The Grand Quilt Trail was established in spring 2017 by the Grand Quilters and Grand County Historical Association (GCHA). In that first year, a team of talented and dedicated volunteers created close to 140 quilt blocks which all became part of the Grand Quilt Trail, stretching from Winter Park to Grand Lake and out to Kremmling. In 2018, the team added more than 130 more to the trail raising more than fifty thousand dollars for GCHA along the way.

Betsy deVries, Grand Quilt Trail visionary and team leader said, “We have had so much fun. This project has been a true community effort” adding that many people contributed time, energy and their artistry. “It was fun piecing together this quilt trail. I am really proud of the work we have done!”

The project started March 14th, 2017 and has created and sold over 280 blocks raising close to $50,000 for the Grand County Historical Association. According to Betsy’s estimates that was about 400 sheets of plywood, close to 100 gallons of paint, in dozens of colors, and, several thousand hours of volunteer time. Her spirits were high when deVries said, “My body is sore and my fingers are raw, but the friendships we have made along the way are priceless!”

This summer, the Winter Park Times wanted to bring awareness to this unique trail of art and we decided to host a ‘seek and find’ challenge highlighting a different square each week. The Quilt Trail Challenge illustrated the community’s awareness of the colorful blocks, as we received several hundred entries over the course of the contest and several contestants submitted a guess almost every week.

For every email we received, we put your name in our fish bowl. On Tuesday, we pulled the winning ticket and congratulations go to Melissa and Mazie Giberson of Tabernash, the winners of the $50 Strip & Tail Gift Card (Thanks to Steve Bromberg).

On behalf of our community, GCHA and the Winter Park Times, thanks also go to Quilt Trail Coordinator, Betsy deVries and her husband Gary, for their tireless efforts, countless hours and special touch put on every single square. Rumor has it that the quilt squares created this summer may be the last the group adds to the trail. There are a couple of squares left, if you want to be a part of the historical trail. To order a quilt square and/or download a Quilt Trail Brochure, visit grandcountyhistory.org.

We encourage you to pick up a copy of the Grand Quilt Trail brochure and embark on your own artful journey of discovery throughout our beautiful county.