One of the few places in Colorado that I didn’t visit when working in my last job as a statewide consultant for libraries was the lower San Luis Valley near Antonito and La Jara. One of our state library associations “librarian of the year” is from Antonito and I was eager to see her library.
What I didn’t know about where she lives is how remote and beautiful it is. There are few anglers this time of year, but lots of company in the form of hunters. Everywhere we went we saw camps of mostly guys with their orange hats and camouflage garb. Like us, they were there appreciating the beauty and uniqueness of the wilderness. I don’t know anything about hunting but I do know what its like to be away from the busy-ness of city life trying to understand a whole new set of rules.
I can see from the tracks and scat on the ground that coyotes, foxes, bears and mountain lions are sharing the same space where I am, but I don’t see them, like they see me. It’s an amazing feeling to know that at the same time, you are so not in control but also not in danger. We are much more insignificant and unimportant than we think.
