BY BRANDON COHEN
We are blessed to live in such a sacred place. The magic and beauty of this valley continue to touch my heart and mind. There are endless tributaries flowing into the Roaring Fork between Aspen and Glenwood. Follow any one creek, stream, or brook up from the valley floor and a paradise is yours.
Just west of the Tavern, the Woody creek shares her water the Roaring Fork. She runs slow in the winter but still remains the living thread that binds us all. Travel her banks to the northeast up County Road 18 and you’ll pass many of our neighbors: human, animal, plant. and tree. One might have the good fortune to see a leopard-spotted bobcat, a wily coyote, elk, deer, peter cotton tail, or a bird of prey. Then there are the many bikers, snowmobilers, hikers, skiers, and hunters.
WE ARE PART OF SUCH AN INTERESTING AND WONDROUS COMMUNITY. BOTTOM LINE, WE ARE MUCH MORE ALIKE THAN WE ARE DIFFERNT.
A few folks journey to Larry’s place in Lenado to bring him a burger and receive wisdom from this mountain man. Please drive slow as you pass through Lenado; Buckwheat, Gaylord’s faithful companion, plays by the roadside.
Many in the Valley still don’t know where Lenado is. I guess you could say we’re off the radar. Silver was mined up here until the late 1890s, then came the harvesting and milling of lumber. The name “Lenado” is Spanish for “wooded place.”
It’s been thirty-plus years now since the sawmill closed. The lands rising to the north of Lenado are slowly coming back to life from decades of clear cutting. First the scrub and brush return, then the aspens, and finally the evergreen. Along the creek, many of the old pines remain. They have seen all kinds of come and go; some give and others, though even the harshest among us is touched by the spirit of this place.
We are part of such an interesting and wondrous community. Real people from every walk of life. Everyone with their own stories to tell. Bottom line, we are much more alike then we are different. We love the Woody Creek, the land it flows through. and chicken enchiladas at the Tavern.
In the grand scheme of things, we are all just visitors: here for a moment in time. Sure there’s a name on a deed that says I own this land, but do l really? This globe of green, blue, and brown has been spinning ’round more than 4.5 billion years. s. I’m just lucky to be here for a bit, experiencing this slice of heaven on earth called Woody Creek.
I am grateful to my neighbors in Lenado who welcomed me three years ago when I arrived, Lumber lack for carving out this little piece of land I call home when nobody was looking, and the ancestors, the Utes, who still live love and watch over us.
Brandon provides a space to connect with nature, self and spirit through monthly sweat lodges and summer vision quests ceremonies. He also leads insight meditation Wednesday nights at the Woody Creek Store at 6:30 p.m.
