Colorado, Part 1
Last month, I went to Colorado, a state I’d only visited before during a layover. Without knowing much about it, I’ve been carrying around vague ideas that Colorado is a lot like California in the sense it’s a Western state (although much more centrally located) with a culture of enjoying the great outdoors and being reasonably liberal. It called to me on all those fronts, but I’ll admit I hadn’t done any serious research before going.
The primary motivation for the trip was to participate in a couple of photography workshops with Deirdre Denali Rosenberg, a conservation photographer I really admire, particularly for her work with picas, foxes, and all things alpine. I had been fortunate to win one workshop with her in a competition and added a second because I wanted to maximize the trip and make the most of her local expertise.
When I landed in Durango and walked outside the airport to face a wall of stunning, snow-capped mountains, I knew it would be a great experience. On the first day, I settled into my motel in Pagosa Springs and prepared my camera pack for the morning. It was going to be an early start.
As always happens when I’m excited, I woke before the alarm went off. It was still dark when I got in the car and began following directions up into the mountains towards South Fork. I’d been advised to download the area to Google Maps before leaving in case I lost signal. I immediately felt grateful for that. The address for meeting them was a GPS coordinate, not a street name, so I knew we were in for an adventure.
I found Deirdre and her husband, Jon, right on schedule as the sun came up. They were immediately very welcoming and accommodating. I hopped into the back of their Jeep, and the three of us took off for a few hours exploring some incredibly beautiful spots around the Rio Grande National Forest. Creed and Lake San Cristobal were particular favorites.
Photo by Jon Rosenberg
We explored some roads where a 4x4 was absolutely essential, climbing to elevations where there were still plenty of snow patches around (and significant snow in some spots). The first wildlife we encountered was two moose (Alces alces shirasi) bulls down in a ravine. They glanced at us and slowly wandered into the trees with a gait that seemed effortlessly elegant and a little awkward all at once.
As we got closer to our point of return, we found two groups of bighorn sheep (Ovis canadensis canadensis) on the hills above the road. The females grouped together, either scaling inclines with shocking ease or resting on the rocks. We couldn’t see any rams, but I was struck by how hardy they seemed. When you’ve spent more time around domestic sheep and goats and consider the genuinely wild winter conditions these animals weather, it’s awe-inspiring how tough they are.
The morning’s highlight for me, though, somewhat surprisingly, was the marmots (Marmota flaviventris). I learned that they weren’t long out of hibernation, and I was captivated when we spotted their furry, chunky-looking bodies on rocks alongside the road. It’s hard not to project human characteristics on them as they appear on the spectrum of purposeful and stern to ridiculously relaxed. I need to learn more about them and their lives!
We parted ways for the afternoon at lunchtime, but my adventure for the day was only half over. Great Sand Dunes National Park was a little over an hour’s drive away, and I couldn’t resist seeing this natural wonder (and getting another stamp for my National Parks passport). The drive turned out to be a little more interesting than I expected!
I saw the blue sky bleeding into a grayish-yellow haze as I approached the park. I checked the weather app for any warning, but there was nothing besides a wind icon I’d seen a thousand times. Twenty minutes later, I was pulled over at the side of the road, entirely enveloped in a dust storm. Visibility fluctuated, but at one point, it was almost zero. Choosing windows of improved clarity, I kept going.
When I arrived at the park, I was glad I persisted. In the foreground, rugged brush stretched out, rising into giant sand dunes that seemed impossibly placed. Behind them, hazy mountains rose to the sky, with snow defining their shape. I hoped to stay until golden hour and see this landscape illuminated in dramatic, warm light. However, the dream-like haze that blended the layers together like a grainy, sepia-toned photograph was beautiful, too.
Ultimately, I spent less than an hour out of the car taking photos of the park. The wind was exfoliating my face, and I could only hope it wasn’t doing severe damage to my camera, but it was worth it to experience this place in such wild conditions. As I returned to the car, my phone flashed an extreme weather warning a little too late.
The drive back was easier than going, but the snow started to fall as I came down through the mountain pass back to Pagosa Springs. I hadn’t expected that in April, but I hadn’t done my research either. Thankfully, it was snow that primarily added to the beauty of the beauty of the place, and I reminded myself I came here for an adventure. I’d be thrilled if day two were anything like day one.
