Multiple Colorado newspapers are reporting on the possibility of the Rainbow Family, which bills itself as “a loose-knit group without leadership or organization who gather on national forests to discuss political and environmental issues, pray for world peace and celebrate life,” holding its annual gathering in Grand County this summer.

The Sky-Hi News spoke with representatives from the Grand County Sheriff’s office, the Grand County Commissioners and a local fire agency, and were told that, as the Family doesn’t choose its summer site until a council later in the spring, “it is too early to know with any certainty” where it will be held.

The sheriff’s office added that it “is engaged in preliminary discussions with the United States Forest Service, as the event would most likely be on public lands. Our local, state and federal partners will be prepared should the event materialize and we will strive to minimize the local impacts it could bring to our community.”

One Sky-Hi reporter attended the 2006 Rainbow Gathering in Routt County and, with on-the-ground experience, has insights into how these events unfold. We will draw on these insights as we continue reporting on this developing story. In the meantime, we will report on facts in an effort to avoid spreading potentially undue stress in the Grand County community.

The US Forest Service is the lead agency in this matter, as these events have historically taken place in its jurisdiction.

In early March, the Forest Service released a statement saying that should the event take place, “We will bring in a significant number of additional resources to assist with this event…. As the Grand County community continues to recover from the devastating 2020 wildfires and the impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic, the advantage that we have is knowing about this potential event. This gives us ample time to work together to plan and prepare for it.”