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In this week's Music of the Mountains, we feature Emma Sky Quarterman, a Colorado singer-songwriter working on booking more gigs in the Front Range. She's got two performances on Valentine's Day weekend, so be sure to stay tuned to learn more about those shows!

Emma Sky Quarterman is, in many ways, a woman of the mountains. Not only is the country, pop, and R&B-inspired artist one of many in the lineup of the 2026 Women of the Mountain Festival, she is also a lifelong Colorado resident—born in Leadville, growing up in Nederland, and moving to Boulder in 2010.

She grew up interested in being a musician, ultimately performing in the school choir at Nederland MiddleSenior High and helping to host an open mic at TEENS, Inc. In her college years, she attended Naropa University to study music.

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Thank you for listening to The Mountain-Ear Podcast, featuring news and culture from peak to peak! Additional pages are linked below.

If you want to be involved in the podcast or paper, contact:

Barbara Hardt, our editor-in-chef, at [email protected]

Tyler Hickman, podcast host, at [email protected]

Jamie Lammers, podcast host, at [email protected]

General inquiries: [email protected]

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Today, we’re joined by a trio of CU Boulder student journalists who dug up a story in Gold Hill, where failing backup batteries cut emergency services for residents during power outages.

The systems, supplied by Lumen Technologies, are supposed to keep land lines operational when the power's out. But some of those batteries are over 20 years old and failing, turning power outages into potentially life-threatening situations.

Sydney Schrader, Corey Neumeier and Sophia Collins tell us what's going on in Gold Hill, and mountain towns across the county, and what the residents are doing about it.

Their story was originally published by the Colorado Sun. Read it here.

Also

• Structure fire in Allenspark
• Nederland ice rink still not frozen
• Golden Gate Canyon OKs Community Wildfire Protection Plan. View it here.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Mountain-Ear Podcast, featuring news and culture from peak to peak! Additional pages are linked below.

If you want to be involved in the podcast or paper, contact:

Barbara Hardt, our editor-in-chef, at [email protected]

Tyler Hickman, podcast host, at [email protected]

Jamie Lammers, podcast host, at [email protected]

General inquiries: [email protected]

Head to our website for all of the latest news.

Subscribe online and use the coupon code PODCAST for a 10% discount for all new subscribers.

Submit local events to promote them in the paper and on our website.

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This week on Music of the Mountains, The Mountain-Ear Podcast invites Tom Knowlton, lead singer and guitarist of The Fretliners, to talk about his weekly open jams at MainStage Brewing in Lyons! Be sure to stay tuned to learn more about his background!

Year-round, musicians play unique lineups as part of the MainGrass event, created by MainStage Brewing and Emma Rose in 2021. Musicians and lineups are combined based on their individual and complementary strengths, and oftentimes, the lineups have never previously played together. 

You kinda get called up by random, like, ‘Can you do it?’” says Tom Knowlton, lead guitar player of The Fretliners. “It’s pretty cool because you never know who you’re gonna play with.”

Along with changing lineups every show, MainGrass also plays in different venues. With the opening of its new Gunbarrel location, MainStage hosts the event in Lyons from May to September and in Gunbarrel from October to May.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Mountain-Ear Podcast, featuring news and culture from peak to peak! Additional pages are linked below.

If you want to be involved in the podcast or paper, contact:

Barbara Hardt, our editor-in-chef, at [email protected]

Tyler Hickman, podcast host, at [email protected]

Jamie Lammers, podcast host, at [email protected]

General inquiries: [email protected]

Head to our website for all of the latest news.

Subscribe online and use the coupon code PODCAST for a 10% discount for all new subscribers.

Submit local events to promote them in the paper and on our website.

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On today's show, Maryann Rosen tells us how a couple teachers, a bluebird, and a love for the Colorado outdoors revitalized the spirits of Chicago’s working women in the early 20th century. 

This episode received contributions from a 2021 History Colorado article written by Dr. Kayann Short. You can read her piece here.

Also, in this week's news

• Federal funding freeze slashes Nederland's TEENS Inc. budget
• Black Hawk Swears in new city aldermen
• Nederland secures Caribou Village Fire demolition permits
• Board of Trustees approve financing structure for Eldora Purchase
• Boulder Falls trail could be closed for good

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Mountain-Ear Podcast, featuring news and culture from peak to peak! Additional pages are linked below.

If you want to be involved in the podcast or paper, contact:

Barbara Hardt, our editor-in-chef, at [email protected]

Tyler Hickman, podcast host, at [email protected]

Jamie Lammers, podcast host, at [email protected]

General inquiries: [email protected]

Head to our website for all of the latest news.

Subscribe online and use the coupon code PODCAST for a 10% discount for all new subscribers.

Submit local events to promote them in the paper and on our website.

Find us on Facebook @mtnear and Instagram @mtn.ear

Listen and watch on YouTube today.

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Joey Palermino finds a special connectivity through the art of music. From sharing music with his parents to finding a community of musicians to perform with, building connections and friendships through music inspires him the most.

 Palermino’s instrument of choice has always been the guitar. A selftaught player, he especially embraced the instrument after college, living in Memphis and playing live and among friends.

“Once I moved to Colorado, I found the music scene here, and especially the bluegrass picking scene,” says eightyear resident Palermino. “I really made some awesome friends and connections that really pushed me to go to the next level, if you will."

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Mountain-Ear Podcast, featuring news and culture from peak to peak! Additional pages are linked below.

If you want to be involved in the podcast or paper, contact:

Barbara Hardt, our editor-in-chef, at [email protected]

Tyler Hickman, podcast host, at [email protected]

Jamie Lammers, podcast host, at [email protected]

General inquiries: [email protected]

Head to our website for all of the latest news.

Subscribe online and use the coupon code PODCAST for a 10% discount for all new subscribers.

Submit local events to promote them in the paper and on our website.

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This week, reporter and editor Shay Castle met with local organizers from Big Tent BoCo, a group that's petitioning to increase the number of county commissioners from three to five.

Organizers Masyn Moyer and Rachel Friend are pushing for better representation for the county - especially for the the more rural, western half of BoCo. Though it's not uncommon for a county of this size to only have three commissioner seats, they make an interesting case to add two members.

Listen in to hear their story, and how you can get involved.

For more information, head to BigTentBoCo.org

Also:

• State to review the 2025 death of CU student Meghan Trussell
• Nederland group names Senior of the Year

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Mountain-Ear Podcast, featuring news and culture from peak to peak! Additional pages are linked below.

If you want to be involved in the podcast or paper, contact:

Barbara Hardt, our editor-in-chef, at [email protected]

Tyler Hickman, podcast host, at [email protected]

Jamie Lammers, podcast host, at [email protected]

General inquiries: [email protected]

Head to our website for all of the latest news.

Subscribe online and use the coupon code PODCAST for a 10% discount for all new subscribers.

Submit local events to promote them in the paper and on our website.

Find us on Facebook @mtnear and Instagram @mtn.ear

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Share this podcast by scrolling to the bottom of our website home page or by heading to our main hub on Buzzsprout.

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The Gold Hill Inn is shut down for the season and will reopen in May 2026. To celebrate the venue and its incredible repertoire of performers, we're flashing back to a 2021 interview with Gold Hill Inn performer Finn O'Sullivan!

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Mountain-Ear Podcast, featuring news and culture from peak to peak! Additional pages are linked below.

If you want to be involved in the podcast or paper, contact:

Barbara Hardt, our editor-in-chef, at [email protected]

Tyler Hickman, podcast host, at [email protected]

Jamie Lammers, podcast host, at [email protected]

General inquiries: [email protected]

Head to our website for all of the latest news.

Subscribe online and use the coupon code PODCAST for a 10% discount for all new subscribers.

Submit local events to promote them in the paper and on our website.

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In today's show, Maryann Rosen recounts the historic blizzards of the Peak to Peak that buried the region under snow that reached second-story windows. What was it like to live through a storm without access to your snowblower, or without plows clearing the streets?

It wasn't easy. These storms could decimate towns, and they could strand settlers for weeks with nowhere to go. Listen to today's show to hear true stories of these legendary storms.

Plus:

• Nederland approves Eldora purchase
• Death of Gilpin County man brings renewed attention to one of the most troubling accounts of racial injustice in county history
• BoCo awards $2 million in funding for fire protection districts, emergency service agencies
• A taste of Black Hawk's newest pizza joint, Copper Kitchen Pizzeria

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Mountain-Ear Podcast, featuring news and culture from peak to peak! Additional pages are linked below.

If you want to be involved in the podcast or paper, contact:

Barbara Hardt, our editor-in-chef, at [email protected]

Tyler Hickman, podcast host, at [email protected]

Jamie Lammers, podcast host, at [email protected]

General inquiries: [email protected]

Head to our website for all of the latest news.

Subscribe online and use the coupon code PODCAST for a 10% discount for all new subscribers.

Submit local events to promote them in the paper and on our website.

Find us on Facebook @mtnear and Instagram @mtn.ear

Listen and watch on YouTube today.

Share this podcast by scrolling to the bottom of our website home page or by heading to our main hub on Buzzsprout.

Thank you for listening!

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In the first 2026 episode of Music of the Mountains, The Mountain-Ear Podcast hears from Andre LaMotte, a Spanish guitar instrumentalist who brings an acoustic twist to modern rock and pop. The physical and digital music column will be out in the January 8th issue of the newspaper, a day before LaMotte's performance at Monarch Casino in Black Hawk. Listen to the episode for more details -- and if you're listening before January 9th, please spread the word however you can!

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Mountain-Ear Podcast, featuring news and culture from peak to peak! Additional pages are linked below.

If you want to be involved in the podcast or paper, contact:

Barbara Hardt, our editor-in-chef, at [email protected]

Tyler Hickman, podcast host, at [email protected]

Jamie Lammers, podcast host, at [email protected]

General inquiries: [email protected]

Head to our website for all of the latest news.

Subscribe online and use the coupon code PODCAST for a 10% discount for all new subscribers.

Submit local events to promote them in the paper and on our website.

Find us on Facebook @mtnear and Instagram @mtn.ear

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Share this podcast by scrolling to the bottom of our website home page or by heading to our main hub on Buzzsprout.

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Happy New Year, and Happy Birthday to the Mountain-Ear Podcast!

Today marks our fifth anniversary of being on the airwaves. We've come a long way, and we have a lot to be proud of - plus a lot to look forward to.

To ring in the New Year, we have our first "Sounds of the Town" submission from Eldora resident David Hallock, a bird lover and conservationist who says the song of the American Dipper is what defines the quiet, natural ambience of the historic mountain village. 

Listen in to hear David's explanation of the near indescribable beauty of the song. 

Also:

• Wild Turkey Trail fire triggers evacuations in Fourmile Canyon
• Gilpin County childcare center opens for enrollment
• Your local government's year-in-review

Thanks to Xeno-Canto for providing the American Dipper's songs and calls used in today's episode. Recordings used were submitted by Ted Floyd, Seth Beaudreault, Paul Driver and Denise Wright.

Support the show

Thank you for listening to The Mountain-Ear Podcast, featuring news and culture from peak to peak! Additional pages are linked below.

If you want to be involved in the podcast or paper, contact:

Barbara Hardt, our editor-in-chef, at [email protected]

Tyler Hickman, podcast host, at [email protected]

Jamie Lammers, podcast host, at [email protected]

General inquiries: [email protected]

Head to our website for all of the latest news.

Subscribe online and use the coupon code PODCAST for a 10% discount for all new subscribers.

Submit local events to promote them in the paper and on our website.

Find us on Facebook @mtnear and Instagram @mtn.ear

Listen and watch on YouTube today.

Share this podcast by scrolling to the bottom of our website home page or by heading to our main hub on Buzzsprout.

Thank you for listening!