I’ve been in Denver for about a month now, and I definitely enjoy Colorado more than any of the other destinations on my trip.

My first weekend in the area, I drove south to Colorado Springs to visit the Garden of the Gods park, known for its rock formations.

^ You’ve got a ways to go, bud.

A few weeks later I went skiing in Loveland. Just a few miles from arriving at the slopes that morning, traffic on I-70 halted to accommodate two bighorned sheep unhurriedly making their way across the interstate. I hadn’t realized how big they are.

The next weekend took me to Rocky Mountain National Park, northwest of Denver.

I went back the next Saturday to take advantage of the seven-day park entry pass, and drove to the top peak in the park to hike as far as I could without snowshoes. The weather was decidedly worse and the winding drive back down the mountain claimed at least one other car that had slid into a ditch. I saw more elk.

This Friday I took the day off to ski at Loveland, this time without fighting weekend crowds on the trip from Denver. Weather.com showed the winds in nearby Georgetown at 30 mph with gusts up to 50, and it was worse on the mountain. They’d received seven inches in the two days before, but the wind had blasted away accumulation from any exposed areas. The obvious choice, then, was to ski between the trees, which was well and good until my shoulder was intercepted by the trunk of the titular pine.