The Hunter Thompson Shrine was created on Snowmass on February 20, 2006 (on the one-year anniversary of his death), by a band of his friends and admirers, consisting of five people. They call themselves the "Glorious Leaders of the Underground Movement (GLUM)--The Creators of the Hunter S. Thompson Shrine." They go by the following names: RUSTY HEMATOMA, MISTER Z, R. W. FEATHERSTONE, PHLEGM THROWER, and MR. QUICK. Included in the Shrine are numerous photos, an American Flag, a gloved arm with “Gonzo” written on it, a lizard covered with multi-colored jewels, an air horn, a “Rolling Stone” magazine cover, several newspaper articles, Tibetan prayer flags, The Woody Creeker, a bottle of Mr. Bubbles, and other items.
(excerpt from aspensnowmassshrines.com)
Every winter on Presidents' Day the GLUM updates the shrine, they also hike each year to the shrine for a camp out on August 20. It is located at the Snowmass ski area, near his home in Woody Creek. On that day in 2005, six months after his death on February 20, his cremated ashes were shot into the sky during a private ceremony at his home in Aspen, Colorado, by a cannon. It was launched from a 47 meter tower that was topped by a double-thumbed fist clutching a peyote button - the symbol that he used for his campaign when he ran for sheriff of Pitkin County, Colorado, as part of a group of citizens running for local offices on the "Freak Power" ticket. The platform included promoting the decriminalization of drugs (for personal use only, not trafficking, as he disapproved of profiteering), tearing up the streets and turning them into grassy pedestrian malls, banning any building so tall as to obscure the view of the mountains, and renaming Aspen "Fat City" to deter investors. Thompson, having shaved his head, referred to the Republican candidate as "my long-haired opponent", as he wore a crew cut. This private ceremony dubbed the "Gonzo blastoff" was held at his home Aspen, Colorado.
Astlas Obscura article on the shrine.
