Elevation Outdoors November 2018

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THE 2018

COLORADO ISSUE

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THAT COLORADO SPIRIT

The people who live in our top adventure towns roll nonstop.

SEE PAGE 22 photo by DEVON BALET

CONTENTS DEPARTMENTS 7 EDITOR’S LETTER

Learning from the long life of Klaus Obermeyer.

9 QUICK HITS

The best winter trails for fat bikes, Northern Colorado beer adventures, escape to Copper Mountain, Survival University and much, much more...

14 FLASHPOINT

Why untrammled, obsucre Deep Creek may become Colorado's next stretch of Wild and Scenic river.

17 HOT SPOT

Little Lake City, Colorado, packs a big punch. Here’s your guide to ice, yurts, eats, lodging and festivals.

19 NUMEROLOGY

Colorado embraces its outdoor recreation industry. These numbers show why going outside and playing is so important to the state.

NOVEMBER 2018 21 STRAIGHT TALK

Salida, Colorado, mayor P.T. Wood is a craft distiller and old whitewater bum at heart.

Here’s his take on stepping up to make a difference.

39 HEAR THIS

Hot Rize celebrates four decades with a new record.

40 THE ROAD

25 ADVENTURE FILM

James Edward Mills digs into diverstiy and dynamics at Boulder’s annual movie happening.

26 JOHN WENNER

How this mad fabricator is disrupting the bike scene.

29 ANGELA HAWSE

The woman at the top of America's mountain guides.

Michael Henry committed to a solo bike trip on the 36 Colorado Trail to put his life COLORADO CRED back on line. He found some This local gear represents answers—and some tears. the ethos of our state.

42 ELWAYVILLE

Peter Kray slows down to connect to the life that’s too often speeding by.

FEATURES 22 THE TOP ADVENTURE TOWNS 2018

Every year, Elevation Outdoor’s dedicated online readers cast their votes for the best Colorado communities to find fun and freedom. It’s time to celebrate the winners.

ON THE COVER Hadley Hammer and Eric Bryant hike along a ridge at 12,000 feet in the San Juan range seeking out fresh Colorado powder.

by David Clifford / davidcliffordphotography.com

ICELAND ROCKS | LIVE THE SNOWBOARD DREAM | SKI ON A BUDGET OCTOBER 2018

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flip the

switch THE 2018 WINTER RESORT GUIDE HAS ARRIVED

+

WOMEN SHRED THE LA SALS

Seeki n g f em a l e st o ke a n d b a c kc o u n t r y sn o w i n U t a h’s sec r et d eser t pea ks

VOTE THE OUTDOORS TH E S EAS O N’ S H OTTEST NEW S K IS , BOA R D S , BO OTS A ND A P PA R EL

The Ghosts in Telluride’s Bars

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CO N T R I B U TO R S

Get Ti c kets Now !

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WHAT MAKES YOU MOST PROUD OF COLORADO? E DI TOR-I N -CHI E F

DOUG SCHNITZSPAHN

DOUG SCHNITZSPAHN

doug@elevationoutdoors.com PRE SI DE N T

BLAKE DEMASO

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Colorado values public lands as an enduring resource that hold far more than short-term economic value.

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LAUREN WORTH

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CAMERON MARTINDELL

My kids can live in a place where you can experience everything that's outdoors right out our front door.

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CONOR SEDMAK

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CHRIS KASSAR

Colorado is a constant leader in the key social and political issues

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AMELIA MCCONNELL

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TRACY ROSS

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AARON BIBLE, ADAM CHASE, ROB COPPOLILLO, LIAM DORAN, JAMES DZIEZYNSKI, HUDSON LINDENBERGER, SONYA LOONEY, CHRIS VAN LEUVEN CON T RI BUT I N G WRI T E RS

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The Colorado High School Cycling League. It’s incredibly professional, and It’s ultra-inclusive and inspiring for kids.

CAMERON MARTINDELL

I love the wide range of outdoor recreation possibilities, the progressive and open mindset and the fact that we get to experience all four seasons (sometimes in the same week).

TOM WINTER

The people. From transplants to natives to folks just passing through, I’m always amazed at the stories, friendships and generosity of the people here.

HEATHER HANSMAN

I'm proud of watching friends (particularly former dirtbag ski bum friends) start and grow thriving local businesses, like Icelantic, Silverwave Seafood and the Buena Viking.

MICHAEL HENRY

Its grandeur and its grit—in landscape and people—and how the Western mythos of independence and freedom is still very much alive here.

PETER KRAY SUMMIT

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PUBLISHING

I love the Collegiate Peaks. And when the Broncos don't suck.

E D I TO R ' S L E T T E R

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THE SNOW IS FALLING. THE MOUNTAINS ARE CALLING! LIVE LONG

by DOUG SCHNITZSPAHN

K

laus Obermeyer offers me grapes that he picked this morning from his yard. They taste sweet, full of a too-hot summer. We are sitting in the office of the company he founded over 70 years ago here in Aspen. At nearly 99 years old he still shows up to work to helm a company that began when he was selling Austrian ties and traveling from Colorado to California with buddy Warren Miller, who had yet to make a single ski film. The legend goes that they lived off squirrels they hunted in a camp out in the woods. The shop owners Klaus talked to on those sales trips had never even heard of a town called Aspen, Colorado.

Klaus is incredibly sharp. We’ve met only one time before, at the 2016 Snowsports Industries America (SIA) show in Denver, but he remembers me, knows my face, knows this magazine.

He comes to the office almost every day and still believes in the sport, in the mission of the business he built, and in the joy of powder turns. I guess his desire to keep at it is what keeps him so spry as he nears the century mark. It’s certainly an energy that makes me feel motivated to go out and live my own life to its fullest. We eat the grapes and talk about what he has seen and still believes. I have never met anyone Klaus’s age who is still so in the moment.

I have always enjoyed people who dig deep into the far fields of life, their vulnerability, those smiles that come from deep memories, their beauty. I had the pleasure of knowing my greatgreat aunt Imogene, born in 1889. Her grandfather fought in the Civil War for the Union and, according to family legend, he and one of his brothers used a stone from the then-underconstruction Washington Monument (which sat unfinished for 23 years) to build the family home in D.C. She held my hand and told stories, her mind still active, connecting even at 98.

I later met my wife’s grandfather, who lived to be 97 and had worked on the Manhattan Project. He seemed lost in a the fog of age until we told him

WORK TO PLAY SCHNITZSPAHN AND SKIING LEGEND, KLAUS OBERMEYER LAUGH OVER GRAPES AND POWDER STORIES AT HIS ASPEN OFFICE. photo courtesy DOUG SCHNITZSPAHN

that we had climbed Longs Peak on a recent trip. Suddenly his eyes cleared and he was back in Wild Basin where he had worked in his 20s, explored and climbed. There’s an undeniable power to this connecting with people whose experience withstands history, but who lived it simply, going on with their lives.

A bit afraid of sounding cliche but honestly wanting to know, I ask Klaus about his first memories of skiing. He swooshed downhill in his backyard in Oberstaufen, Germany, when he was three. He and his father made the skis from the boards of an old orange crate.

He had to tie strings from the tips to his knees to make the tips rise. A few years later, he was overjoyed to get a pair of Norwegian boards that actually had rounded tips. Here in the U.S., Klaus became one of the driving figures of the new sport: He was one of the first instructors at Aspen and his company, which still develops creative stuff made by people who consider skiing a lifestyle, developed innovations we all take for granted, such as ski brakes and hard-shell boots. His philosophy all along was simple: “Have fun and make it easier for people to have more fun.”

I think having fun and showing up to live out his passion in the office of this brand he founded as a ski bum, has kept Klaus so sharp so late in life. And, of course, the skiing itself—all those years of powder turns and waiting for it all to happen again, to be reborn in a sense, the next winter. We, the young, get so caught up in the hopelessness of our times. Those who have lived through holocausts and nuclear bombs and civil wars seem to know the secret to staying above what we can’t control. For Klaus, the secret is simply skiing.

And suddenly, for the first time in my life, I want to live to be 100.

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GOING BIG (AGNES)

TOP EMPLOYEES THE BIG AGNES AND HONEY STINGER CREW HEADS UP THE COLORADO TRAIL ON THIER WAY TO THE SUMMIT OF MOUNT ELBERT. photo by DEVON BALET

MOST BOSSES WOULD HAND YOU A PINK SLIP IF YOU TOLD THEM YOU WANTED TO GET OUT OF THE OFFICE FOR A SUMMER TO hike and bike 740 miles. At Steamboat Springs-based Big Agnes, Honey Stinger and BAP, the folks in charge said, “Go take a hike.” In fact, it was the bosses who informed the 120 employees of the three sister brands that they would give them paid volunteer leave if they wanted to tackle all those trail miles and 145,043 vertical feet of climbing along the Colorado portion of the Continental Divide Trail. Seventy took on the challenge, which Big Agnes dubbed the Border to Backyard Quest. On June 11, the odyssey started on the New Mexico-Colorado border. Participants broke the trip down into 24 segments ranging from nine to 84 miles and by late summer they passed close by the home offices in Steamboat, wrapping up the job at the Wyoming border on September 13. Big Agnes also donated $25,000 to the Continental Divide Train Coalition (CDTC). —Doug Schnitzspahn

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FAT BIKE BLISS

Colorado winters rule for the mountain-biking obsessed.

Choose these three snow biking spots to keep spinning all season.

FOR DEDICATED RIDERS, WINTER

is the perfect time to pull out the fat bike, with its rigid frame and Michelin Man tires that float over packed snow. The sport has become so popular that some areas have created networks of dedicated fat bike trails that can keep a rider exploring for a few days. Pack your bikes and your bags—and go big.

LEADVILLE

Leadville locals have been riding and racing bikes in the snow for nearly two decades. The Mineral Belt is a 11.6-mile paved gem that is groomed for fat biking and cross-country skiing in the winter. The climbs are gentle, offering spectacular views of the Sawatch and Mosquito ranges as well as glimpses into Leadville’s rich and colorful mining history. From the Mineral Belt, riders can connect with the Colorado Mountain College campus to access a trail network meticulously groomed for fat bikes.

The trails playfully undulate through the woods, weaving around the trees. For a second day of riding, check out either the Tennessee Pass Nordic Center, boasting more than 25 kilometers of groomed trails and winter singletrack, or take in the mountain views with a 14-mile loop around the frozen Turquoise Lake.

GLENWOOD SPRINGS

A quiet underdog on the Colorado mountain biking scene, the Glenwood Springs area tends to surprise visiting riders with its challenging singletrack and lovely forested landscape. After skiing a few runs at Sunlight Mountain Resort, located 30 minutes outside Glenwood Springs, fat bikers should head up Old Four Mile road to access Babbish Gulch, a quiet, 29-kilometer

OBESE AND PROUD THE TENNESSEE PASS NORDIC CENTER HAS EMBRACED THE PLEASURES OF FAT BIKING ON 25K OF GROOMED SNOW BIKE TRAILS. photo by TIM GORMLEY

network of multiuse backcountry trails. The area features extended climbs into a high valley, with several fun, open downhill options.

On day two, take a morning spin on the trails at Wulfsohn Mountain Park, located just off I-70. During the summer, these shorter, intermediate trails are somewhat tame, but they make great, entertaining riding when snow-covered. Afterward, unwind with a soak in the pools at nearby Iron Mountain Hot Springs.

CRESTED BUTTE

Crested Butte’s winter riding options, maintained and groomed by several organizations, are nearly on par with its legendary summer network. It’s even home to the Fat Bike World Championships in January. Start from Snodgrass Trailhead, where you can choose from an out-andback climb and descent on the road or pedal a short way toward Gothic

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Road to access the North Village.

This fat-bike wonderland features 3.5 miles of rollercoaster terrain, berms and features. On day two, climb up Gothic Road to a famous ghost town for a seven-mile outand-back ride. Alternatively, ski for the day, then check out the Crested Butte Mountain’s excellent fat-bike specific trails after the lifts close.

—Melanie Wong

LOVELAND’S BREW CRUSH

The Valentine town is sweet on craft beer. Here are its three hottest breweries.

BIG THOMPSON BREWERY

“Let the Beer Flow” is Big Thompson Brewery’s motto. Inspired by the Big Thompson River, it opened in 2015 and offers classics like Float Away IPA, Oatmeal Stout and Bent Hook Best Bitter as well as seasonal varieties like Beet Beer, Smoked Chipotle Porter and Pumpkin Ale. Check out river-inspired offerings like “Peak Flow Pilsner,” and test your tastebuds with a Habanero

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SNUGGLE UP TO THIS LOVELAND ALE WORKS SERVES UP A WIDE RANGE OF SWEET CRAFT BREWS INCLUDING THIS RASPBERRY SOUR. photo courtesy LOVELAND ALE WORKS

Peach Ale. It’s located at 114 E. 15th Street, Loveland.

BIG BEAVER BREWING COMPANY

The beer names are half the fun at Big Beaver Brewing Company with variations like Wonder Wiener Wheat, Amber Was Her Stage Name, and Whiskey Dick Stout.

The brewery, which opened in 2010, has 16 beer taps, a patio, board games, bratwurst, and snacks.

Artisan root beer and Italian sodas are also available. Head to 2707 W. Eisenhower Blvd, Unit 9, Loveland.

LOVELAND ALEWORKS

This brewery and tap room serves flagships like their IPA, American Sour with Raspberries, Saison and Imperial Stout, along with a selection of rotating taps like Guava Milkshake IPA and “Are You Hazing Yet?” Imperial hazy IPA. A

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rotating collection of food trucks offers everything wood-fired pizza to artisanal hot dogs and more. Located at 118 West 4th Street, Loveland.

GRIMM BROTHERS BREWHOUSE

Opened in 2010, Grimm Brothers claims the distinction of being Loveland’s oldest brewery. Named after German writers Jacob and Wilhelm Grimm, it offers both historic and more modern German beer styles. Twelve taps serve everything from Blood Orange Griffin Hefeweizen to Fearless Youth Munich Dunkel. And the brewery also has a historic beer engine. Fridays are Firkin Fridays where cask-conditioned selections are enjoyed. Find it at 623 N Denver Avenue, Loveland.

VERBOTEN BREWING AND BARREL PROJECT

Verboten is German for “forbidden” and this brewery produces beer forbidden under the Reinheitsgebot German Purity Law, which dictated the only three ingredients allowed in beer were hops, barley and water.

The brewery, which opened in 2013, offers barrel-aged fruit and spice beers like an Orange Blossom Honey Wheat. Their Stealth Haze Juicy American IPA is made with oats and wheat malt. It's at 127 E. 5th Street, Loveland.

—Kristen Pope

EAT, SLEEP, PLAY: COPPER MOUNTAIN, COLORADO Always a local’s favorite,Copper Mountain has upgraded its lifts and joined on to the new Ikon Pass, which launches this season.

It’s a prime destination for both families and hard-chargers thanks to a wide variety of terrain. Here’s how to maximize your visit.

EAT

Renting a condo with a kitchen means you can cook for yourself, but there are plenty of dining options for those who want to avoid washing dishes. Breakfast options include the relatively new Camp Hale Coffee with light bites caffeine to start the day. For a full-plate breakfast or good apres, swing by the new Toast & Co. in Center Village. And for anonmountain lunch, hit Chuck’s Wagon Haus or Casa Sanchez (beware the siesta temptation afterwards). When the day is really done, park it at the Ten Mile Tavern for satisfying pub food and 20 beers on tap. Or indulge in a nice juicy steak at JJ’s Rocky Mountain Tavern in the East Village right next to the tubing hill.

COLORADO QUICK HITS MASH-UP COPPER MOUNTAIN FUN (TOP LEFT), THE FLUID LOUNGE (TOP RIGHT), ARTHUR BREMNER'S KINGDOM (BOTTOM). photos (clockwise) by TRIPP FREY, courtesy FLUID LOUNGE, courtesy ARTHUR BREMNER

SLEEP

Family logistics are easy at the Center or West Village, thanks to childcare and ski school facilities.

Visitors not in need should check out the East Village, with free shuttle bus service linking all of the village plazas. Booking with Copper Lodging comes with free use of the Copper Spa & Athletic Club. You can book at coppercolorado.com.

PLAY

Copper recently updated two chairlifts in the Center Village, The American Flyer, which jumps from a quad to a six-seat bubble-style lift, and the American Eagle quad, now with six-seat chairs and eight-seat gondola cabins. Center Village is the place to be for families with little babies who aren’t ready for ski school yet. Their cozy childcare space includes snacks and lunch, indoor and outdoor play and attention to nap time. Kids taking lessons head to the Schoolhouse in the West Village where they receive a handy tracker beacon so parents can follow what they ski.

—Cameron Martindell

LOCAL HERO: ARTHUR BREMNER This recent CU graduate is volunteering in local hospitals as he motorcycles across the Western Hemisphere.

Porvenir, Honduras, on the Caribbean coast, where he volunteered for four to six weeks before riding onward.

Help him out at gofundme.com/fspstvolunteering-around-the-world.

—Kim Fuller

DIRECT DOSE

THERE ARE A LOT OF WAYS TO TRAVEL

IV THERAPY CAN BE A QUICK AND

the world, and Arthur Bremner has discovered one of the best ones.

The recent CU Boulder physiology graduate is currently traveling the globe while integrating his two biggest passions: healthcare and motorcycles. He’s riding his 2000 Honda XR650L dual-sport motorcycle across the Americas, volunteering in hospitals and local clinics along the way.

In 2017, Bremner began rebuilding the bike’s engine. He stripped the entire bike down to the frame, cleaning every nook and cranny. “I entirely disassembled the bottom and top end of the engine in order to install new second and fifth gears in the transmission,” he says, “as well as an increased bore and piston size and an increased compression ratio.”

Bremner graduated from CU this past May and left for his trip in July. He has since put over 10,000 miles on the bike. His first volunteer stop began in early September in El

easy way to receive a physical boost.

The Fluid IV Lounge is now open in the Creative District of Downtown Longmont. The facility offers a variety of different treatments, including a Sports Performance and Recovery “cocktail” of vitamins and nutrients, along with glycine, arginine, methionine, taurine and glutathione.

Outdoor PR pro, Scott Kaier started the business with his fiancé, Dr. Noel Love. Kaier says some people may be absorbing only 10 percent of the nutrients found in food, with an average falling somewhere between 50 and 60 percent.

“IV therapy can provide a wide range of benefits, from athletic performance and general wellness to immune system boosting and cold and flu recovery,” explains Kaier. "It can even help with a hangover. We were both attracted to the opportunity to help people feel and perform their best.” fluidivlounge.com —K.F.

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SURVIVAL UNIVERSITY

Are you ready to earn a diploma for worst-case scenarios?

ATAVISTIC VISTAS STUDENTS AT SURVIVAL UNIVERSOTY LEARN HOW TO COPE WHEN WORST-CASE SCENARIOS BECOME REALITY. photo courtesy COLORADO MOUNTAIN MAN SURVIVAL

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Tucked into a forest of aspen and pine, Survival University’s campus sprawls into the mountainous terrain of southwest Pikes Peak. When students arrive for class, they don’t whip out pencils and paper. Instead they wield a knife, a compass or a piece of twine.

Students have come here to grapple with worst-case scenarios.

Lost in the woods with no food, spending a night outdoors without any gear, having to navigate to safety in the dark—learning how to navigate these dangerous scenarios is why they signed up.

“A lot of people don’t have the

knowledge that’s required to be safe in the outdoors,” says Jason Marsteiner, the school’s lead instructor and founder who claims a lifetime of backcountry survival experience. “So they just don’t go… I want to get them out more.”

Survival University imparts practical skills on its students through various family-friendly courses, some lasting one day, others 50, and every time-frame in between. With a maximum ratio of 10 students to one instructor, the courses teach skills like how to build shelters, start fires from scratch, make ropes, procure food and the psychology of survival.

“I want [students] to know in the back of their mind that they can survive if they need to,” Marsteiner says. “Then they can just enjoy their experience.”

—Emma Murray

FLASHPOINT

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SAVING DEEP CREEK

For 20 years conservationists have battled to protect this isolated stream under the Wild and Scenic Rivers Act. That dream may finally come to fruition with little controversy thanks to a dedicated effort by river advocates and the urgings of the U.S. Army.

by HEATHER HANSMAN

F

or 45 minutes it was glorious. An easy-paced meander through an open valley. Ledgy limestone cliffs to our left, the clear rush of an untouched river to our right. Just us, the trout, and the Army helicopters occasionally thwacking overhead.

My friends and I had planned a descent of Deep Creek, the 12-mile stretch of water that flows out of Deep Lake in the White River National Forest.

It runs into the Colorado River right above Dotsero, where it turns and heads west through Glenwood Canyon.

We’d heard that only a dozen or so people had walked down Deep Creek before, but that it was doable. We wanted an adventure and we wanted to

get a look at Colorado’s next potential Wild and Scenic river.

This isolated stream, which winds through limestone karst cliffs, is home to native trout and rare willows. It’s also a high-altitude training ground for the U.S. Army. Because of those competing interests, it’s become a surprising focal point for water conservation collaboration. Local water districts, government agencies, advocacy groups and ranchers with grazing rights are all in talks to try to find a way to compromise, to keep the stream pristine without cutting into anyone’s water rights or access. To address that, they're hoping for federal Wild and Scenic Designation, but Deep Creek could get additional protection. There’s also a proposal to protect all the flows in the creek, which will come in front of the Colorado Water Conservation Board in early 2019. It’s a novel ruling that has only happened one other place in the state, Dominguez Creek.

This protection has been a long time coming. Local citizens first proposed it 30 years ago, and Deep Creek was first deemed eligible for

Wild and Scenic status in 1995. Last year, the Forest Service found it suitable for protection, which is the next step in the designation process.

"Deep Creek is a rare example of an ecologically intact, lower-elevation watershed that is worthy of permanent protection," the suitability findings declared.

WHERE ARE THE WILD PLACES?

Colorado is home to the headwaters of much of the country, but only one other river in the state—a 76mile section of the Cache le Poudre— is designated Wild and Scenic. It’s the most protective status a river can have. Wild and Scenic effectively means nothing can change on the waterway: no additional infrastructure, development or water It’s a federal designation, which carries precedent over state water law—tricky in Colorado where water rights are an individual’s landowner’s legal property—and in the past the designation has engendered fear about locking up water rights, which might otherwise render a river useable.

Ever since the water in the state was first split up through prior

STAY FREE THE 12 MILES OF THIS CLEAR CREEK NEAR DOTSERO HAVE REMAINED UNTRAMMELED. photo by RUSS SCHNITZER

appropriations, which designated use-it-or-lose-it legal obligations for water, setting aside any water for habitat management or instream flow has been contentious. But attitudes about conservation and collaboration have changed, especially in light of our decades-long drought. With them, .the conversation about protecting rivers and the values of free flowing untouched waterways have also shifted. Deep Creek has become thecontender for a range of reasons.

It’s still undammed (leaving it wild won’t endanger anyone’s current water rights) and its scenery, geology, fish and wildlife are considered “outstandingly remarkable values,” one of the major factors in determining Wild and Scenic designation.

I wanted a glimpse of those values, and a chance to see what made this rarely-seen section special enough that ranchers were willing to sit at the table with environmentalists. So many places feel touched and used, even on public land, and it felt like a chance to see something truly wild.

Deep Creek Canyon is an otherworldly landscape of shimmery sky high walls and glass clear pools, but my eyes glazed over with exhaustion. We had walked less than nine miles in nine hours, although

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the GPS would later tell us we made about four of downstream progress.

I had sprained both my ankles, and there was nowhere that looked flat or dry enough to pitch a tent and sleep?.

In the depths of the steep, rock-lined canyon I found a body-sized silty spot that kept me out of the water until it started pouring rain at 5 a.m. But isn't this why we come to wildernss? Why we want to preserve it?

THE LONG GAME?

photo by RUSS SCHNITZER

POWDER NEVER GOES OUT OF STYLE

GRANDTArGhEE.COM | 800 . TARGHEE (827.4433) | ALTA, WYOMING Photo: Rickers Film Production

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Wild and Scenic designation is slow and tricky. Matt Rice, Director of the Colorado Basin Program for American Rivers, the advocacy group that’s working toward designation, says he was surprised at the positive reception when he presented the Wild and Scenic proposal to the entire Colorado Water Congress this fall. “I really feel like it’s a big flip,” he says.

“The paradigm is shifting, and there’s a little bit less paranoia, because of the way we’ve gone about it, and because people, including the legacy agricultural communities, are realizing that the status quo is no longer going to do it.”

Their way of going about it is by getting previously warring water users, like paddlers and ranchers, into the same room, and asking them to talk through what might work for all, and then using science and economic data to underline their plan. On Deep Creek, ranchers were initially wary about

how their historic grazing rights might be impacted, and environmentalists were worried that designation would bring more traffic. But they’ve worked through traffic plans and included historic use. That seems to make most people happy.

For the instream flow, the public has the ability to make flow recommendation for a new water right, but that recommendation has to be tied to a specific beneficial use—in this case environmental flows for indicator plant and native fish species. Engineers and fish biologists are currently researching the values of the stream for preseravtion. Rice says it takes about a year for the Water Board staff to do their diligence, but they’ll likely recommend the flows by early 2020.

It might take years still for the Wild and Scenic designation to be approved, but it’s a major step toward collaborative, non-antagonistic water planning. Rice says that Deep Creek is proving to be a good example for how streams that aren’t particularly controversial, or don’t have contested water rights, can be a proving ground for future collaboration.

THE SCROBBLY, WEIRD PLACES

Like politics, the walking was slow going. And in Deep Creek the second day was even more demoralizing than the first. The elk trail we’d been following ended in a sheer cliff band,

forcing us to backtrack down the banks. Nettles and raspberry bushes sprung up and a choke of dogwood stems closed in. And then the gorge became cliffy and steep, with no bank to speak of. We traversed a imestone ledge, slick as ice. We carefully stepped over ankle-breaking juts of sharp edged granite, loose and slicked with moss.

There was just enough current in the stream to keep you off your balance.

Deep in the canyon, we stopped to chug trail mix, let our legs stop shaking and contemplate how much force it must have taken to propel a pile of massive logs on top of each other, to collapse them in like tinder, rotten and crunching.

When we finally popped out on the road just upstream of where Deep Creek runs into the Colorado River, I hit the deck and vowed that I never wanted to see that stretch of river again, even though it was (excuse the pun) deeply beautiful. I would rather just know that it’s there, lightly traveled, as protected as possible.

So much of what I consider wild or

scenic, designated or not, is man-made or human touched these days. We have our hands in everything: noise pollution from overhead, ghosts of grazing animals, oil and gas drilling on empty lands.

Faced with all of that inescapable development, it feels as if the only places left are the scrobbly weird ones, the scratchy, hardto-cross creeks, the mountains that are a long walk from the trailhead. There’s a constant drive to claim and conquer everything big or rare or untamed.

I admit that I have that desire in me, too. I’s a big part of why I’m here, but honestly I don’t think l like it.

Fighting that drive is the big reason for of Wild and Scenic designation. It might protect us from ourselves and our most base instincts to conquer places, to take advantage of them, and use them until they’re gone, just because they’re there and because we can. It puts value on having beautiful, almost untouchable rivers. It leaves them how they are, remarkable values intact, no trails, no diversions, just freeflowing water.

photo by RUSS SCHNITZER

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FROZEN PARADISE Pack the ice tools, the touring skis and the fat bike, and point it to Lake City, Colorado. This surprising little town is full of adventure and free of crowds.

by CHRIS KASSAR

S

erene beauty. Laid back vibes. Real wilderness. Welcome to Lake City, population 374, Colorado’s last best town nestled at 8,661 feet amid San Juans. And even if it’s wonderfully isolated, this adventure town provides plenty of creature comforts, including reasonable lodging, good eats and welcoming locals. Located off the breathtaking Silver Thread Scenic Byway, Lake City is a spectacular year-round destination, however, winter casts a powerful spell here, with star-filled skies, powder-laden peaks, frozen waterfalls and endless options for fun and exploration—all far from the crowds and glitz of the usual resort towns.

CLIMB ICE

Nearby Ouray gets all the attention, but the Lake City Ice Park is well worth your attention. Located just a few blocks from historic downtown, it offers climbers a diverse array of routes with bolted anchors that range in length from 60 to 100 feet and run the grade gamut from WI3 to WI5. Free (but you are asked to sign a waiver to climb here), easily accessible and well maintained, the municipal frozen playground will challenge climbers of all abilities, from beginner to expert. Plus, most days you’re likely to have this peaceful place all to yourself.

The park is open from December to March (weather permitting) with a community festival taking place in February that features top-roped and lead speed events. lakecityicepark.com Climbers seeking more of an adventure can boot into the backcountry surrounding Lake City. The northern San Juans offer moderate and long multipitch ice climbs, including the well-known Sherman Falls, a classic, four-pitch, WI5 line. The ice park is the ideal place to hone your skills in preperation for these backcountry outings. Irwin Mountain Guides offers guided climbs at the Park with both novice instruction ($135 per person, minimum of three people) and lead climbing classes held on the walls of the park. Private instruction runs $350 per day for one and $200 per day, per person for groups of two and more. irwinguides.com/lake-city

HIT THE WINTER TRAILS

With over 100 miles of groomed multi-use trails weaving between Lake City and Creede, this wild, rugged landscape is easily accessible to skiers, snowshoers and fat bikers seeking long miles and elevated heart rates. Choose your own adventure: You can follow the high ridges of the Continental Divide, traverse the snow-covered tundra of the Alpine Plateau, explore the vastness of Slumgullion Pass or Saw Mill Park, or just ramble down one of the trails that leaves directly from town. For a longer exploit, hit the Hinsdale Haute Route, a remarkable and remote hut-to-hut journey with little avy danger.

This crown jewel of the area links a system of three fully stocked yurts that deliver panoramas of the

Weminuche Wilderness, the La Garita Mountains and five 14,000-foot peaks. The first stop in the system, The Wilson Yurt is just 1.25 miles (and 500 vertical feet) from the trailhead and makes for a fun family objective. hindsdalehauteroute.com

DROP A LINE

The second-largest natural lake in Colorado and the town’s namesake, Lake San Cristobal, offers excellent ice fishing. Those willing to brave the cold, or smart enough to fish from a warming hut, can catch small to medium lake trout using bait or by jigging. Alpine Outfitters in town offers ice fishing trips with a snowmobile ride out to one of those cozy huts and the chance to haul up big fish. alpineoutfitterscolorado.com

LEARN TO TURN

Lift-served skiing in Colorado doesn’t have to break the bank. With seven runs of varying difficulty and a terrain park ideal for practicing jumps, the Lake City Ski Hill and Terrain Park is just the ticket for families looking for an affordable place to learn or perfect thier technique. And it’s priced just right—$20 per adult and $10 per child, both including rental equipment. townoflakecity.co/lake-city-ski-hill.html

SLEEP

Vacation and cabin rentals abound in the area, however, very few places remain open for winter.

Fortunately, our favorite, The Matterhorn Motel & Cabins, does business year-round. Welcoming Lake City visitors since 1949, this classic, updated establishment tucked up against the mountain in historic downtown offers a range of options, including sparkling clean motel rooms, kitchen

efficiency rooms and COOL FACTOR historic cottages. Bonus THERE'S NO ATTITUDE points for beautiful views, AT THE LAKE CITY ICE PARK, WHERE IT'S FREE a large covered patio, TO CLIMB. THE CITY hot tub, and a quiet MAINTAINS THE PARK, location within walking WHICH IS LOCATED ON access to dining, parks BLM LAND, AND THE ICE AND 15 ROUTES HERE. and trails. Plus, owner Debra Goodman, who photo by CHRIS KASSAR sits on the Chamber Board, is always willing to share her seemingly endless wealth of knowledge about local trails, conditions and happenings. matterhornmotel.com

EAT

For a small town, Lake City’s food options are surprisingly diverse—and tasty. If you eat at only one place, hit Packers Saloon and Cannibal Grill. Open seven days a week for lunch and dinner, this classic pub is the hands-down favorite hang-out for locals.

It’s the most popular restaurant in town-for good reason—everything they serve, from burgers to pizza to ribs to duck, is delectable, and delivered with a smile, in an atmosphere where you can chill and take it all in. packersaloonandcannibalgrill.com If you’re in the mood for a Lake City-style fine-dining option, Climb Elevated Eatery serves upscale, homemade comfort food in a relaxed, classy environment. Don’t miss the hand-cut truffle fries, the bison tenderloin, the delish pork chops and, for dessert, the Elevated S’more, a graham cracker -crusted brownie topped with vanilla ice cream, toasted marshmallow and premier chocolate sauce that is one of the best desserts we’ve ever tried (and we’ve tried a lot of them). climbeatery.com N OV E M B E R 2 01 8 / E L E VAT I O N O U T D O O R S . C O M

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STATE OF FUN Colorado’s booming outdoor recreation economy is essential to the well being and identity of this thriving state. Here’s some big numbers that back up that claim.

by DOUG SCHNITZSPAHN

C

olorado has built a national reputation as the epicenter of the outdoor industry, of clean business and a quality of life that draws everyone from Google to The North Face here to set up shop. Why not? Here you can head out and find deep meaning in big mountains one day and watch an NBA game the next. Colorado got here because it’s a state that embraces outdoor recreation and conservation as key building blocks to sustainable communities. To celebrate our forward-thinking state, we decided to run down the numbers behind this outdoor recreation economy.

$28 BILLION

The amount consumers spend on outdoor recreation in Colorado, according to a report from the Outdoor Industry Association (OIA), the trade group that advocates for outdoor brands. That spending reels in $2 billion in state and local tax revenues and creates 229,000 direct jobs that rack up $9.7 billion in wages and salaries. outdoorindustry.org

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Number of times Luis Benitez, the director of the Colorado Outdoor Recreation Industry Office, has stood atop one the Seven Summits, the highest mountains on each continent, including six successful trips to the top of Mount Everest. choosecolorado.com

4.3

Acreage of the newly opened Eagle River Park near the Eagle County Fair and Rodeo Grounds and Chambers Park. The park is part of the Eagle River Corridor Plan established in 2015. In April of 2016, town of Eagle voters approved a 0.5 percent sales tax to fund a variety of park and trail improvements including the River Park project. eagleoutside.com

FIFTEEN

Acreage of the new Riverfront at las Colonias business park in Grand Junction. The progressive office space is drawing brands like Rocky Mounts— who moved to the West Slope from Boulder because of the allure of the space—and Bonsai Design, with built-to-suit spots that incorporate sustainable design practices from LEED, Green Globes, and like-minded industry leaders. It features outdoor meeting zones as well as an open space park, aerial adventure, bike trails, retail outlets and a river recreation zone. “We are seeing more and more interest from businesses

FEELING COLORADO THIS VARIED STATE KNOWS HOW TO DO OUTDOORS. photos by (clockwise from top left) CARLO NASISSE, courtesy LUIS B ENITEZ, BEN DUKE, DEVON BALET, courtesy BIG AGNES

like Rocky Mounts,” says Robin Brown, Grand Junction Economic Partnership executive director.

“Companies are growing tired of metropolitan areas and their long commutes, high real estate costs and congested neighborhoods. They want good business conditions without compromising on quality of life.

We believe we can offer that here in Colorado’s Grand Valley.” gjep.org

71%

Number of Colorado residents who participate in outdoor recreation each year.

Wow, that actually seems low to us here at EO. outdoorindustry.org

$919 MILLION

Amount hunting contributes to the Colorado economy each year. Fishing contributes $1.92 billion and wildlife watching contributes $2.28 billion.

Resident and non-resident big game hunters each contribute about $300 million dollars to Colorado’s economy each year. Resident big game hunters spend nearly twice as many days hunting as do nonresidents, but non-residents spend nearly twice as much per day to hunt in Colorado. cpw.state.co.us

800

Estimated number of jobs that will be created, including 80 top-level corporate positions, by the

move of the VF Corporation to Denver, announced in September. VF is the parent of The North Face, JanSport, Smartwool, Eagle Creek and Altra. Those brands are currently in separate locations across the U.S., but they will all move in together in Colorado.

“The state’s position on the outdoor environment— clean air and land and access—is personal to our employees and we’re creating an environment that allows our employees to bring their best selves to work,” VF president Steve Rendle says. “This just started to feel like the best place to be.” vfc.com

THREE HUNDRED AND FORTY

The number of brands registered to attend the Outdoor Retailer Winter Market trade show in Denver in early November. The show moved its three-time yearly event from Utah to Colorado because Utah politicians insisted on promoting disturbing antipublic lands measures such as shrinking Bears Ears National Monument and even seizing and selling off federally protected land essential for outdoor recreation and quality of life. outdoorretailer.com

25,000 TO 30,000

The estimated number of hikers who climb Grays and Torreys peaks each year, according to the Colorado Fourteeners Initiative. The group says about 334,000 people hiked a fourteener in 2017, up 7.4 percent from the previous season. 14ers.org N OV E M B E R 2 01 8 / E L E VAT I O N O U T D O O R S . C O M

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P.T. WOOD

The mayor of Salida, Colorado— who also co-founded the town’s iconic craft distillery—dishes on why it’s important to get involved in your local community.

by TYRA SUTAK

T

he historic railroad town of Salida, Colorado, may be have been built in an era immortalized by cowboys, gunslingers and rowdy saloons, but these days paddling, mountain biking and craft beer represent the Wild West here. Salida’s mayor, P.T. Wood seems to straddle both worlds. He co-owns a craft distillery (Wood's High Mountain Distiller), sports a handlebar mustache and paddles a whitewater kayak. But Wood didn’t always have political ambitions. The Colorado native and whitewater enthusiast came to politics by embodying Ghandi’s famous words: “Be the change you wish to see in the world.” Elevation Outdoors caught up with him to discuss how he landed in Salida, the finer points of whiskey and why he thinks community engagement is so important.

You’ve been a resident of Salida for over 30 years, and you spent your early years in the area as an active member of organizations like the world-famous FIBArk festival board of directors and the Arkansas River Trust. What was the river community like in the 1990s?

It was growing and vibrant. It was right around then that kayaks were really starting to evolve. Rafts were evolving. The whole way you got down the river was changing pretty quickly. It was such a cool, fun time to be around water sports.

While you’ve owned several businesses since landing in Chaffee County, you now have one of the coolest jobs in town: co-owner of Wood’s High Mountain Distillery. What inspired you to get into the business of booze?

I tried to open a distillery in 2001, but I couldn’t get a distilling license, and there just wasn’t a lot of information on how to go about obtaining one and opening a distillery. Then in 2006, or 2007, I was on a river trip with a bunch of guys, and someone brought out one of the first batches of Stranahan’s whiskey. Right about that time, Montanya Distillers opened in Silverton, and all of the sudden it seemed like people were doing it—opening distilleries—and I was like, ‘I can do it’.”

Was it tough getting the distillery off the ground?

My brother and I came across a great deal that helped us fund the distillery. We knew the people that owned the S Mountain property [the iconic foothills behind the town], and thought it’d be a good thing to own, so we made an offer and bought it for pretty cheap. We then traded it to the city of Salida for some other property that they owned, did a little land development there, and that gave us the extra seed money for the distillery. In the end of 2011, we bought the old downtown auto body shop. It took a little bit of work to put it back together, but by the end of 2012, we got our distilled spirits license and were up and running.

As a small business owner and someone who is heavily involved in the community of Salida, how

on Earth did you find time to run for mayor?

It was never an ambition of mine. I think I—and a lot of other people—just didn’t appreciate the way the last mayor and council were running the city.

Everyone was kind of looking around waiting for someone to step up, and being one of the most vocal complainers, I figured if you’re going to complain about it, you ought to do something about it. That was a good move. I think it inspired a handful of other folks to step up for city council who maybe would not have done so otherwise. We’re doing great things here in the city. It’s a lot of work, but it’s been worthwhile.

Do you think it’s important for people to be involved in their communities?

I think it’s critical to be involved in your community.

They say you’re either at the table or on the table; You’re either sitting there or you’re being eaten.

There’s no sense in complaining about something if you’re not doing anything about it. In every community, there’s a ton of opportunities to go out and help out.

PROOF POSITVE P.T. WOOD DECIDED THAT IF HE WAS GOING TO COMPLAIN ABOUT GOVERNMENT, HE SHOULD STEP UP AND CHANGE IT. photo courtesy P.T. WOOD

What are some of the main outdoor-related projects the city is working on now?

We’re working on acquiring open space. We’re working with the BLM to start a Brown’s Canyon National Monument management plan. We’re working on some outdoor soaking pools at the hot springs pool. We’re working on some affordable housing, so that people in the outdoor industry and all industries can afford to live here. We’re trying to figure out how we can fund the Salida Mountain Trails guys better, and about a million other things.

Last, but not least—how do you maintain the perfect handlebar mustache?

I use a little Clubman Moustache Wax in there. The guys at the Rocky Mountain Beard Company also have some nice stuff, but it mostly takes a lot of concentration.

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READER POLL

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WE ASKED OUR READERS TO CHOOSE THE PLACES THAT EXEMPLIFY A DEDICATION TO THE OUTDOOR LIFESTYLE, THE TOWNS WITH BIG HEARTS, FULL LUNGS AND A DEDICATED LOVE FOR THE PRECIOUS LANDS THAT SURROUND THEM. HERE ARE THE WINNERS.

by DOUG SCHNITZSPAHN

THINK BIG WINTER PARK TOOK HOME TOP HONORS IN OUR READERS’ HEARTS. photo courtesy WINTER PARK

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f you love to go outside and play, you put down roots in a town that makes having fun easy—but also invests in its community and cares for and protects the public lands that support it. But what towns best represent that ethic? Every year, we ask our readers to answer that question online in our Top Adventure Towns Poll: The contest pits the best towns in Colorado against each other to find out what places truly resonate with our readers.

Since it doesn’t seem fair to put small towns and bigger cities in the same bracket—and since they often have have different mindsets—we broke it down into two categories: towns with a population under 7,000 and those over 7,000. In the past, we have limited the poll to the Centennial State but this year we added a new category open to towns (of all sizes) in Utah, New Mexico, Montana, Idaho and Nebraska, too. So here they are, the three towns you voted best for outdoor adventure in the Mountain West. Now get out and enjoy them.

COLORADO SMALL/MEDIUM TOWNS

WINNER

WINTER PARK

POPULATION: 1,030 Winter Park rose to the top of the pack with readers this year after finishing as a finalist last year. Perhaps it’s the easy access that makes Winter Park so popular with our readers: It’s close to the Front Range (and you don’t have to brave the Eisenhower Tunnel to get here) but it feels like Shangri-La, safe over the other side of Berthoud Pass and surrounded by over 765,000 acres of public lands. The thousand souls who live here truly embrace the Colorado outdoor vibe­­—supposedly they work, many in the ski and bike industries but you are most likely to see them shredding, cycling or casting to fat trout. But maybe the town won readers over because it’s an old-school Colorado tradition. If you grew up here, it’s where you went to play. If you just moved here, it’s time you made it your favorite mountain town.

TOP ADVENTURES: In the summer, there’s 600 miles of mountain bike trail here and the Trestle Bike Park serves downhillers. There’s cragging outside Tabernash at Hurd Creek and easy-to-access fly fishing on the Fraser River or via a short hike in on the Williams Fork. Hire a guide with Winter Park Flyfisher (fraserflyshop.com). Come winter, there’s 3,060 feet of vertical drop (1,766 at sister hill and experts’ fave Mary Jane) on the mountain, with some of the best tree skiing in the state. Want to eschew the lifts for lung power? Berthoud Pass and Jones Pass hold backcountry powder just a short drive from downtown Denver. Or book a trip with Powder Addiction Cat Skiing (powderaddiction.com) to smugly repeat untracked run after untracked run.

COMMUNITY: Founded by former Winter Park Resort CEO Jerry Groswold, the non-profit Grand Foundation (grandfoundation.com) has provided $8.6 million in grants to needy organizations across the county via transferable ski and golf passes.

INSIDE INFO: The U.S. has never won an Olympic medal in biathlon. You can train to be the first U.S. skier/shooter to stand on the podium if you take a biathlon experience course at YMCA of th Rockies Snow Mountain Ranch (snowmountainranch.org), one of few places in the country that offers it.

RUNNER UP

SILVERTON

POPULATION: 650 Tucked in at 9,318 feet in the heart of the San Juan Mountains, Silverton is surrounded by public lands and populated with core mountain freaks who appreciate the splendid isolation of their

WINTER PARK

SILVERTON BREATHE IT IN high-mountain hideaway.

In the summer, it’s the WINTER PARK’S SKI AND BIKE INDUSTRY EMPLOYEES perfect basecamp for big FLY FISH THE FRASER RIVER mountain jaunts.

IN THE OFF HOURS (TOP).

TOP ADVENTURES: Entire THE ACTIVE INHABITANTS families can ski at OF GLENWOOD SPRINGS beginner friendly Kendall TAKE FULL ADVANTAGE OF THE BACKYARD TRAILS Mountain for the price of a single lift ticket at larger AND BIG VIEWS (BOTTOM RIGHT). SILVERTON REIGNS resorts, while extreme AS A CORE MOUNTAIN skiers can fuel their TOWN (BOTTOM LEFT). stoke with the advanced photos (clockwise from top) courtesy WINTER PARK, by terrain and heli skiing DAVID CLIFFORD, GETTY at Silverton Mountain.

IMAGES In summer, Silverton is the perfect jumping off point for hiking, backpacking, camping, mountain biking and four wheeling adventures. Iconic day hikes like Ice Lakes and Highland Mary offer abundant wildflowers and pristine alpine lakes, or backpackers can ride the Silverton & Durango Narrow Gauge Railroad to Needleton to access the Weminuche Wilderness and summit area peaks like Eolus, Sunlight and Windom.

INSIDE INFO: Gas up your jeep: The Alpine Loop provides a full day of four wheeling and touring historic mine sites and ghost towns. Black Bear Pass is a technical route for thrill seekers that connects Silverton all the way over to Telluride.

GLENWOOD SPRINGS N OV E M B E R 2 01 8 / E L E VAT I O N O U T D O O R S . C O M

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COLORADO LARGE TOWNS

WINNER

GLENWOOD SPRINGS

POPULATION: 9,962 Glenwood Springs made a splash by winning for the first time this year—but that should not be a surprise. There are many secluded mountain towns where you think you might want to live. Glenwood is the place where you should live since it has easy access to so much—hop on the Interstate to catch a Rockies game in Denver, head down the road for crowd-less, deep skiing and snowboarding at the Aspen resort, make a quick escape to Utah’s desert canyons and slickrock. Or just soak (bad pun, we know) it all up in town with paddling and climbing adventures in Glenwood Canyon or some unpretentious laps at Sunlight Resort.

TOP ADVENTURES: When we say Glenwood Springs, you think hot springs, right? That’s good because who doesn’t want to soak and unwind after a big day in one of the in the geothermal waters of Glenwood Hot Springs or Iron Mountain Hot Springs. As far as getting after it goes, the town’s home to two rivers and a world-class whitewater park. Glenwood Springs has countless opportunities for fishing, rafting, kayaking, canoeing, and stand up paddleboarding. After a scenic tram ride up to Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park, thrills await, including a high alpine coaster traveling down the mountain side, a giant canyon swing launching riders 1,300 feet out over Glenwood Canyon and the Colorado River, and tours exploring the underground caverns.

INSIDE INFO: To catch a truly stellar view of the sinking sun, take the ten minute tram ride up to the Glenwood Caverns Adventure Park and grab one of the best views in the house from the park’s viewing deck. At the park, thrills await, including a high alpine coaster traveling down the mountain side, a giant canyon swing launching riders 1,300 feet out over Glenwood Canyon and the Colorado River, and tours exploring the underground caverns.

MOAB

FRUITA TEN SLEEP

RUNNER UP FRUITA

POPULATION: 13,294 Fruita makes it into the finals every single time we run this contest. So we don’t feel bad recycling a quote from last year: “Trying to describe Fruita is like trying to describe an orgasm,” says Binky McSmithers, a.k.a. George, who used to manage Fruita’s legendary Over The Edge bike shop and now manages Bestslope Coffee.

TOP ADVENTURES: Oh, where to start? The hardest part of a visit here is deciding if you are going to rid on the Mary’s Loop side or over on 18 Road. You can’t go wrong either way. But we are partial to Rabbit Valley, where you can camp or pull up your van, and ride nice quiet epics like the Zion Curtain.

COMMUNITY: With such a bike-is-life vibe, Fruita’s festivals make for the best time to visit: Don’t miss the riding and frolicking at the 25th Fat Tire Festival (fruitafattirefestival.com), held May 3-5, 2019.

INSIDE INFO: Bring that pizza over to beers at Copper Club and party with the locals.

WINNER

follow it up with sunset in the otherworldly red rock landscape of Arches National Park. This is multisport central. Mountain biking is king, of course, followed closely by climbing at Indian Creek or the Fisher Towers but there’s also world class paddling, canyoneering and even skiing here, too.

TOP ADVENTURES: Take a bite out of an epic like the Whole Enchilada (a trail system of 25-miles of downhill mountain biking from the La Sal Mountains to the Colorado River), or try new classics like Captain Ahab. But there’s more than mountain biking here: Arches National Park boasts some of the most rewarding hike-to views in the country.

If you want the perfect family hike, explore the sandstone formations and slots in the leisurely Windows in Arches.

INSIDE INFO: The Bureau of Land Management (BLM) manages 24 campsites in the Moab area, and six state park, national park and national forest campgrounds. These campsites fill quickly and most don’t take reservations, so arrive early to guarantee a spot. Visit discovermoab.com for a full list of campsites in the area.

POPULATION: 5,235

RUNNER UP

Visitors from around the world come to the town of Moab to experience sunrise over the towering depths of Canyonlands National Park and then

POPULATION: 257 It tells you just how hardcore this tiny Cowboy State town plays that it almost won this category.

THE REST OF THE WEST MOAB, UTAH

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TEN SLEEP, WYOMING

“The vast amount of HIGH TIMES public land featuring READERS VOTED ON MORE world-class climbing, THAN THE TOWN ITSELF IN THIS POLL. IT'S THE PEOPLE hiking, fishing, and more that surrounds Ten Sleep, AND THE VIBE THAT MAKE along with all the services FOR A GREAT ADVENTURE TOWN, TOO. MOAB, FRUITA provided by the town, AND TEN SLEEP ARE ALL make it one of the best SPOTS WHERE THE LOCALS PLAY HARD—AND THEY adventure towns in the ARE HAPPY TO BRING YOU West,” says local climber, ALONG IF YOU CAN HANG writer and yogi Alli Rainey AND KEEP A SECRET. (who is pictured above). photos (clockwise from top) TOP ADVENTURES: Ten

by DEVON BALET, JODY Sleep Canyon’s limestone SANBORN, DEVON BALET draws adventure-minded climbers from across the planet. The 18 miles of dolomitic cliffs and over 800 bolted sport climbing routes will keep you entertained—but it can be gnarly for the uninitiated. Prepare yourself for steep, footwork-intensive technical routes. Or simply find your kicks hiking 13,167-foot Cloud Peak, the highest in the Big Horns, or Bomber Peak, where you will find plane wreckage from the 1940s. Bring the fly rod and you can seek out big trout with Ten Sleep Troutfitters (tensleeptroutfitters.com).

INSIDE INFO: Grab a craft brew, recount war stories, gather local beta and support the community at the dog-friendly Ten Sleep Saloon.

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THE SCENE

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FUTURE VISION Remembering the legacy of Adventure Film Festival founder Jonny Copp and seeking out new legends at the annual gathering.

by JAMES EDWARD MILLS

O

n a rainy October morning on the outskirts of Boulder, Colorado, a small group of true outdoor believers gathered for a hike. Following a network of trails behind the Boulder Adventure Lodge, these devoted nature lovers came to experience not just the steep, rugged terrain of the nearby wilderness, but to learn the cultural significance of its historic past. Among the many activities during the 14th annual Adventure Film Festival, this walk through the woods was conducted by one of the event’s sponsors, the local organizers of Outdoor Afro (OA).

A national institution with leaders in more than 30 states, OA creates unique opportunities to celebrate the heritage of AfricanAmericans in nature.

Guided on their hike

by Boulder resident Taishya Adams, the group learned some of Colorado’s Black history.

“Adventure is our birthright. Adventure is not a luxury for the privileged, but lives in the hearts and minds of every living being on the planet,” said Adams.

“By including black history, we honor our ancestors, whose courage, in spite of systemic oppression, helped build this country.”

It may surprise some, but Boulder’s adventure culture includes people of color. In addition to the Arapaho tribe of Native Americans who first occupied this land, Black people are also part of the historic narrative. In keeping with the tradition of the Adventure Film Festival the sharing of these stories empowers all those who attend to see themselves as part of the cultural landscape.

That spirit of inclusiveness has been a part of the festival since the beginning.

Almost 10 years after the tragic death of

its founder, Jonny Copp, The Adventure Film Festival continues to inspire participants to imagine themselves as part of an exciting story. Having evolved to attract a more diverse audience, the festival delivers on the promise of a world of adventure in which all are welcome to participate—a principle Copp championed. Even though it showcases daring feats of athletic skill in the most remote corners of the world, the festival encourages everyone to find the makings of a great hero in themselves.

Adventure Film draws from its central theme that no matter who are you can “Make Your Own Legends.”

First-time festival director Sarah Leone has made a point of ensuring Adventure Film extends the spirit of the man who created it. “I never met Jonny but feel his presence constantly. I have seen the impact his life and the love he exuded has had on so many people,” Leone says.

“Being in this role, I understand first-hand the immense amount of work the Copp family and the AFF community have done over the years to keep Jonny's original vision thriving.”

This was reflected in the selection of films, each of which share compelling stories of great ambition. Highlights include inspired narratives like that of blind kayaker Lonnie Bedwell in “Feel of Vision,” directed by Tucker Gragg, and plus-sized African-American ultra-runner Mirna Valerio, in “The Mirnavator” by Sarah Menzies. The result is a blend of unique characters that appeal to a broad audience. With nods to people of color, the disabled and folks still killin’ it past the age of 60, the assortment of flicks,

programmed NAME RECOGNITION

by José JONNY COIPP'S LEGACY Yavari, CONTINUES TO BURN BRIGHT EVERY FALL IN brought to BOULDER WHEN RISING Boulder the STARS WITH BIG DREAMS images and SHOW THEIR FILMS. voices of photo by JAMES EDWARD new faces MILLS that many in the audience perhaps saw for the first time. “This year I feel proud from having accepted and premiered 4 great films that were either works in progress or were still a concept,” Yavari says. “Over the years you learn to trust the craftsmanship of some filmmakers and you know you'll have a great film when they're finished.”

A true standout was “Confluence”

by Dana Romanoff and Amy Marquis.

Tracing the path of the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon and other National Parks, the film follows a quartet of acoustic musicians who blend the sounds of bird song, water and the chants of Navajo elders. The project arguably embodies the truest spirit of Adventure Film, something judges acknowledged by giving it the Make Your Own Legends Award.

“Being a filmmaker is not the easiest or most traditional road, and in fact it’s one of the hardest things I’ve done,” Romanoff says. “But in doing so, I am living out my passions, my need for adventure and carving my own path, while at the same time helping to create and share stories that will also leave impressions and live on.”

Jonny Copp may be gone, but the journey he began so long ago remains a driving force in the adventure community. In his memory, artists and storytellers from every imaginable walk of life create and share these enduring legends of tomorrow.

James Edward Mills is the author of The Adventure Gap: Changing the Face of the Outdoors.

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CO LO R A D O C R E D

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THE FUNHOG OF FABRICATION Sculptor John Wenner’s high-pivot design stands to disrupt the cycling industry—but his innovative thinking all stems from a punk-rock, fun-first mindset. by TOM WINTER

J

ohn Wenner is riding in circles in his driveway, and he’s smiling ear to ear. The laps are just the kind of exuberant loops that a 12-year-old kid with his first real bike would do. He spins circles of joy with just enough speed to generate a few G-forces—fast enough that a bit of gravel could send him down hard to the pavement for a quick and violent reminder that riding a bike can be serious stuff. But Wenner, 44, doesn’t care. He keeps looping round and round, each lap a bit faster, the angle a bit tighter, that smile growing ever-larger.

METAL SHOP JOHN WENNER’S GARAGE IS A FABRICATOR’S DREAM. STUFFED FULL OF HIGH-END TOOLS AND MACHINES, IT’S A CHAOTIC AND IMPRESSIVE VENUE FOR HIS UNIQUE, BIKE-CENTRIC CREATIVITY. photo by TOM WINTER

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The bike Wenner rides is his own creation. That’s why he trusts it. This particular collection of materials is a true extension of his body. The blueprint began in his brain. He fashioned the frame with his own hands. He painted it—colorful in faded black, yellow and red—in his garage. A true work of art, it’s a townie workhorse in chrome. And Wenner, whose revolutionary bike designs could disrupt the entire sport, keeps riding it in circle after circle.

A

lot of things make John Wenner smile. Most of them have to do with bikes, of course, but welding and beer also top of his joy list. A former full-time visual artist who still creates beautifully welded sculptures in his spare time, Wenner was first drawn to bicycle fabrication, the process of welding parts together to build the

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frame, through his work beating on metal to create beautiful things.

“I really got into kinetic sculptures,” says Wenner, who holds an Master of Arts in sculpture from Peoria, Illinois’ Bradley University. “I had a bunch of shows in Chicago, including an international show at Navy Pier. But art is a rich guy sport.

It’s like a club, there are some artists who make their own stuff, but most of them don’t. They pay other people to do it, so the fabrication side of it was what I relied on for income and money. Because you have to pay the bills, and if you’re putting money into a sculpture you don’t have those resources.”

“The whole process of fabrication came from being an artist,” continues Wenner. “You get out of arts school and you realize that you have to make money. Art doesn’t make money, so I started fabricating railings,

prototypes and other objects.

And once I was in that realm I started buying really expensive tools, because you get what you pay for.”

In addition to being an artist, Wenner was also a cyclist, a biker who was part of a budding and underground scene taking place in the backwoods of Illinois during the 1990’s. Wenner and his crew organzied some of the first—if not the first— enduro-style races in the Midwest. The DIY ethos of those early bike events was heavily influenced by punk rock and skateboarding, with the event flyers produced by Wenner hand-written and photo copied for distribution to a select audience with promises of FUN and BEER and FOOD. Enduro events—downhill-oriented competitions where riders were only timed on the downhill section of courses, with no time penalties for loading your bike in a truck and taking it to the top or walking it up or even

sometimes riding it slowly to the top— were a perfect fit for the organic and carefree scene that Wenner embraced.

“I just thought it would be fun to have a staged, timed race and drink a bunch of beers,” recalls Wenner.

“When mountain biking came about it was like skateboarding in the 60s,” he says. “We were like aliens. We could go ride crazy trails and have fun.

Road bikers were so serious, but mountain biking had a recreational aspect to it. You’d go ride and then you’d drink beer and have fun with your friends.”

It was at this period of his life that Wenner, already a talented metalworker and sculptor, started thinking about making bikes himself, but he never acted on the impulse. The breakthrough wouldn’t come until later, after the Chicago native had moved to Colorado and was teaching welding at the Community College of Denver. “I showed up to school one day on a bike,” he says, “and a student looked at it and said, ‘that’s a really expensive bike, why don’t you just make your own?’ I was like, ‘You’re right!’”

Another random event galvanized what was beginning to brew with that conversation. Before long, a chance meeting with two mechanical engineers at a beer festival led to a plan for a collaborative bike-building effort. Wenner’s unique “high-pivot” design was born.

“The crazy part was the damn thing worked!” exclaims Wenner. “It now feels really good.”

T

hey may feel good, but, for those who haven’t tried them, Wenner’s bikes look strange.

The beefy rear triangle looks overbuilt on first inspection and the wild chain routing is just bizarre. It’s the kind of bike a kid might design while doodling the hours away during math lectures in elementary school, but it’s a system that has attracted the attention of serious riders and industry stalwarts alike.

“John will constantly question the status quo and come up with a unique and fun path to a creative solution,” says long-time friend and industry insider Charles Perryman. “This usually will leave people shaking their heads.”

The high pivot-suspension is

ELEMENTS BE DAMNED PUNK RIDERS

SHOP BRIDGER INSULATED

WENNER AND HIS CREW BROUGHT A DIY ETHOS TO THE EARLY EDURO-STYLE RACES THEY ORGANIZED IN ILLINOIS IN THE 1990S. THAT SPIRIT REFLECTED A SPORT THAT WAS NOT YET CO-OPTED BY BIG BRANDS. photo courtsy JOHN WENNER

certainly odd, but it's efficient, providing that perfect balance of stiff on the ups and stable on the downs that mountain bikers covet.

“John has a unique approach to how he wants his bike to ride when climbing and descending,” says Perryman. “The bike should climb very efficiently. And he wants it to be a plush rock- and root-eating machine on the downhills. He worked out the ideal position of the pivot on his bike and built it to do exactly what his vision for an ultimate shred machine would be.”

“Some people don’t like it,” admits Wenner.

But the reality is that most people who experience Wenner’s custom high-pivot system do like it, particularly in the fast-growing enduro segment of the market, a segment that has the potential to revitalize competitive and recreational mountain biking. And with partnerships that include SRAM and Rockshocks it seems that the industry is paying attention to Wenner, even if his name remains obscure.

Wenner downplays any hoopla about shifting the mountain bike paradigm. “I’m just building bikes,” he says of his designs and their potential to change the industry. “I’m just a fabricator.”

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PEOPLE

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INCOMING OPTIMIST THE

Angela Hawse takes the reins as the new leader of the American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA).

by ROB COPPOLILLO

A

pessimist might see the American Mountain Guides Association (AMGA) facing some serious growing pains.

And, yes, the non profit which sets the standard for mountain guides in the U.S, does have to face some big challenges including how to grow membership and address access on public lands as well as a looming controversy over scope-of-practice policy. But newly elected board president, Angela Hawse only sees solutions and soon-to-be successes.

“I’m going to dig in and find each board member’s strength, and we’re going to play to that,” she promises. Believe her.

Based in Ridgway, Colorado, the 55-year-old Hawse, has built a celebrated career with this getit-donemindset. She was the sixth American woman to achieve International Federation of Mountain Guides Associations (IFMGA) certification. She was the first woman to join the instructor team at the AMGA and won its 2011 Guide of the Year. She’s led expeditions in the Himalaya (summiting Ama Dablam and missing Everest by just 275 feet), holds a master’s in International Mountain Conservation from Prescott College and heliguides for HeliTrax in southern Colorado. She’s also one of the few Americans to complete a professional Level 2 avy course in Canada.

She’s also socially conscious, raising $20,000 for a girls’ safe-house project in Sikkim, India, for example, during one of her expeditions there. She also participated in getting the first adaptive climber (Tom Whitaker) to the summit of Mount Everest in 1998, as well as removing thousands of pounds of garbage from the peak (including o2 bottles, human waste, fuel canisters, and batteries).

“I knew she would be tough,” says Emilie Drinkwater, a Salt Lake City, Utah-based IFMGA guide who survived two exams with Hawse. “I especially enjoyed having her in the ski guide exam.

She’s confident, assertive, and articulate. Angela has always been the embodiment of good, solid,

experienced-based decision making. Sometimes when I find myself uncertain about something related to guiding, I like to ask myself, ‘What would Angela do?’”

In guiding circles and amongst thousands of clients with whom she’s worked, Hawse is regarded as well-rounded, conscientious and careful. “It’s not just Angela’s AMGA guide training in rock, ski and alpine,” says Marc Chauvin, the third American to earn IFMGA certification, and a former AMGA board president. “Her course work with the Canadian Avalanche Association and Prescott College gives her a depth that is rare in the mountain guiding profession.”

I

catch up with Hawse at her home in Ridgway. She’s just returned from examining candidates in rock climbing for the AMGA (she’s “tough but fair” according to a former student and examinee) and now she’s packing to lead a ski expedition in Antarctica. I ask her about the issues facing the AMGA, which awards the highest level of guding certification in the U.S. as well as advocating for guides and acess to climbing.

The AMGA’s efforts to codify a scope of practice (SoP) for mountain guides in the U.S. has been a sticky issue. The organization has introduced specific guidelines for routes and terrain in which guides of differing levels of certification can work. This has made waves within the community, as guide services and other organizations like NOLS and Outward Bound, have considered the SoP’s effect on their activities and labor pool.

There’s big money, big egos and big changes in the mix, which only motivates Hawse.

“The scope of practice is a challenge. The whole avalanche education structure has changed in the U.S.,” she says. “We have to be sure that’s meeting the needs of our guides. We need to get marketing out to the public, identifying different levels of certification. We’re working with a number of different organizations for outdoor access.”

Sounds daunting, I say. She compares it to her physical training: “I’ve always been a bit of an underdog. The public’s impression of a mountain

guide is the tall, squareSHARP END shouldered, square-jawed HAWSE, 55, WAS THE guy. I’m small statured.

AMERICAN MOUNTIAN GUIDES ASSOCIATION I’ve had to work hard, to (AMGA) GUIDE OF THE YEAR get strong and maintain IN 2013 AND SHE WAS THE strength.”

FIRST WOMAN TO JOIN THE It’s a literal accounting AMGA'S TRAINING TEAM. of how she’s overcome photo courtesy AMGA the physical stressors of a career guiding on rock, snow, and ice; but it’s also a metaphor for how she’s thrived in a profession overwhelmingly dominated by men. Consider that only nine percent of U.S. IFMGA mountain guides are women (though that figure vastly eclipses countries like France, which claims just two percent).

I ask how her career as a mountain guide has prepared her for her new position. She answers simply, “My qualifications and experience with the AMGA for decades speaks for itself.”

And how about as a female mountain guide?

“I have to think about that a lot,” Hawse says.

“One of the things I want to do is hear the challenges women have gone through in the AMGA. We have such a strong board; it’s very progressive. We have a lot of experience with these types of issues, it brings more knowledge to the conversation. I really feel like I can be a springboard or a sounding board for women going through the programs. It’s more accessible when you have another woman to talk to.”

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special advertising section

Overland There are still plenty of “firsts” waiting out there for outdoor adventurers willing to dream big. To that end, and just for the simple joy of it, Salewa athlete Paul Guschlbauer is flying from the top of Alaska to the tip of Argentina in a Super Cub, a plane that’s more or less a paraglider.

By Rob Coppolillo

T

he pundits and pontificators would have you believe the world has shrunk. The explorers who came before us, dressed in wool knickers and preserved in grainy footage, nabbed all the “firsts.”

Our tiny screens, intercontinental flights and endless connectivity have rendered adventure nothing more than a banal social media commodity. We are a neutered and spayed generation of spectators. Right?

Not so fast. Perhaps we travel and communicate more easily these days, but, for some, this freedom opens up more possibilities than it denies. To wit: Paul Guschlbauer.

“Well, I didn’t get to fly

off the volcano here,” the easygoing Austrian tells me over an acceptable WhatsApp connection from Colima, Mexico.

“It’s active. I’ve flown off Pico de Orizaba, though, so I’ve flown off the highest one.” We are just five minutes into a conversation about his attempt to be the first at something no one has done before, a parapenting adventure covering thousands of miles he calls the “Overland” project.

Yeah, it’s special: Attempting to fly over bubbling magma on a 14,000-foot volcano, just is just another day on this journey.

No surprise, Guschlbauer, 34, is a Red Bull and Salewa pro paraglider pilot. Red Bull fuels the journey with its high-octane

do-anything adventure elixir, while Salewa--the legendary Italian manufacturer of shoes, apparel, tents and mountain gear--keeps him warm, dry and comfortable along the way.

This project marries Guschlbauer’s love of paragliding with another passion, small aircraft. He hatched the Alaska-to-Patagonia project two years ago, while flying across Alaska with a friend in a Piper Super Cub. Why not fly from Alaska to Patagonia, he decided, while stopping to parapent off beautiful peaks along the way? They would certainly be the first to do it.

And so Overland was born.

I

caught up with Guschlbauer in early October when he and his wife Magdalena had stopped in Colima, Mexico. Here, Guschlbauer hoped he could add another thrill to his list and fly off the crater of the active volcano high above the town.

“Every day something crazy is happening,” he says. “It keeps getting more and more awesome.

Flying this plane, at 85 miles per hour, means the trip takes longer than I thought, but you see everything up close. It never gets boring.”

Guschlbauer calls his method of travel “fly to fly.” He’s piloting a single-engine Super Cub from Point Barrow, Alaska, to Ushuaia, Argentina. He began

the odyssey—after furious weeks of prep in Willow, Alaska—on June 21, the summer solstice. He intends on landing in Patagonia on December 21, the Southern Hemisphere’s summer solstice.

“We’re on schedule,” he laughs.

The Super Cub is effectively the Land Rover of airplanes—it’s maneuverable; has oversized balloon tires for landing on rock, sand, tundra, or grass; it’s fieldserviceable; and, yeah, it’s slow.

“Every flight is good. Crossing into Canada and down to Bella Coola, I didn’t expect it to be that remote. Flying over the Nevada and Utah desert, three to four hours, you have nothing but desert,” he says.

The Super Cub has a relatively limited range of 350-400 miles and tops out at 85 mph, so it’s taken the pair more than three months to make it to Colima. The duo flies five-to-six hours a day, with Bluetooth music streaming over their headphones.

“People ask me all the time, ‘Are you going to stop before Argentina?’” he says. “Yes, I have to stop every four hours! It’s hard for people to understand what it’s like flying this small plane. It’s more like a paraglider.”

For decades, the usal method for adventurers to take on these trans- and intercontinental trips was in trucks, kitted-out for crossing deserts, swamps and mountains. The Super Cub opens up even more terrain, especially with Guschlbauer in the cockpit.

“For sure, he’s grabbed it by the horns,” says Gavin McClurg, a professional paraglider, worldclass sailor and Patagonia ambassador. McClurg met Guschlbauer during the Red Bull X-Alps, a trans-Alp paraglider race in which Guschlbauer’s finished third three times (2011, 2015, 2017).

In the little more than two years it took for him to learn to fly the Super Cub for the Overland project, Guschlbauer earned a reputation as an outstanding pilot. “When Paul told me he wanted to learn to fly a bush plane, I said, ‘You have to come to Alaska!’ I set him up with Kenny McDonald, a legend up there. He’s a pilot who also rebuilds planes when people

Guschlbauer hatched the Alaskato-Patagonia project two years ago, while flying across Alaska with a friend in a Piper Super Cub. Why not fly from Alaska to Patagonia, he decided, while stopping to parapent off beautiful peaks along the way? wreck them. According to Kenny, Paul is the best pilot up here,” says McClurg.

W

ith the Andes coming up, I ask Guschlbauer if he is worried about all the high passes and remote landings. It’s difficult terrain even for experienced pilots in superior aircraft. So I ask him what nerves him out more, flying the plane or the paraglider.

“The paraglider goes higher than the plane, up to 18,000 feet. When I land my little plane in a place like Telluride, Colorado, at 9,000 feet, I lose about 50 percent of my engine performance,” Guschlbauer explains. If he’s nervous, he’s not letting on. He summons his innerAustrian, planning meticulously and preparing carefully.

“It’s been this cool transition to see,” says McClurg of Guschlbauer’s path as a pilot.

“He’s so Austrian, but after a couple months with Kenny and his family in Alaska, he’s got a little Alaskan in him now.”

Guschlbauer is heading into the latter half of Overland on schedule, but he’s willing to flex things a bit, too.

“Magdalena is with me every single minute of the way. She sees all the crazy flying. She helps me and gives me advice.

She has 150 hours in the plane by now,” he says.

Magdalena has already climbed two fourteeners with Guschlbauer. “She was not into this before,” he says. “Now we have a goal: We want to climb Aconcagua together. This is a side story that came up on this trip.

She’s discovered that she likes it.”

The Super Cub, though, is already loaded to capacity, with his paraglider, and all their Salewa outdoor gear: dome tent, sleeping bags, pads and

assorted camping gear. Salewa will ship everything they will need for their Aconcagua mission, though Guschlbauer assures me the pair are on schedule for a solstice arrival in Ushuaia.

T

hese days I rock climb with a miniature satellite SOS device. My editor can add comments remotely as I peck away at this piece. Paul and Magdalena edit YouTube videos during their Overland mission, and you can follow all of it online. Tell me, does the world feel smaller or bigger because of this?

Elevation Outdoors contributing editor Rob Coppolillo is the author of The Mountain Guide Manual (Falcon, 2017), an IFMGA/AMGA certified mountain guide and the owner of Vetta Mountain Guides (vettamountainguides.com).

COLORADO BRANDED What better place to build an outdoor brand than in the state that gets outside and plays more than any other? The people who work at these companies live the Colorado life—and that dedication to adventure shows in the businesses they run and the products they produce.

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C O LO RADO -NE SS We “Escaped to Colorado” five years ago and started an adventure in Denver while still continuing business as usual in Salt Lake City, Utah. In celebration of a little bit more freedom in brewing, we created a delicious Mosaic Hop forward IPA called Escape to Colorado.

NE W P RO DU C TS We are in the middle of one of our favorite seasons: Baptist Season. Big Bad Baptist is one of our favorites. We release it once a year and alongside the OG we will be releasing the popular Baptista again and a new big guy, Quadruple Barrel Big Bad Baptist. It’s one you will not want to miss. It tastes like a warm fuzzy blanket surrounded by your favorite people at a campfire! Also, we just released Drama Juice, the newest of our NEIPA series and we will follow in a few months with Maximum Cowbell.

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beer cooler for your adventure needs. We also host fitness events and partner with outdoor lifestyle partners. And we make giving back a priority by hosting charities every month as well as putting a monthly rotation of local artists' work on our walls.

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T H E STORY For Lems, it’s simple: Shoes should be designed using the bare minimum. They should fit the foot’s natural shape, while allowing your feet to move like you’re wearing nothing at all.

In 2008, Lems’ creator, Andrew Rademacher, reached his end point, searching for shoes that fit the natural shape of the foot. Andrew decided to learn the art and science of shoemaking in his own way, starting by dissecting his favorite running shoes and cutting out the extra, unnecessary material. He studied shoe fitting, last construction, and pattern making so that he would be able to design his shoes to fit like no others on the market.

After years of research, countless hours of design and dozens of prototypes, Andrew’s unwavering focus finally paid off. In September 2011, Lems released its first product—the Primal. Though Lems has come a long way since that original design, Andrew continues to study his art while staying true to his mission of making naturally fitting footwear that allows your feet the freedom to be just as nature intended.

COLORADO-NESS Back in 2015, we decided to make a big change and move Lems from small town Hermitage, Pennsylvania, to mountainbased Boulder, Colorado. Throughout our time in this beautiful town, we’ve been influenced and inspired by the

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When thinking about the future of our brand, we feel that Colorado will be our forever home, and we wouldn’t want it any other way.

N EW PR ODU C TS After living in Boulder for the past three years, we’ve been inspired by the Colorado lifestyle and are starting to reflect that in our product offering.

Our newest and most versatile shoe yet, the Lems Trailhead, is equipped to take on any adventure. It’s the first product in our “Mountain-to-Town” collection, and we’re excited to expand our product line with a new and innovative shoe suited for both the trail and the town.

With its wide toe box, minimal heel drop and lightweight design, the Trailhead is sure to keep pushing your boundaries. Whether you’re climbing a fourteener, going on a bike-and-brew tour or even backpacking around the world, this mountain sneaker will take you far away from the ordinary. Designed for the trail but styled for the town, this 100-percent vegan friendly shoe is sure to be the answer for your every move.

T E ST IM O NIAL “I can’t remember anything I have worn on my feet, or anywhere else, that has so radically changed my opinion about clothing. I have always felt that my feet were the only part of my body that hated hiking. That doesn’t seem to be the case anymore. In fact, so far I have not even changed shoes, either at the trailhead or back at the car, something that used to be standard practice. I will get back to the car and think, ‘Well, the shoe I’ve been wearing all day feels like I just put it on.’ I just get in the car and drive home.

I never thought I would find a hiking boot that I put on getting right out of bed and took off right before I went back there.

But it seems that I have...” —Donn S., Happy Customer F U N FAC T Lems was founded back in 2011, but at that time we were known as Stem Footwear. After about a year of being in business, we received a cease and desist letter from Nordstrom and it was brought to our attention that there’s a clothing company they carried in their stores, called “Stem.” Who knew? From there we were forced to change our name and decided on “Lemming.” Well, that also didn’t last long. We received an astronomical amount of complaints referring to the Disney video portraying lemmings as “suicidal creatures” and nobody could understand how we had named our brand after such an animal.

We obviously scrapped that idea. Since then, we have been, and plan on forever being, Lems.

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COLORADO BRANDED

GEAR GIVEAWAY SPECIAL ADVERTISING SECTION

ENTER TO WIN ELEVATIONOUTDOORS.COM

1. MEIER QUICKDRAW SKIS ($735) 2. LEMS TRAILHEADS ($130) 3. NED 300MG FULL SPECTRUM

MEIER SKIS

TH E STO RY Meier skis was born in 2009 out of a passion for skiing. Founder Matt Cudmore was looking for a lightweight, high performance ski that was fun in backcountry pow, trees, crud and on groomed resort runs. Giving up on name-brand skis, Matt engineered his own and the Heritage was born. Meier skis has been crafting unparalleled, handmade skis ever since. As with many great ideas, it started in the garage, but progressed to a larger facility soon after. In 2016, Meier mover from the Roaring Fork Valley and is now happy to call Denver home.

HEMP OIL ($44) + 4 PACK HEMP INFUSED LIP BALMS ($24) 4. A 2-3 HOUR GUIDED RIDE FOR YOU + 5 FRIENDS WITH FATTEBIKES! ($250) (RULES + RESTRICTIONS APPLY) 5. THREE-MONTH SUBSCRIPTION TO SCOUT BOX ($200)

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C O LO R AD O - NES S Meier skis wood cores are handcrafted in Denver, Colorado, entirely from locally sourced Aspen and Beetle Kill Pine. By using Colorado forest products, we are not only helping the environment and striving to be the most eco-friendly, high-performance ski company around, but we are also providing jobs and boosting the local economy.

C O M E VI S I T Visit us at our new factory or “craft skiery” as we like to call it. We are the first ski manufacturer who give you the chance to have a seat at our bar, enjoy a tasty beverage poured by our “skitender,” watch your skis being pressed through large glass windows and even chat with us about making your own 1 of 1 Meier Custom ski!

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NED

T H E STORY Headquartered in Boulder, Ned is a small-batch, premium wellness brand committed to helping people feel better and live better through simple means and a deep connection to the natural world.

Founders Ret Taylor and Adriaan Zimmerman established Ned on an alpine adventure in Colorado’s Indian Peaks Wilderness in the belief that there’s a better first line of defense to our well-being ahead of doctors and pharmaceuticals. Those answers often lie in nature—in a walk through the forest, in the glow of a campfire, and in the plants, herbs, roots, fungi and minerals that our ancestors have used for millennia.

Ned’s debut collection of Full Spectrum Hemp products is slowcrafted from the finest Colorado-grown hemp flowers to restore balance in the body and mind.

T E ST I MON I A L “I began training for a half-marathon and ran into many hiccups along the way—sore and tight muscles, strained ligaments. This made my recovery and training so much easier.

Thank you Ned! (Also, five stars for wonderful costumer service! Quick and informative.)” –Hannah French FU N FACT The understated topography lines on Ned’s product labels were designed to show the land surrounding the farm where our hemp is grown on the Western Slope of the Rockies. It’s one more way Ned shares the magic of Colorado with its customers.

Use promo code ELEVATION for 10 percent off your first order at HelloNed. com! Instagram @meetned

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FattE-BIKE

T HE STO RY Co-founders Victoria Brunner and Kenny Fischer were looking for a solution to their commute that didn’t involve a car. Upon discovering electric bicycles, they realized they had hit upon the next revolution, not only in cycling, but in transportation. FattEBike’s mission is less about biking more, and more about driving less, because our bikes are built to be your go-to commuter and recreational vehicle. There’s no sweating on your way to work, you get up hills with ease, and you go twice as far, twice as fast, with half the effort!

We provide four models, one for every lifestyle, in a variety of eye-catching colors, including our cruiser model (Londonderry), mountain style (Sgt. Mingo), cargo (the Major T- a true workhorse!) and folding bike (Peñalosa). We also love our fat tires and put them on all our models (hence our name, FattE-Bikes). The bikes provide an array of benefits like better traction, stability, and allow for year-round riding in all types of terrain and weather.

our cruiser model is named after Annie Londonderry, the first woman to bicycle around the world. Another model, the Major T, is named after Marshall Taylor, the first world champion bicyclist.

C OME VISIT Schedule a free electric bike demo and come visit us at our new location, or we can even come to you (we are mobile)!

C O LO RAD O - NES S FattE-Bikes is Denver’s first locally born electric bike company and one of the only ones in the industry who can claim to be built in America. We are also one of the most sustainable, as our operations are 100-percent run on renewable energy!

TESTIMONIAL “I’m in absolute love with my FattE-Bike!

I sold my car and now I ride it everywhere!” —Mia P.

FUN FACT All of our models are named after famous people in bicycle history. For instance,

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SCOUTbox

T HE STO RY SCOUTbox is the only subscription box created by scouts, for scouts.

Subscriptions start at $35 per month and each monthly shipment of gear, snacks, accessories and educational items is based on a different theme— perfect for adventurers of all ages and backgrounds. Whether you're a seasoned outdoorist looking to explore unique gear, a complete newbie, or a family with a variety of experience levels, you'll look forward to your SCOUTbox each month!

C O LO RADO -NE SS “We're new to the Colorado scene and loving every bit of it. We often support Colorado nonprofits and partner with a ton of great outdoor brands also based in Colorado. Reach out if you ever want to hit some trails together!”

F U N FAC TS We were founded by two Eagle Scouts (and brothers). They started SCOUTbox to share their love for the outdoors and educate families about quality gear. We have hundreds of subscribers across North America. We began shipping in April 2017 to all fifty states in the U.S., Canada, Puerto Rico, and beyond. We donate more than one percent of our total revenue.

Every year, SCOUTbox supports youth/ scouting, outdoor/conservation and other worthy causes.

T E ST I MON I A L “Best. Subscription. Box. Ever!” —Sami K., subscribed February 2017 “I can't recommend SCOUTbox enough. It gives you the opportunity to try things you might not necessarily try otherwise.” -Trudy, S., subscribed March 2017 MON T H LY T H E ME S Every SCOUTbox features hand-picked gear from leading outdoor experts and scouts. Past themes have ranged from Trail/Hiking to Camp Cooking, Outdoor Technology, Wilderness Survival and everything in between. You always get more value in each box than you pay for (some boxes are worth more than $80!), and you can cancel anytime. We even throw in a free fire-starter with every single month (hint: it’s a cardboard box)!

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GEAR

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COLORADO CRED

The Centennial State is home to a growing number of outdoor brands who perfect their stuff by putting it to the test in the mountains close to home. Here’s gear that best represents why this state is leading the outdoorindustry.

by DOUG SCHNITZSPAHN 1. F LY LO W B I LLI E C OAT HOMEBASE: Denver MOST OFTEN SPOTTED AT: Loveland Ski Area (see photo at right) WHY WE DIG IT: This tough waterproof/ breathable shell doesn't fuss with a whole lot of extras: Weighing in at just 20 ounces, it’s the ideal layer for motivated skin-track shuffling, but it can still hold off brutal exposure on Loveland’s high lifts. Well-placed pockets hold skins and phone and the hood fits over a helmet.

WHAT GIVES IT COLORADO CRED: The Denver brand that cut its teeth racking up laps at Loveland and Berthoud Pass understands that Colorado skiers want to get down to business and need gear that can handle abuse. $400; flylowgear.com 2. T E N K A R A H A N E HOMEBASE: Boulder MOST OFTEN SPOTTED AT: Rocky

Mountain National Park WHY WE DIG IT: Incredibly packable, this 10-foot, 10-inch rod telescopes down to a stashable 15-inch package. But don’t think it’s a novelty: Once extended, the rod proves stiff, supple and adept at pulling fish out of anything from alpine lakes to tough-to-access pocket water.

WHAT GIVES IT COLORADO CRED: Tenkara, a Japanese style of fly fishing that requires no reel, is beautiful because it’s so simple and effective. It’s also ideal for Rocky Mountain multi-sporters who don’t have the space to carry a ton of fishing gear but still want to get some casts in on remote backpacking and climbing trips. $150; tenkarausa.com 3. S H I N E S T Y FRESH PRINCE ONSIE HOMEBASE: Boulder MOST OFTEN SPOTTED AT: The Arapahoe Basin Beach WHY WE DIG IT: Just look at it. While some may see this type of style as a travesty on the hill, we embrace the bravado of wearing a ski suit that would tickle the fancy of the “Always Sunny” gang. And that old-school neon suit includes a pass pocket.

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EMBRACING THE VIBE

Flylow’s Billie Coat is a frequent flier on the Loveland slopes. photo courtesy CASEY DAY / FLYLOW

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WHAT GIVES IT COLORADO CRED: Boulder-

based Shinesty has found success with a don’t-care attitude that resonates with the independent minded and thrill seekers. $250; shinesty.com 4. M Y T R A I L C O 8 5 0 F I LL H L H O O D E D D O W N JAC K E T HOMEBASE: Boulder MOST OFTEN SPOTTED AT: The Uncompahgre Wilderness WHY WE DIG IT: Providing warmth on demand, this easy-to-stuff puffy insulates with lofty, cozy 850-fill down and withstands the travails of the trail thanks to a 10-denier nylon shell. It weighs just 11 ounces and squishes down to softball size.

WHAT GIVES IT COLORADO CRED: Fastand-light pioneer Demitri Coupanous, the original co-founder of legacy brand GoLite, created My Trail to continue

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bringing that minimalist performance to hiking and backpacking gear. The brand also strives to make that gear affordable. $249; mytrailco.com 5. Z E A L M O R R I S O N HOMEBASE: Boulder MOST OFTEN SPOTTED AT: Fruita WHY WE DIG IT: This one pair of shades

tackles a wide range of outdoor pursuits from climbing to mountain biking to cutting down the glare so you can read the menu on the patio at your favorite brew pub. The polarized, photochromic lenses react on the fly to changing light—a godsend when you are moving in and out of shadows— and the bio-plastic frames allow your Colorado eco-conscience to rest easy.

WHAT GIVES IT COLORADO CRED: When you see us wearing them, don’t we look like we live in Colorado? $219; zealoptics.com

6. L E M S T R A I LH E A D HOMEBASE: Boulder MOST OFTEN SPOTTED AT: Chautauqua WHY WE DIG IT: All too often, hiking shoes

are overkill. Not here. Comfy, spongy and surprisingly stable, Lems’ latest adventure shoes can take a beating even if they just weigh 11.7 ounces per shoe (in a men’s size 10). That makes them a solid choice for big mountain hikes, dog walking or just kicking around town.

WHAT GIVES IT COLORADO CRED:

Coloradans love to travel and the Boulder-based brand thinks outside the box, providing footwear that can take on any challenge (and chill out) but won’t bulk up your luggage. $130; lemsshoes.com 7. S TA S H LO G I X S I LV E R TO N HOMEBASE: Boulder MOST OFTEN SPOTTED AT: Pearl Street WHY WE DIG IT: If you need to keep

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9. your precious stash—no matter what that may be—safe and organized, this lockable soft container is just the ticket. Best of all, the silver lining suppresses any suspicious smells.

WHAT GIVES IT COLORADO CRED:

Innovation and minimalism. Adventure junkies always want to be ready to hit the road on demand and this smart system means everything is organized so you can run out the door in a hurry.

When you get there, you can be rest assured it all stays safe and private. $69; stashlogix.co 8 . B I G AG N E S E T H E L 0 HOMEBASE: Steamboat Springs MOST OFTEN SPOTTED AT: 10th Mountain Division Huts WHY WE DIG IT: Warm enough with a 0-degree rating but light enough to pack down for an alpine trip, this down bag delivers everything a cold-toed

woman desires. Waterproofing on the polyester shell fends off a bit of precipitation and condensation.

WHAT GIVES IT COLORADO CRED: Winter nights slow us down no less than winter days, and this plush bag makes cold weather sleeping in huts or at camp a dream on chilly evenings. $300-$330; bigagnes.com 9. M O U N TA I N S TA N DA R D R AV E N T R U C K E R H AT HOMEBASE: Boulder MOST OFTEN SPOTTED AT: Eldorado State Park WHY WE DIG IT: A trucker hat is the cherry on the top of your hip outdoorsy look. Ravens are the mystical birds of Odin (god of wisdom, war and poetry), the mountains and Edgar Allen Poe. Enough said.

WHAT GIVES IT COLORADO CRED:

Founded by designers who have

worked for outdoor brands across the globe, Mountain Standard stays true to its Colorado roots. $18; mountainstandard.com 1 0. S T R A F E N O M A D B I B PA N T HOMEBASE: Aspen MOST OFTEN SPOTTED AT: Racking up laps at Highlands Bowl WHY WE DIG IT: Built with a combination of eVent breathable/waterproof fabric (and tough Cordura where your edges nip at the bottoms), these sturdy bibs keep you comfy in the deep stuff all winter long. Athletic four-way stretch fabric means they move with you on the hill, and roomy pockets hold all the little essentials.

WHAT GIVES IT COLORADO CRED: Twin brothers John and Pete Gaston created the brand to make the apparel they wanted to ski in their backyard of Aspen Highlands Bowl. It don’t get

more authentic than that. $479; strafeouterwear.com 1 1 . M E I E R S K I S H E A DWAT E R S R E P YO U R WAT E R HOMEBASE: Denver MOST OFTEN SPOTTED AT: Breckenridge WHY WE DIG I t: Meier skis partnered with Colorado fishing brand Rep Your Water, which raises funds for conservation through its product.

Choose a custom top sheet with your favorite trout species—rainbow, brown, brookie or cutthroat—on these 88mmunderfoot boards that love to carve long, fast frontside runs.

WHAT GIVES IT COLORADO CRED: Skiing and fly fishing simply go together if you live in a Colorado mountain town.

These skis will get props from your fellow ripping anglers on the hill. Plus, they’re handmade in Denver. $795; meierskis.com

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Rugged • Authentic • Reliable • Timeless

Available at these authorized retailers: Mountain Khakis Flagship Store 1412 Larimer Square Denver, CO (303) 505-1566 Neptune Mountaineering Boulder, CO

Vital Outdoors Golden, CO

(303) 499-8866

(303) 215-1644

Jax Outdoor Gear Fort Collins (970) 221-0544 Loveland (970) 776-4540 Lafayette (720) 266-6160

HEAR THIS

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HOT RIZE HITS 40

The Colorado bluegrass pioneers celebrate four decades together.

by JEDD FERRIS

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olorado string bands are well known for messing with the boundaries of traditional bluegrass. While acts like Leftover Salmon and Yonder Mountain String Band often receive props for their acoustic expansiveness, much of the credit for pioneering the practice is owed to an influential predecessor: Hot Rize. The quartet emerged from Boulder in 1978, and after making an impact throughout the Front Range with marathon gigs at venues like the Colorado Coal Company, they went on to become a driving force in the national newgrass movement with acts like the Seldom Scene and Newgrass Revival.

The group’s first longstanding lineup—mandolin picker/lead vocalist Tim O’Brien, banjo innovator Pete Wernick, bassist Nick Forster and guitarist Charles Sawtelle—mixed reverence for Bill Monroe’s high lonesome sound with some of the shaggier edges of rock and country. The band nimbly ran through old standards like “Blue Night” and “High on a Mountain,” but Forster preferred to bob along on an electric bass and Wernick often ran his banjo rolls through a phase-shifter effects pedal.

“We were never down the straight and narrow,” Forster recently told a newspaper based in Raleigh, North Carolina, where the band hosted the International Bluegrass Music Association’s (IBMA) annual awards show back in September.

That didn’t stop Hot Rize from gaining widespread acceptance. As bluegrass fans opened their minds to progressive interpretation, the band became festival NEVER TOO OLD TO BE ON THE RIZE PETE WERNICK, NICK FORSTER, BRYAN SUTTON AND TIM O’BRIEN (LEFT TO RIGHT) KEEP THE JAM TOASTY. photo courtesy HOT RIZE, inset photo courtesy NATHANIEL RATELIFF

mainstays, made national TV appearances and played the Grand Ole Opry in 1982. They also won IBMA’s Entertainer of the Year in 1990—the same year they decided to call it quits. Reunion shows were frequent, though, until the untimely passing of Sawtelle in 1999.

With the addition of flat-picking guitar wiz Bryan Sutton, the group reformed in 2002 and ever since the band members have juggled a small-but-steady regimen of Hot Rize gigs with their various other musical endeavors: O’Brien, a skilled songwriter, has earned multiple Grammy Awards and crossed into the worlds of folk and Americana; Wernick leads banjo camps across the country; and Forster has hosted the nationally syndicated nonprofit radio show eTown out of Boulder since 1991.

This year, the group has made it a point to celebrate their 40th anniversary, and, to mark the occasion, they visited one of their favorite old haunts—the Boulder Theatre—for a special threenight stand in January. The shows featured guest appearances by some of the best in bluegrass, including mandolin ace Sam Bush, dobro master Jerry Douglas and deft fiddler Stuart Duncan.

Afterwards, highlights from the show went into the new live release “Hot Rize 40th Anniversary Bash.”

The record features 19 tracks that showcase the group’s fast-paced fretwork and uplifting harmonies. Throughout the live set, the band offers a retrospective tour of the best-known songs in their expansive catalog, including Wernick’s hard-driving instrumental “Huckling the Berries” and O’Brien’s traditionally-minded “Nellie Kane,” which has become a well-covered bluegrass favorite since it appeared on Hot Rize’s 1979 self-titled debut.

The quartet’s acoustic forays into outside genres also show up. In particular, a guest-heavy, highenergy take on “Radio Boogie,” a dance-ready rockabilly tune from the 50s, gets reimagined with a flurry of slick solos. Before running through an uptempo version of Glen Campbell’s “Wichita Lineman,” Wernick reminisces about how the song helped bring the band together four decades ago during informal jam sessions at the Denver Folklore Center. It’s an apt reminder about how this band helped craft a quintessential Colorado sound.

NATHANIEL RATELIFF’S SOLO ESSENTIALS This month, Denver-based Nathaniel Rateliff will return to his singer-songwriter roots, performig solo sets opening for John Prine around Colorado: November 7 at Riverwalk Center in Breckenridge, November 8 at the Avalon Theatre in Grand Junction, and November 9 at The Buell Theatre in Denver. To mark the occasion, here are three essential Rateliff tunes to stream now.

“Still Trying.” It starts with meditative chords, but by the end Rateliff is lashing out, using his mighty howl to nearly scream the repeated line, “This wound is gonna cancel me out.”

“Shroud.” This hard-hitting folk-rock stomper features some dark introspection that’s ultimately uplifted by soaring harmonies between the songwriter and his old bandmate, Julie Davis.

“Liverpool.” Far from the Stax-style bravado of the Nighsweats, this stark, lonesome ballad features Rateliff hazily strumming and singing through a rumination on uncertainty. —J.F.

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OVER THE MOUNTAIN THERE ARE MORE MOUNTAINS A week bikepacking the Colorado Trail brings moments of joy, lots of tears—and countless miles of pushing the bike.

by MICHAEL HENRY

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fter a week of bikepacking the Colorado Trail, pedaling, walking, crawling from the base of Mount Princeton on my way to Silverton, when I finally glimpsed the golden ribbon of Stony Pass Road I was so overcome with joy I admit I cried. My spent muscles trembled with adrenaline and I pedaled my Stumpjumper, loaded with camping gear, along a very thin single-track. I tried to focus on the hazardous terrain under my tires but was distracted by hundreds of sheep in the high-alpine valley below, all bleating a one-note chorus. It was a miraculous thing to behold.

Two border collies sprinted up steep treeless hillsides, harassing fluffy white dots of recalcitrant sheep, organizing them into a coherent flock and nudging them down the valley. A shepherd followed the congregation, calling and whistling commands. And like any typical afternoon in the high mountains, there was brilliant blue sky and rain, dark ominous clouds and a rainbow. I reveled in the beauty of the moment, completely exhausted, completely ecstatic. In my next life, I thought, I want to come back as a shepherd. Tears came to my eyes.

Good ones. There are, after all, many ways a man can cry, and biking the Colorado Trail will bring out them all.

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photo by LIAM DORAN

et me be the first to tell you: Pushing 60 pounds of bike and gear in stiff bike shoes really sucks. I’d read somewhere that the truth of bike-packing the Colorado Trail is this: You can ride about 80 percent, but you won’t spend 80 percent of your time riding. The last two days I’d spent just a couple of hours in the saddle, covering about 40 miles and climbing over 8,000 feet. Contrary to recent noise about how the CT is the most awesome 535 mile bike-packing trail, it's really made for hiking. Who knew? Well, I do now.

I’m 51 years old. I knew riding the Colorado Trail would be hard. Last summer I’d bike-packed from Waterton Canyon to Leadville; I’d planned to finish the Trail on this second sojourn, rolling into Durango, the western terminus, a dirty, rank, self-made hero.

I’d decided on this endeavor after a cancer scare two winters ago. I’d had this old injury—a calf muscle tear that had developed into a knot which I’d always believed was just scar tissue. I went to a sports doc, who then referred me to a limb surgeon, who then referred me to an oncologist. The surgeon removed the malignant mass, leaving me with a five-inch scar. And all that time I never really worried. Even after the diagnosis, while waiting the fullbody MRI and chest CT results I was like, Eh, no big deal. My wife, however, worried enough for the both of us.

I thought I’d ride the trail to confirm that, yes, I was okay. I was still the guy who thrived on difficult physical challenges, something I’ve been doing since junior high cross-country. I enjoy the pain, the pushing of one’s body and mind to a breaking point, and past.

Mountain biking hurts, it scares me, it makes me feel alive. And Colorado is a most gorgeous landscape in which to perform these experiments.

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he road loomed in the distance, tantalizing, entrancing, promising a downhill cruise into Silverton and a night of sleep in a real bed. And cold beer! And pizza! And a chance to take a shower—my first in a week. And an opportunity to restock my food cache.

I rolled over a few more ridges and then the road quickly rose to meet the descending trail, and I was out. Done.

Finished with the single-track. No more hike-a-bike. No more stressing about food or water. I’d been walking my bike for most of the last two days, unrideable climb after unrideable climb, most of it above treeline, around 12,000 feet in altitude. A sun shower began to fall, lighting the peaks around me in a silvery glow. I turned my bike left, pointed the front wheel downhill, and away I went. The trail wasn’t as rocky as the guidebooks had promised, but I was glad and thought nothing of it. I flew downhill, singing John Denver’s “Rocky Mountain High” at top volume, perhaps slightly off key.

The feeling was pure bliss, endorphin high, relief. Again, I might have teared up just a bit.

Then, a river crossing appeared. I didn’t remember the guidebook saying anything about a river.

My phone was dead, so I couldn’t check my GPS app. Had I missed a turn somewhere? I dismounted and stomped through the stream, soaking my feet. I was so loopy and stupefied from the last two days of effort, I couldn’t understand why I hadn’t made

it to Silverton already. Oh, Silverton, why hast thou forsaken me?

I reached a road junction, and a guy in a Jeep pulled up. I waved to him and he stopped. “Hey, do you know which way leads to Silverton?”

“It’s that way. Up and over the pass,” he said, pointing up the road I’d just bombed down.

Right then I remembered: When the trail reaches the road you’re supposed to turn right, uphill, for about twotenths of a mile, and then you cruise downhill into Silverton.

I recalled the passage in the guidebook, which I’d read about a hundred times over the past few days, huddled in my tent in the dusk light before falling asleep, grubby and bone tired.

Oh no. No, no no.

“I went the wrong way,” I said. “Oh crud. I can’t ride back up that.” I bent over and put my hands on my knees as if I might puke.

And then the thing that often happens out on the trail, when you’re out in the middle of nowhere and in dire

straits, when you’re about to give up: a fellow human saves your dumb ass.

“I’m going that way, I can take you,” the Jeep dude said.

When he said that, I cried again. But just a little bit. On the inside.

His name was Jake and he drove a super-cool tricked-out new Jeep with pillowy tires and a rack on top, where he stowed my bike. He carted me over the pass and into Silverton.

I promptly procured a room at the funky and friendly Avon Hotel. I took a long shower, went out for dinner, ate an entire pizza, drank two beers, and collapsed into a soft, clean bed.

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the next morning, I woke up in Silverton and didn’t want to get out of bed. When I finally did, the mere act of walking hurt, and when I thought of the remaining 80 miles and 13,000 feet of climbing, I crawled back into bed.

And when I thought of my lovely wife and two amazing teenage daughters and our cute little house, and yes, even our weird dog who digs random holes all over the back yard, I was overwhelmed by homesickness. It was then I really cried. I mean I wept. It was a mixture of happiness and loneliness and relief and amazement and a bunch of other emotions. Right then I decided that my adventure was over. Durango could wait until next summer.

My week on the Trail confirmed many truths—truths one can only learn while in high mountains. There’s beauty

WORTH THE PUSH that is unspeakably THERE'S A LOT OF SUFFERING TO BE HAD profound, IF YOU COMMIT TO 535 beauty not MILES OF PEDALING AND many will SEEMINGLY ENDLESS HIKEever see A-BIKE, BUT CAMPS LIKE in person, THIS HELP EASE THE PAIN. photo by MICHAEL HENRY beauty I’ll not soon forget.

Often, the most difficult efforts are the most worthy, but while you’re in it, it’s misery. Pushing my bike up a steep, loose slope, storms raging all around, my breath ragged, my energy reserves on empty, I was definitely miserable. But when I’d gotten somewhere—I couldn’t have been happier. In eight days, I’d traveled over 200 miles. I’d made some enduring memories. I’d confirmed that I was, in fact, okay—even though I’d gone the wrong way, even though I’d sometimes walked when I could have ridden my bike, even though I’d decided I was done.

I made some calls and procured a rental car back to Denver. The drive home, with the windows down and stereo cranked up loud, definitely felt like a step in the right direction. And yes, I cried.

Michael Henry is an avid mountain biker, writer and executive director at Lighthouse Writers Workshop. He lives with his wife and two daughters in Thornton, Colorado.

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Illustration by Kevin Howdeshell / THEBRAVEUNION.COM

E LWAY V I L L E

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YOU ARE HERE You live in Colorado! Enjoy every moment and heed these five ways to feel more content about your life.

by PETER KRAY

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all turning to winter is my favorite mix of seasons. I love the crispness of possibility in the cold wind. The looming finality of the year as the first snow covers the fallen leaves.

It stirs a kind of harvest for the mind. A mix of nostalgia, retrospection and personal accounting as you gather up everything that has grown in the orchard of your life.

For me, t’s the perfect time to remember good friends, great dogs and all the poems, love letters and beautiful books I still dream I might write. Most of all, it’s the time to be happy with yourself. To be content where you are, in one of the most beautiful places on earth.

In honor of how great all of that feels, here are five ways I have found—or plan on trying—to increase that sense of contentment. Because as someone once said, “It’s better when it’s good.”

1. BE HERE NOW

In my memory, I can see the thousands of photos I never took. One is of a gray-bearded old black dog of mine in Jackson Hole, grinning out the open window of a rusting blue truck. Another is of a herd of cows in Southern Colorado, bunched in the shade of a wind turbine. And my favorite is of my beautiful wife, entering the cool darkness of the (recently reopened) Campus Lounge in Bonnie Brae on a hot summer day, bathed in sunlight from the back.

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Like that herd of cows, though, most of those unshot photos are images from the side of the highway—including a spring sunrise over the Great Sand Dunes, and a red rowboat on a deep blue pond near Steamboat Springs. All I had to do was pull over and click.

Except I never stopped. I can’t tell you where I was going in such a hurry. But it must have been important. So important I forgot.

2. TAKE THE SMALL TOWN TURNOFFS

Small Colorado towns are also places where I don’t stop enough. Growing up, it seemed as if every ski day ended with a pizza at Beau Jos in Idaho Springs, or a milkshake in Empire at the Lewis Sweet Shop.

Now, despite a recent burger and beer break in Salida, and a driving tour around the wonderful old homes and red brick buildings of El Corazon de Trinidad Historic District, I too doggedly stick to the highway. Especially in heavy Sunday traffic, at the exact moment when I should be pulling over at the Bread Bar in Silver Plume for one small drink.

Somewhere deep in my mind there exists a mythical Colorado town with cabins, mansions and old Victorian houses with pink and yellow trim built up into the hills. And there’s one lone ski lift. I sometimes wander there in my sleep. I wonder if I haven’t found it in my waking life because I simply haven’t taken the right, less traveled exit. Yet.

3. HAVE LESS STUFF

Minimalism is often touted as one of the expressways to spirituality, sometimes with such zealotry you might think having no stuff (other than a couple pairs of skis, a cellphone, dog bowl and laptop) was a religion unto itself.

Hoping to achieve a little more uncluttered peace at home, my wife introduced me to the “Throw Out Fifty Things” concept—it’s also the title of a book, that promises that by clearing clutter, you can “Find Your Life.” Although we started out slow, with easy pickings like DVDs and long forgotten shirts and socks, the number of backpacks, unused

electronics, and slightly worn parkas soon added up.

Donating it all felt good, as refreshing as an afternoon nap—which should probably also be on this list—so good that on the way home from the thrift store, I started thinking about what “bigger stuff” we could get rid of, and what kind of karmic channel clearing that might open up.

4. GO OLD SCHOOL

Last ski season was so bad, that other than a couple January days at Copper, and some beautiful spring slush in Aspen—and one absolutely amazing week in Big Sky, Montana—I hardly rode the lifts. It was during a similar season, some 20 years ago, that I first learned how to telemark, which made even the tamest groomers seem long, and incredibly steep.

I still have the lace-up leather Asolo boots I learned on before moving onto plastic. I also still have an un-drilled pair of Yostmark Classic Noodle skis in the garage that my wife asks me what I’m going to do with every other month. The answer always is, “One of these days, I’m going to mount them up.”

“One of these days” is finally here, because I just ordered a pair of Voile three-pin bindings. Today’s ski gear is so damn good, I figure it might be worth remembering how to make a long, deep, kneebending turn on the old stuff. I’ll let you know if I find the wayback machine to free-heel Nirvana, or just end up embarrassing myself.

5. BE NICE

There’s a lot to be angry about, if being angry is what you want (I hear you Broncos fans). But right now, I’d rather feel good, about the weather, this beautiful world and the miracle of life. I hope you feel good, too. And that the rest of your year is absolutely freaking great!

—ELEVATION OUTDOORS EDITOR-AT-LARGE PETER KRAY IS THE AUTHOR OF THE GOD OF SKIING. THE BOOK HAS BEEN CALLED “THE GREATEST SKI NOVEL OF ALL TIME.” DON’T BELIEVE THE HYPE? BUY IT HERE AND READ IT NOW: AMZN.TO/2LMZPVN

GETS DIRTY. KEEPS RIVERS CLEAN. We donate 1% of all Upslope Craft Lager can sales to our local Trout Unlimited chapter. Because two of our favorite things in this world are beer and fishing.

And you can’t have either without clean water.

#cancountry

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