Sometimes I sit in my Denver front yard, looking toward the mountains 15 miles to the west, telling anyone who asks that I’m watching the mountains grow.* Sometimes, I drive into the mountains to experience their majesty beneath my feet. Like today.
At this very moment, on the morning of July 5, I’m sitting in our van at the side of Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park (RMNP). I’ve rotated the passenger seat to face the open sliding door and balanced my MacBook on my lap to write.
It’s a good way to pass the time while I wait for Ron to return from a hike; since dogs aren’t allowed on the trails, one of us must stay behind with Banjo. I got to do the last solo hike, so it’s my turn to pet sit and have an epiphany.
20 Years in Colorful Colorado
I just realized that I have lived in Colorado for exactly 20 years, having moved here from Texas in July 2005. Not being a skier or climber, I was drawn to the state’s beauty. Of course, my reasons for relocating my family of five go deeper than that, but no one can deny the splendor of this state.
A selfie with my laptop in Rocky Mountain National Park
I look out over the mountain ranges rising high above the treeline, where large patches of snow stay frozen on rocky slopes. Just a few feet from my door, small animals play peekaboo among the rocks behind the knee-high stone wall that separates the roadside shoulder from their habitat and fragile tundra.
Even though it’s brisk and blustery up here at 12,000 feet above sea level, I step out of the van to get a better look at the furry creatures with adorable faces. I hold tightly to Banjo’s leash to keep him from darting after the animals and likely tumbling down the steep incline himself. The struggle is real. I put the dog back in the van before stepping out again to take some photos with my phone to show Ron.
It’s Cute, But What’s It Called?
Other tourists stroll by, stopping to point and laugh at the animals with me. One man asks me what they’re called. I shrug, only remembering it’s something that starts with an M. That’s enough to jog his memory, or maybe he has enough signal to Google “small mountain animal that starts with M” because he quickly tells me, “It’s a marmot.”
Photo by Ron Bebus of a yellow-bellied marmot in Rocky Mountain National Park
Ron comes back from his hike and joins me at the marmot matinee; I think they enjoy entertaining us, plus Ron gets better pictures with his Olympus OM-1 mirrorless camera than I did with my phone camera.
Soon, a young man and his girlfriend step up beside us, first chatting about marmot sightings and then asking us about our van camping experiences, mentioning that they’re thinking of getting one someday.
The People You Meet Along the Way
We all share our first names, and then I ask Ben and Quincy where they’re from, as I often do with people we meet along our travels. It turns out that they live in the city where I graduated from high school—St. Joseph, Missouri.
This sparks conversations about the neighborhoods and businesses I remember, like the “DQ on the avenue,” where my high school friends and I would stop after cruising Krug Park on summer nights. We all laugh when Quincy tells me it’s still there. It surprises me that one of my teenage hangouts hasn’t shuttered.
But what surprises me even more is how, on the very day when it crosses my mind that I have lived in Colorado for exactly 20 years, I cross paths with people who live where my life’s journey began. Out of all the thousands of people from all over the world visiting RMNP today, I meet two who know a part of the world I grew up in.
I smile at this mountaintop coincidence and glance again at the majestic peaks around us—happy 20th anniversary of living in Colorado to me. I’m glad some hometown guests showed up, and of course, I’d like to thank the marmots for providing entertainment.
* According to the United States Geological Survey, the Rocky Mountains have experienced periods of growth over millions of years. In the 20 years I’ve been here, I believe they look taller, but I’ll keep watching and let you know.