38 Special Concert (June 21st, 2015)

Today is father’s day, and we will be celebrating by going to a 38 Special concert at Hudson Gardens, an out-door venue in Littleton, Colorado. We headed over to our friends Steve and Dawn’s house at about 2:30. Their daughter was not off work, so they were going to pick her up and then meet up with us. We got to Hudson Gardens at about 3:30, and parked in the east parking lot. We walked back down the road to the east entrance, where we were about the fourth group in line. The gates don’t open until 5:00, so we set up our chairs and relaxed. 

It didn’t take long for Dawn, Steve and their kids to show up and join us in line. It was a very hot day, in the low 90’s, so it didn’t take long for all of us to start over-heating in the direct sun of the line. Luckily, our chairs were set up right next to a perfect little break in the trees, so we could take turns sitting or standing in the shade of the trees. Our friends had also brought some umbrellas, so we could make our own shade in line as well. Back at the security check point, they also had a water station with really cold water where we could refill our water bottles, which we did many times. 

At 5:00 the gates opened, and it was literally a dash for those in the front of the line to get good seats. All of the seating at Hudson Gardens is general admission on the lawn, and if you are lucky, you can get up close and sit in the shade of the stage where it is nice and cool. That is what we did, so we enjoyed a dinner that both families contributed to, in the shade, while we waited for the concert to start at 6:30. 

The whole crew enjoying dinner!

Our four kids enjoying dinner

Hudson Gardens is a botanical garden with an outdoor stage set up in the summer just for these weekend concerts. They have beer and wine stations where you can get Budweiser products including large Bud Light Lime and large Stella Artois as well as red and white wine for $6.00. They also had four food trucks, offering several different types of food for $8.00 to $10.00, and it looked like there were even a few healthy options available. Unfortunately, there were no permanent restrooms, just port-o-potties, which were nice and clean. 

It’s always fun to go to concerts of bands from the 80’s. We don’t usually listen to classic rock radio stations, so it is definitely hit or miss on whether or not we will remember any of the songs they sing, and remembering the words is a whole other level of uncertainty. 38 Special did a great concert, and their voices have really held up well through the years. 

38 Special on the beautiful outdoor stage

Dawn and I would get excited when a song came on that we could remember and sing along to, but the rest of the time, we really enjoyed just dancing with the crowd. The concert ended at 9:30, just as the sun was setting. We met up with our friend Tim, and his friend Nancy for a few minutes as we waited for the crowd to clear.  

The kids all played with the beach balls that had floated around the crowd throughout the concert. As we left the amphitheater, we were amazed at how little traffic remained, and how easy it was to get out of the venue. What a great night, with great friends!