We’ve seen quite a bit of Colorado in 2023. In Golden, we golfed with dinosaurs, scaled mountains at the American Mountaineering Center, and ate at El Tequileño Family Mexican Restaurant.

We spent time at the Downtown Aquarium and traveled through the towns of Morrison, Genesee, and Evergreen, where we made stops at Tony Rigatoni’s, the Morrison Natural History Museum, hiked Meyer Ranch Park, ate at the Chart House, had coffee at Java Groove Cafe, and fell “inn” love at the Highland Haven Creekside Inn.

Heading north, we helped rescue wildlife at the Greenwood Wildlife Rehabilitation Center in Lyons. We also got to know the charming little town of Allenspark, hiking Fox Creek Grotto and Finch Lake and slowly making our way to my favorite place: Rocky Mountain National Park.

Delicious treats at the Donut Haus, the View Restaurant, Coffee on the Rocks, and the Rock Inn Mountain Tavern, where we met the musical duo Random and True, made it easy to spend countless hours in Estes Park.

The boundless beauty of the Rockies took us on adventures to Mary’s Lake, Twin Sisters Peak Trail, and a beautiful drive on America’s highest continuous paved road, Trail Ridge Road. We also experienced a bit of winter camping inside Rocky Mountain National Park.

Curiosity and opportunity took us further west for tubing in Fraser, coffee and tea at the Silver Llama in Leadville, fine dining at La Nonna in Vail, a hike with a fox in Mesa County, and a Colorado history lesson at the More Barn in Steamboat Springs.

Closer to home, we explored James Peak Wilderness and learned about renting outdoor gear and recreational workshops with Always Choose Adventure. In 2023, Christian Vanek and Barbara Hardt offered me a full-time position at The Mountain-Ear. YAY!

I moved back to Gilpin County, lost one of my fur babies, and graduated from Southern New Hampshire University with the highest academic distinction of summa cum laude. I’m proud of that. I’ll continue to work toward purchasing or building a tiny log cabin.

I also allowed myself to get caught up in my head about the things I don’t have, which is a lot. But that’s no way to live, not for me. I’m a good, strong, hard-working person, and I need to be better at giving myself the credit I am worth.

Someone once told me, “The only person who doesn’t know how amazing you are is you.” It’s something I’ve been trying to be better about.

In the meantime, as I reflect on this past year, I’ll make it my priority to focus solely on my mental health, knowing that all my hard work will soon pay off and everything will fall into place because I deserve good things. No, I deserve great things!

Thank you, my dear reader, for sticking with me throughout 2023. Let’s stay in touch throughout 2024, please. Subscribe to The Mountain-Ear before December 31, 2023, and pay only $50 for one year of print and online subscriptions. It makes a perfect holiday gift!

You can find us on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/mtnear, or you can call us at 303-810-5409.