Colorado Bound

Every flight seems to be the same in important ways. Crowded. Hot. Interesting smells. That sense of anxiousness that comes from the mild competition for space. And for time. Managing to get through TSA security intact. Finding the gate and waiting to board. Checking emails. Making calls. Pushing though the process and getting it done.

Today I am off to Denver first. On the ground for just over an hour and then off to Durango. That is a name people know, but not many have ever visited. The reason is that it is not on the way to anywhere. You have to go to Durango intentionally, unless you have taken the scenic route from east to west, and did't understand what the notation on the map meant labeled "pass". Pass means high places. Cold places even in the summer. Snowy places at any time of the year. Scary places for people not accustomed to the heights and exposure of open road driving. Above treeline and open spaces with vista views. High Country.

I don't think my travel takes me over any passes on this trip. I jump over them in a plane, which takes the fun out of some of it, I admit. Once I get on the ground I drive an hour in a mostly lateral way to Pagosa Springs, a small farming community on the edge of the forest. My customer on this trip is called Pagosa Cattle Company, and they may be a bit more diverse than just cattle to want to get into the power business. They are harvesting dead pine trees, chipping them with a BRUKS chipper and making electrical power with the chips. They have one chipper now, and they are planning to add several more before too long. At least one can hope.

I will post a picture or two of the area. It has been years since I have been in this area - like 25 years or more. Too long. With the Cascades of Washington in may backyard, the allure of the Colorado Rockies is far less intense. Let the easterners yearn for the first big mountains they come to as they head west and leave our greener Cascades for us.