We asked our writers and contributors to share their best of 2024 list...and they delivered. They came back with their votes for things like "best comfort food," "best family friendly restaurant" and "best shopping experience." And, since they're creative, they also shared their favorite moments: fishing days on the Yampa, the best thing they did on the mountain this year and even their best mustache! Read on for more...

Rabbi Kolby Morris-Dahary shares her list first in which she proclaims the best comfort food in town to be Colorado Bagel Westside Market. But her best baked good? Smell That Bread! She says Franciosi Brother's Pizza is the best family friendly restaurant and the best weekend activity with kids is hitting up either the library or the Old Town Hot Springs. The best community hangout is Howelsen Hill on Sundays and her best shopping experience was Déjà Vu. She votes for Lupita's Cantina as the best summer meal experience and her favorite happy hour in town this year was at Laundry Kitchen and Cocktails.

Local photographer Noah Wetzel says his favorite moment of the year was "Northern Lights over Gilpin Lake on October 11th! So good!"

Our summer intern, Amelia Davis, said that her best meal of 2024 was eaten sitting by the Yampa River, enjoying a fresh Farmers Market haul. The best thing she did on the mountain this year was a mountain biking session with Gravity Girls. "Though it turned out to not be my thing, doing it once to push my limits was a great experience," she says. And, she came up with the category "best almost:" nearly managing to read the entire Game of Thrones series before the end of the year was valiant, yet ultimately unsuccessful, endeavor. 

"The best would be seeing the realization of the 'She Walks on Water' sculpture by Sandy Graves as a tribute to Susan Schiesser. Because of those two artists, we now have an incredible bear to watch over the Yampa Valley," shares Dagny McKinley.

Matt Tredway, who will publish a book next year (!) writes, "In 2024, I've had the privilege of experiencing many incredible moments -- from a house full of family, to climbing ice and rock, to hiking in the mountains, cowboying and even building a barn. These are all adventures that I’ll cherish, yet the experience that stands out most, the one that holds the deepest meaning for me, was a simple yet profound evening spent with my granddaughter, Lozie. We rode down the bike path together as the heat of the day gave way to the cool air descending from Emerald. It was one of those evenings when the sun seemed to be just the right warmth, the stress of the world evaporated, and everything felt in harmony. I felt the joy of rediscovering the simple adventure that goes without notice. We pedaled, stopped to wade in the shallows of the Yampa, practiced skipping rocks, watched the osprey family in their nest, and even found a feather. Sharing that time with her, feeling the pulse of the river, the rhythm of the ride and hearing her laughter, was indescribable. She gifted me a rare glimpse of our town through the eyes of an untrammeled soul."

Kent Vertrees, from Powercats, came up with four of his own categories:

Best Fishing Day on the Yampa: November 24, 2024 - After living in Steamboat Springs since the early 90's, I've fished hundreds of days on the Yampa and none better than this day as I hooked the largest brown trout I've ever caught. It's a reminder to me that things do get better the more you try.

Best Camping Spot: In Yampa Canyon at the overhang above Harding Hole #4 campsite. Day 2 of the annual Yampa River Awareness Project I help organize with the Friends of the Yampa, myself and John and Matt stayed up super late playing music and cribbage with friends and then crashed in the alcove overhang above camp. The echoing Yampa River serenaded us to sleep and the swallows, warblers and flycatchers woke us up as the sound vibrated and amplified in this extremely scenic spot. 

Best Trip Outside Colorado: Clarksdale, Mississippi in May where I went to a 5-day immersive blues harmonica camp called The Harmonica Experience. I've always wanted to learn to hammer on the harp better and this was a dream come true trip where our great coaches supported me and the other 20 campers with 8 hours of lessons and jamming with a 4-piece blues band.  The venue at an old cotton gin in Clarksdale, the Crossroads of the Blues, was over the top with small shotgun cabins we stayed at and learned all about the history of the Delta Blues and all things Robert Johnson, Muddy Waters, and many other characters who created the blues as we know it. 

And finally, Best Mustache I Gave Myself: During our Steamboat Powdercats company party in Moab in April, I cut off my 20 day old beard and fashioned a sweet, handlebar mustache for a few days. It had been a decade since I last wore this epic stash and might be another decade before this happens again. Maybe not. 

Happy New Year to all of you, our readers. And thanks to the Steamboat community for making this year so great! We're looking forward to more stories ahead in 2025.