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And the West is History: Crystal Barbershop Durango – ca. 1920

Four Corners AI Conference to be held

The inaugural Four Corners AI Conference will take place from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. Dec. 6 at Fort Lewis College, 1000 Rim Drive. The event is free and includes a variety of speakers to accommo...

DATE: Nov 22, 2024 | CATEGORY: Community

Free solar training offered to 2024 high school graduates

Solar Energy International, an industry leader in solar energy education and training, in partnership with Opportunity Next Colorado, is offering scholarships to 2024 high school graduates (...

DATE: Nov 22, 2024 | CATEGORY: Community

La Plata County Lodging Tax Panel seeks board members

La Plata County is seeking volunteers to serve on the Lodging Tax Panel. The board administers the tourism fund to advertise and market tourism in La Plata County and provides an audited acc...

DATE: Nov 22, 2024 | CATEGORY: Community

Snowdown Follies to hold auditions

The Snowdown Follies will hold cast auditions at 6 p.m. Dec. 4 in the Banquet Room at the Doubletree Hotel, 501 Camino del Rio. Plan to arrive at 5:30 p.m. to get paperwork filled out and to...

DATE: Nov 22, 2024 | CATEGORY: Community

Senior Center Calendar

Durango/La Plata Senior Center 2424 Main Ave., 382-6445 Monday 9:30 a.m.: Intermediate Tai-Chi. 10:30 a.m.: Neo Delphi Meeting, Watch Your Step – Marvel, Chair Yoga. 12:30 p.m...

DATE: Nov 22, 2024 | CATEGORY: Community

Bridge scores

Durango Bridge Club online and in-person play. All pairs received 50+ percent Nov. 15 – Open Pairs First: S. Caplan/E. Dorminy Second: W. Caplan/D. Squires Third: J. Wa...

DATE: Nov 22, 2024 | CATEGORY: Community

Baptism in speaking water

Horseback Riding Through Chosecani, Peru

DATE: Nov 15, 2024 | CATEGORY: Travel

Summit United Methodist Bazaar turns 50

Summit United Methodist Harvest Bazaar will celebrate its 50th year this year, with its holiday bazaar, which will be held from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. Nov. 23 at 2710 Aspen Drive. The Bazaar has g...

DATE: Nov 15, 2024 | CATEGORY: Community

Living with Wildfire Committee seeks volunteers

La Plata County is seeking volunteers to serve on the Wildfire Advisory Board. The board makes recommendations to the Board of County Commissioners concerning wildfire planning matters and d...

DATE: Nov 15, 2024 | CATEGORY: Community

Building community with constructive conversation

Worried politics might ruin holiday dinner? There is a better way! Come have dinner and learn some political psychology strategies for managing difficult conversations in this postelection p...

DATE: Nov 15, 2024 | CATEGORY: Community

Pine River Library holds public hearing on draft 2025 budget

A proposed budget has been submitted to the Pine River Library board of trustees for the ensuing year of 2025. The board will hold a hearing about the budget at 5:30 p.m. Wednesday in the li...

DATE: Nov 15, 2024 | CATEGORY: Community

Photos: Durango High School footballDHS football takes a loss in the second round of playoffs

DHS football takes a loss in the second round of playoffs

Photos: Veterans Day Parade on Main Avenue in Durango

Photos: Fort Lewis College football defeats NM HighlandsFLC wins its last home game of the season against New Mexico Highlands on Saturday at FLC

FLC wins its last home game of the season against New Mexico Highlands on Saturday at FLC

Final phases of project underway at Camino del Rio and Main Avenue

Photos: Marching for women’s rightsDurango Women’s March on Saturday starts at Buckley Park, continues down Main Avenue

Durango Women’s March on Saturday starts at Buckley Park, continues down Main Avenue

Photos: Durango High School football DHS beat Vista Ridge 20-14 at home Friday night

DHS beat Vista Ridge 20-14 at home Friday night

Gallery: Animals, super heroes and other creatures take over Main Avenue

Photos: A fun and spooky day at school

Haunted house northeast of Durango gets bigger every yearCody Petersen’s Halloween hobby is his escape from the daily grind

Durango resident Cody Petersen said when he moved into his home at 15 Edgemont Way several years ago, his house on the corner looked lonely and spooky.Today, it’s a madhouse. Halloween decorations are splayed practically on every inch of his lawn, in the trees and up and down his home.

A group of school-aged kids stop in front of his house every day to pose with a little gothic doll in the lawn, he said. It’s the favorite attraction amongst hundreds of decorations Petersen bought locally and online as early as July in preparation for Oct. 31, Halloween.He said he doesn’t want to think about how much money he’s spent on fog machines, animatronics and Christmas lights, but the bill easily totals several thousands of dollars.

For trick-or-treaters on Halloween, whom he encourages to visit, jumpscares abound at Petersen’s home, featuring animatronic spiders, growling wolves and other monsters, he said.He’s working on his own animatronic coffin, which shakes and rattles, and a pulley system that will push and pull a ghost up and down the yard, but neither will be ready for this year’s Halloween.He said he has fond memories of his parents decorating for the holidays during his upbringing and he’s a huge horror genre fan. So he enjoys going all out on decorations for the spooky season. He justifies his hobby with the logic his kids will only be in high school a few more years, and it isn’t as cool to decorate the lawn for Halloween when one doesn’t have children living at home.But the neighbors enjoy his haunts as much as the rest of the community. He said his Halloween scene has gradually grown larger every year; at least 50 trick-or-treaters turned up at his home last year.“I'm a home inspector, so I do have a lot of tools and no fear of trying things out,” he said.

He said typical Halloween animatronics cost $400 a piece, but they only last one year or so without breaking. That’s frustrating, he said, and he believes he can do better by building his own.He said this year’s display and experience is more organic than past years thanks to his handiwork. Among his myriad decorations, trick-or-treaters can spot easter eggs referencing “Beetlejuice,” “The Nightmare Before Christmas” and “Pet Sematary.”Among the horror props are real animal bones Petersen said he’s found on hikes across the countryside.“I've got ghosts and spiders and witches and that kind of thing,” he said. “Here in Edgemont, we have giant spiders for real. ... We get these huge wolf spiders that are bigger than my hand. I mean, huge, bigger than tarantulas.”

Petersen said he was motivated to make his first decorations within the first month he and his wife moved into the home on the corner at 15 Edgemont Way.A lone pine tree, a typical Christmas tree that would be strung up with lights and ornaments in December, stood out to Petersen in the yard, he said. He just felt compelled to decorate it and light it up.He said he thoroughly decorated the tree and left it lit year-round. Within a month of moving into the house, his neighbor died. The man was old and suffering from Alzheimer's.

Months later, the man’s wife approached Petersen and told him she and her husband’s last salient moments together were spent looking out at Petersen’s lighted Christmas tree, pretending it was Christmas. In the following hours, the man succumbed to delirium. He died several days later.“I don't know why I had that tree, why I lit it, but that's why that tree, even when Halloween is over, all year round, that Christmas tree always stays lit now,” he said.Petersen is a horror movie fan, and in particular he’s always enjoyed the sinister character Michael Myers of the “Halloween” franchise.

He said every year, after thrilling trick-or-treaters at his home, he takes to downtown and East Third Avenue in his Michael Myers costume, bearing a giant bowl of candy, to continue the fun.The highlight of his yard, the creepy doll neighborhood kids like to pose and take pictures with, is Petersen’s “elf on the shelf,” he said. He likes to move the doll around the house, sometimes propping her up to hold animal bones.“I have a real busy and pretty stressful job,” he said. “I just love the fall so much. And to come home, it's just a good way to wind down and, you know, de-stress, just go out and work in the yard.”cburney@durangoherald.com

Cody Petersen’s Halloween hobby is his escape from the daily grind

Reader-submitted photos of Halloween decorationsLast week, we asked readers to submit photos of their Halloween decorations or a neighbor’s decorations. We received dozens of photo submissions. We have selected some of the most spooky, elaborate and fun photos to share in this gallery. Enjoy!

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