dressed as gorillas, beating their previously world record of 1,061 set in 2009.
Sign up for the 13th Annual Denver Gorilla Run here! The 5k fun run is a fundraiser that benefits the Mountain Gorilla Conservation Fund and will be held on Saturday, October 22, 2016.
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2. Last week Jefferson County Sheriff’s Office deputies responded to a distress call at Chief Hosa Campground, in which a small black bear seemed to have trapped him or herself in a teen’s car, and here’s video to prove it. (Note: If you plan to camp this summer, please be bear-responsible. Check out Colorado Parks and Wildlife for more info.)
3. In 1898, Mount Prospect Cemetery was founded on the site that is now Cheesman Park, and everyone from dignitaries to vagrants and murderers were buried there in subsequent years. While many of the reported 10,000 corpses have since been removed, as many as 2,000 bodies may still be buried beneath those grassy expanses, and the popular park is widely regarded as being heavily haunted by ghosts who are none too happy about the ghastly treatment of their skeletal remains. In 2010 four bodies were discovered and unearthed, and I imagine that's just the tip of the iceberg.
4. These intriguing pink baby doll faces have been popping up all over the metro area since last summer, and I don't know about you, but I find them to be a truly and totally original statement of artistic integrity. But whether you find them to be revolutionary or simply disturbing, one thing's for sure...they're fascinating and mysterious, and I respect them and their guerrilla artist.
5. Not to beat a dead horse, but Denver International's unofficial mascot that was installed at its entrance in 2008, was responsible for killing its own creator Luis Jiménez. What are the odds that a piece of a 32-foot-tall 9,000-pound fiberglass mustang will fall on you and severe an artery? (Apparently Mile High.)
6. The 85-foot tall "Articulated Wall" at the Denver Design Center has been delighting motorists on I-25 since its dedication to the Denver Art Museum in 1985 - the same year its creating artist Herbert Bayer died at the age of 85. Coincidence? I think not.
7. “Man filming hit by lightning” is really all you need to know. Now watch this “shocking” video!
8. In 2014, Colorado made history when the first legal recreational marijuana sales in the world began, and patrons in Denver and all across the state waited in lines for hours, eager to purchase the newly legal substance. Today many companies offer marijuana tours in the Mile High City and beyond, where you can get a glimpse into the record-breaking money-making industry, whose longterm impact remains unknown.
9. On February 1, 1976, Elvis Presley was hanging with a couple of Denverites at his Graceland home in Memphis, TN, when he got to talking about the unforgettable Fool's Gold Loaf sandwich he'd had at the Colorado Mine Company in Denver. Next thing you know, they fired up Presley's private jet, the Lisa Marie and arrived at the Stapleton International Airport at nearly 2am, where the eatery's owners were waiting with 30 Fool's Gold Loaves, Perrier, and champagne. After enjoying their delectably decadent sandwiches, they flew on back to Graceland without ever having left the airport. "Thank you, thank you very much! Elvis has left the building!"
FYI: The Fool's Gold Loaf is made by hollowing out a warm loaf of bread and filling it with a jar of peanut butter, a jar of grape jelly, and one pound of bacon.
10. That time last month when the Colorado Rockies blasted this whiteout photo across social media (which really looks more like a Backstreet Boys video circa 1999), and as a result are now being referred to as the Blakestreet Boys by their ever-adoring fans. Let's hope they want it that way!
11. In the 1980s, one of the Mile High City's most recognizable folk heroes was born, when Rocky Brougham began masquerading as the Broncos' Luck Leprechaun. Rocky has been their good luck charm and walk-on cheerleader ever since and has attended every home game and all six Superbowls.
If you’re into the weird and strange, you’ve got to hear the gruesome story of Alfred Packer, the Colorado Cannibal. This local legend will leave you dumbfounded!
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