In Awesome Wonder

So I thought I would show you guys my favorite place in all of Colorado-well, all of Colorado that I have seen so far. I came to this conclusion a few weeks ago when I had to go rescue my Dad from a job site, because his work truck was stuck in the mud. Anyway, this is about an hour away from my house. I have to drive up into the mountains near Westcliffe. The best part is that you can't see these mountains right away. You drive for a really long time surrounded by rock faces so huge that no sky but that right above you can be seen. After what seems like a million curves that are not for those who get carsick, you climb a really big hill. It is so steep that you can't see what will be on the other side. All of a sudden, you get to the top and see it. A huge range of mountains. You realize that you are basically imprisoned on all sides by mountains. Everywhere I look, there they are.

I want to climb these mountains. I want to go to the top and see what is on the other side. That was the best part of climbing my first 14er. What in the world is on the other side!

I have lived in Colorado for ten years now. Basically all I've known is looking as far as I can see and seeing no horizon. I see mountains. The sun "sets", but really it just goes behing the mountains. I know it will still be around for quite some time, so I can't see it. Because of this, I am amazed when I go to places that are flat. Kansas scares me. Seeing for miles and miles and miles is an odd feeling to a person who rarely sees that far. I feel like it is too easy to get lost in those endless plains. Going to the beach in California last summer was an amazing experience. I actually saw the sun set over the ocean. It was a flat horizon. What a concept that was! I will never forget that night. Once again, pictures could never show how amazing it was.

The widest wide angle lens cannot show you the entire mountain range. It just isn't possible. Now I am looking for a day with perfect clouds to go up again. Then I'll have a reason to capture more sky. You have to put foreground in this picture. In order to get as much of the range as possible, the picture has to be set far out. If there was not foreground, the picture would be 7/8th sky!