The Edwards Fall Calendar That Runs Out on December 1

Between now and opening day, almost everything on Edwards' calendar happens on one short stretch around Riverwalk. Pumpkinfest is in the Riverwalk Backyard. Fright Fest is on Edwards Village Boulevard. The backcountry ski swap is at 34237 US-6, and the Wild & Scenic Film Festival is at Riverwalk Theater, 34253 US-6. The two highway addresses are 16 numbers apart.

This stretch also has an end date that has nothing to do with snow. On December 1, Eagle County closes parts of two Edwards open spaces for wintering wildlife. That makes November the last full month of the year to walk them. The weeks ahead are best planned as a countdown, not as a slow season.

The whole stretch at a glance

Dates, prices and hours come from each organizer's own listing. Following them in order shows how the season runs. It starts with family afternoons, moves into gear and planning, and finishes with the trails closing.

October 24 starts in the Riverwalk Backyard

Pumpkinfest runs Saturday, October 24, from 10 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. in the Riverwalk Backyard. Pumpkins carry a $5 suggested donation, and the event benefits the Family Learning Center. Riverwalk and Village Market sponsor it. The morning also includes trick-or-treating through Riverwalk, and costumes are optional.

The trick-or-treating is the reason to put this one on the calendar early. It happens a full week before Halloween, in daylight, and it's done by lunch. Households with small children get a costume run that won't compete with the weekend of the 31st. Riverwalk printed the flyer in both English and Spanish this year.

If you missed the summer version of this part of town, our August field guide to Edwards covers how the Backyard and the surrounding blocks work on a typical weekend.

October 29 to 31 moves across to Edwards Village Boulevard

Halloween week moves to 210 Edwards Village Boulevard, Unit C-105, where Edwards Fright Fest is staging its 2026 show, the "Carnevil of Terror." It runs three nights, Thursday, October 29 through Saturday, October 31.

Each night is split by age:

• Youth, 5 to 6:30 p.m.: a new lower-intensity version with trick-or-treat stops along the way.
• Adult, 7 to 10 p.m.: a haunted maze entered alone or with up to five friends. A new group starts every 90 seconds, followed by an outdoor party with food and drink.

The logistics matter more than the theme. Fright Fest takes reservations online and says it has no door sales, so a walk-up on Halloween night won't work. Ticket links run through the Vail Valley Academy of Dance. On-site parking is free and first come, first served, and the organizers encourage carpooling. The youth slot ends at 6:30, so families can fit it in before dinner.

With both events, a family in Edwards can do two separate trick-or-treat outings a week apart without leaving town. One is a Saturday morning at Riverwalk. The other is an early evening at the Village Center.

November 7 is the backcountry swap, and the deadline is Thursday

The Vail Valley's big alpine gear swap is already over. The Vail Annual Ski & Snowboard Swap ran October 2 to 4 at Alpine Hall in the Grand Hyatt Vail, and its proceeds went to Ski & Snowboard Club Vail athletes.

Edwards gets a different kind of swap. On Saturday, November 7, from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m., Cripple Creek Backcountry holds its 14th annual Backcountry Ski Swap & Demo Sale at 34237 US-6. It covers alpine touring, telemark, skimo and splitboarding gear only. Admission is listed as free.

If you're selling, the rules this year are specific:

1. Drop-off runs for one week only and closes at 5 p.m. on Thursday, which is November 5. There's no form to fill out ahead of time this year. You bring the gear in, and staff help price it and set it up in the store.
2. Gear that sells earns 110% in store credit.
3. New this year, you can either pick up unsold gear or send it to the shop's year-round Denver consignment room. Gear sent to Denver earns the standard rate of 70% store credit or 60% cash.
4. The swap won't take alpine skis or boots, frame bindings of any kind, or most 75mm tele gear. It also excludes clothing, accessories such as helmets, gloves and backpacks, single skins not paired with a ski, and avalanche safety equipment.

The 110% credit beats cash for anyone already planning to buy new gear at the same shop. The Denver option is there for gear that doesn't sell on the day. The exclusion list rules out the most common mistake, which is bringing alpine boots that the Vail swap would have taken a month earlier.

November 12 is the Wild & Scenic Film Festival at Riverwalk Theater

Five days later, Riverwalk Theater at 34253 Highway 6 hosts the Eagle River Coalition's 11th Annual Wild & Scenic Film Festival on Thursday, November 12. Doors open at 5 p.m. for a happy hour, a silent auction and a prize drawing, with two showings at 6 and 6:30 p.m.

This year's films look at how wildfire, agriculture and development affect waterways, alongside the work of local groups protecting them. At intermission, the coalition hosts a discussion with community partners about land management and the local watershed. Proceeds from the festival and the auction fund the coalition's education programs, water quality monitoring and restoration projects throughout the year. In-person tickets, virtual tickets and packages are available through the Eagle River Coalition.

The timing has a local point. The festival is about the river that runs past Riverwalk, and it lands less than three weeks before part of the riverside open space closes for winter.

Anyone who wants a ski film before then can catch one up-valley. Teton Gravity Research's Actually, It Is Rocket Science plays the Vilar Performing Arts Center on Thursday, October 8, at 7 p.m., with lobby doors at 6 p.m.

November 13 to 26: the lifts open and the calendar moves elsewhere

The day after Wild & Scenic, the focus leaves Edwards. Vail Resorts lists Vail Mountain's planned 2026/27 opening as November 13 and Beaver Creek's as November 25, both subject to weather and conditions. Wild & Scenic is the last scheduled event of the fall on Edwards' own calendar before Vail opens.

Thanksgiving morning takes place one town over. Avon's Thanksgiving Day Turkey Trot runs November 26 at Harry A. Nottingham Park. Registration opens at 8 a.m., and the 3K starts at 9:30 a.m. The course starts and finishes on Lake Street in front of the Avon Recreation Center. The race isn't timed, and strollers and leashed dogs are welcome. Registration is $20 in advance or $25 on race day. Children 5 and under run free, and part of the proceeds goes to YouthPower.

December 1 closes the trails, so November is the window

The deadline in the title comes from Eagle County. Every year from December 1 to April 15, the county closes the western part of Eagle River Preserve in Edwards and the southern part of Homestead L Open Space to protect wintering wildlife. Eagle River Preserve sits at about mile marker 165.5 on US Highway 6. The county's property page also says its lower parking lot is open from April 15 to December 1, or as conditions allow. The county also says the dates can shift with weather and animal behavior. The schedule is annual, so check the Eagle County open space page before planning a late-November outing.

Nearby trails follow the same calendar. The Vail Valley Mountain Trail Alliance lists December 1 to April 15 closures for the Ute, Dakota and Apache trails in the Beaver Creek and Arrowhead area.

This is what ties the season together. For about five weeks, the community calendar and the open space are both available, and almost everything happens within a short distance of the river. The lifts open in mid-November. The west side of the Preserve closes for the winter 18 days after Vail's planned opening, and part of Homestead L closes the same day. Walks, dog outings and pre-season hikes on those sections have to happen in November.

At Michael Ayre Real Estate, we follow Edwards' calendar year-round, from the Riverwalk Backyard to the trailheads that close each December. If you'd like to talk about how the seasons work in your part of the valley, we'd be glad to schedule a personalized consultation.