10 years and 127 artists later, WinterWonderGrass Colorado returns next week to Steamboat Springs, CO over March 3 - 5, 2023.
It all started as a pipe dream for festival founder Scotty Stoughton. Looking back at the past 10 years he reflects, "I was driving across the Utah desert in 2012 on my way to a new job working a music festival in LA. I was fearing the unknown. The thought of being lost in the City of Angels had me longing for my community, those dancing around the fire, picking with their fingers and through their hearts." That's when it hit him, he needed to create a gathering called WinterWonderGrass. Stoughton wondered, "would they come to the mountains and dance under the snowflakes if I gave them a reason?" Well, they came, and 10 years later, they still come for the renowned musical performances, local craft beer tasting, and the magic of winter in the pristine Colorado Rockies.
When Stoughton reflects back on 10 years he remembers when "the sky opened, and huge cotton balls fell from the sky, gently resting on the furiously picking hands of The Infamous Stringdusters." That's where it started, and after 10 years, 127 artists have graced the festival's stages, and the event has seen its fair share of engagements, weddings, and families of all ages enjoy the outdoors in a way only WWG can offer.
To celebrate 10 years, the original headliners of WWG CO—Greensky Bluegrass and The Infamous Stringdusters—return alongside many fan-favorites. But because WWG is always striving to showcase the best of bluegrass and roots music, 10 new artists make their WWG debut to commemorate 10 years. Find a full list of artists the festival has featured over the years below.
While a limited supply of 3-day festival passes, and Friday and Sunday single-day tickets are still available, VIP and Saturday single-day tickets are completely sold out. Snag your tickets here while supplies last, or head over to the official fan-to-fan exchange on Lyte.
WWG CO officially kicks off Thursday, March 2nd with a free show featuring Trout Steak Revival at Steamboat Resort's Gondola Plaza from 2:00 - 5:00 PM. At the Thursday kick-off party, attendees can pick up their 3-day festival passes and Friday single-day tickets starting at 12:00 PM. Thursday night also sees the return of the Mountain Top Dinner at the Thunderhead Lodge featuring two sets of music by Big Richard, plus local eats and libations. The Mountaintop Dinner is currently sold out, but those wishing to attend can join the waitlist here.
Festival doors open at 1:45 PM throughout the weekend, with music until 11:00 PM on Friday and Saturday nights, and until 10:00 PM on Sunday night. The festival schedule is currently available here. In addition to the festival programming, there will be two free shows on the mountain at the Thunderhead Lodge from 11:00 AM - 1:00 PM, featuring The Fretliners on Saturday and Clay Street Unit on Sunday. Directly following the Fretliners Saturday show, the Icelantic crew will lead some party laps around the mountain.
The daily craft beer and seltzer tastings return from 2:00 - 5:00 PM each day at the festival grounds. The tasting is included with each admission to the festival and this year promises a larger set of beer tents (which double as the festival's side stages), featuring Sierra Nevada Brewing, Spiked Snowmelt, and Tincup Whiskey, as well as Colorado local breweries Mountain Tap Brewery (Steamboat Springs), Yampa Valley Brewing Co. (Hayden), Storm Peak Brewing (Steamboat), Upslope Brewing (Longmont/Boulder), 4 Noses Brewing (Broomfield), Oskar Blues (Longmont), Crooked Stave (Denver), Rock Slide Brew Pub (Grand Junction), Stem Ciders (Denver), and Wibby Brewing (Longmont).
Finally, the official WinterWonderGrass late-night series, Grass After Dark takes the music into the night long after the sun goes down. The Kitchen Dwellers and Unit 14 late-night takeover of the Grand Ballroom is sold out (join the waitlist here). However, tickets are still available for Pixie & The Partygrass Boys with Sicard Hollow at Schmiggity's and an evening with Trout Steak Revival at the Thunderhead Lodge on Friday, March 3rd, The Lil Smokies and Tenth Mountain Division at the Grand Ballroom, Neal Francis with a special TBA guest at Schmiggity's, and an evening with Big Richard at the Thunderhead Lodge on Saturday, March 4th, or Sunday's offerings of Leftover Salmon and Saints and Liars at the Grand Ballroom. All remaining Grass After Dark tickets are available here.
WWG CO is excited to return and celebrate this milestone moment! To commemorate the 10th anniversary, take a peek at who's graced the WWG stages over the years:
10th Mountain Division
AJ Lee & Blue Summit
Allie Kral
ALO
Andy Thorn
Big Richard
Billy Strings
Bonnie Paine
Bowreguard
Brad Parsons Project
Bridget Law
Brothers Comatose
Buffalo Commons
Cabinet
Caribou Mountain Collective
Chain Station
Che Apalache
Clay Street Unit
Colin Hotz
Cris Jacobs
Daniel Rodriguez
Dave Simonett & Dave Carroll
Dead Horses
Dead Winter Carpenters
Della Mae
Drew Emmitt
Drunken Hearts
Dustbowl Revival
Elephant Revival
Fretliners
Fruition
Ghost of Paul Revere
Gipsy Moon
Good Time Travelers
Grant Farm
Grantful Dead Review
Greensky Bluegrass
Hardscrabble
Head for the Hills
Horseshoes & Hand Grenades
Jay Roemer
Jay Starling
Jeff Austin Band
Jennifer Hartswick
John Mailander
Jon Stickley Trio
Keller & The Keels
Keller Williams
Kitchen Dwellers
Kyle Tuttle
Larry Keel
Leftover Salmon
Les Claypool’s Duo de Twang
Lindsay Lou
Lonesome Days
Love Canon
Lukas Nelson & Promise of the Real
Magic (String) Beans
Mama Magnolia
Mandolin Orange
Margo Price
Meadown Mountain
MilkDrive
Missed the Boat
Molly Tuttle
Morsel
Mountain Standard Tie
Neal Francis
Nicki Bluhm
Nikki Lane
Noam Pikelny
Nora Jane Struthers
Old Salt Union
Old Town Pickers
Olora Brothers
Paper Bird
Pappy Biondo
Paul Cauthen
Peter Rowan
Pick & Howl
Pickin’ on the Dead
Pickin’ on the Doors
Pixie & The Partygrass Boys
Railroad Earth
Rapidgrass
River Whyless
RiverWonderGrass
Saints & Liars
Sam Bush
Scott Law
She Said String Band
Sicard Hollow
Sierra Hull
Sister Sparrow and the Dirty Birds
State Bridge All-Stars
Steep Canyon Rangers
Sticks & Thorn
Tallgrass
Tejon Street Corner Thieves
The Bluegrass Generals
The California Honeydrops
The Infamous Stringdusters
The Lil Smokies
The Lone Bellow
The Shook Twins
The Sweet Lillies
The Travelin’ McCourys
The War & Treaty
The Way Down Wanderers
The Wood Brothers
The Wooks
Town Cavalry
Town Mountain
Trampled by Turtles
Tray Wellington Band
Trout Steak Revival
Twisted Pine
Tyler Grant
Unit 14
Upstate
We Dream Dawn
Whitewater Ramble
Will Mosheim
WinterWonderWomen
Wood and Wire
Woodbelly
Yonder Mountain String Band
