High Points: Vistas and views

I had the great pleasure of dining with friends this last Saturday evening at their home in the W/J Ranch. And as great as the food and libations were, I have to say, it was the view from the perfectly situated outdoor dining table that I have been visualizing since I left. The panorama of a spring evening spread out across the sky with snowcapped mountaintops above budding fields, just getting dressed in their May green, was extraordinary. There was something about the way the shafts of light spread from the setting sun across the peaks that made the scene feel more like a painting than real life.

We are surrounded by amazing views in this valley. Everywhere we look, there is another stunning vista to behold. I occasionally fear that I take it all for granted. But then I just stop and look around, and I once again realize how fortunate I am to have this as the backdrop for my life.

I moved here in 1993 for a view. It was from a deck of an apartment on the bottom floor of the top house on McSkimming Road just east of town. The first time I walked into the apartment, it was under construction, and there was a plastic sheet hanging from the wall covering the entrance to the deck, so initially I couldn’t see out the window. Drawn like a moth to a flame, I walked directly to the entrance and pulled back the plastic sheet.

The view looking west began with Aspen Mountain about where the Ute Trail snakes up the front side. There, close enough to touch, was the Gondola, Spring Pitch and Shadow Mountain in the soft shade before the sky opened to reveal down valley with Mount Sopris dominating in the distance. I walked out on the deck and turned to the east, gazing up past the North Star Nature Preserve to the snow-covered Independence Pass. I couldn’t decide which way to look, as each vista was as beautiful as the other. While I couldn’t afford it nor did I have a plan to how I was going to move here, I turned and said, “We’ll take it!” And for the next eight years, I lived with the views from the top of McSkimming.

Today, I live in Old Snowmass, surrounded by different views but equally inspiring ones. My home is situated, so I face Mount Sopris directly west and, at exactly 89 degrees to the south, the peak of Snowmass Mountain rises to 14,092 feet. Each morning at sunrise, the summit of Snowmass captures the first rays of light as a new day begins.

But it is Mount Sopris that is the star. Likely the most viewed mountain in the valley, it dominates sightlines from Carbondale to Aspen. Everybody sees it daily. With a summit elevation of 12,953 feet, it is 1,000 feet lower than 14ers like Capitol or the Maroon Bells, but it has a majesty all its own. While it doesn’t move, its image changes daily due to the way the light glides across its twin peaks and the seasons kiss it with snow and sun. It is a magic mountain.

If you have not looked around lately, remind yourself to stop for a minute and indulge in the views and vistas that surround us. We are pretty lucky.