Living the High Life

Foggy Valley to the South

Born and raised in the city of Denver, Colorado, I was accustomed to living in an urban setting all forty-seven years of my life. Given the opportunity to re-locate to the foothills west of town ten years ago, my wife and I decided to make the move.

My wife’s employer, the Denver Public Schools, was downsizing, so she opted for the early retirement incentive they were offering.

Known as "The Mile High City", Denver is 5280 feet in altitude at the State Capitol. Our new home was located at an altitude of 8100 feet. Quite a difference! The photo above shows how clouds for Denver can look to us up above the city.

Flora

The flora is somewhat different here. We had evergreen trees in the city, as well as all kinds of deciduous trees. At this altitude it is mostly aspen and evergreens. The thing that surprised me the most was the presence of cactus. This barrel version with its gorgeous flowers is one of the types growing here.

Barrel Cactus

Fauna

The most enjoyable part for us was all of the wildlife.

The Little Guys

My wife found that feeding peanuts to the chipmunks and squirrels was a great way to occupy her new free time. She spent enough time doing this that within a few weeks she had given names to many of the small animals.

Squirrel Eating a Peanut

Deer

Among my favorite animals are the deer. From the bucks with their head-butting contests (I’ve only seen a few of those), to the new fawns appearing in mid-July, they are always a joy to observe. The photo I use for my desktop is a great shot I took three years ago of six bucks lazing about in the snow (see the Home page). That is the only time I have seen six bucks at one time around our house.

Birds

We have hung bird feeders outside our kitchen. As a result, there are many types of birds including robins, Steller’s jays, hummingbirds, crows, woodpeckers and sparrows that frequent the feeders. The greatest surprise this past year was when a wild turkey discovered the food that fell to the ground from the feeders. After a couple of months, our turkey started bringing a friend to dinner.

The Bad Guys

On the downside, we have seen a bear about every two or three years. A skunk visits the ground under the feeders on a regular basis. Hawks and rattlesnakes threaten the little guys periodically.

Also, twice in the ten years we have lived here, we have seen a mountain lion. The first time was just before dawn when all I could see were the green eyes looking towards the darkened house. The last time was about a year ago in the middle of the afternoon. Fortunately I had my camera at hand and this cougar decided to rest a bit in front of our living room before continuing after the deer that had passed by a few minutes earlier.

Our Cougar At Rest

When everything is considered, the high life is fascinating and quite entertaining!