Seasons Greetings

Visiting a small town this time of year is magical! Here in Colorado, there are so many to choose from, many with long histories of tourism and international fame. But none are as quintessentially Colorado as Erie. Located on the county line separating Boulder and Weld counties, the town, once surrounded by prairie has grown into a city with its own municipal airport. The view of the Front Range presents a spectacular, if not chaotic, backdrop to the small slice of ordered life on the northern plains of Colorado.

I visited a “disc golf” course named after Coal Creek, a small stream winding from the southwest of town, before any of the players would arrive, but I was not alone on that day. As the sunrise brought light to the small old town of Erie itself, its inhabitants were walking their dogs while children rode their bikes to school. Above the grassy valley carved by the creek, the light revealed the Flatirons above Boulder to the southwest and James Peak behind them at the continental divide in the Front Range. I cannot help but be torn between the spectacle of the entirety of the Foothills, or lose myself in the details of canyons and crags.

Dominating the view to the northwest of Erie was also unmistakable: Longs Peak. I was grateful to be able to capture in a photo some of the last of the farmland in Boulder County, as the growth there has continued, year after year. The Weld county park now used for recreation where I flew to take these photos used to be ranch land near a cemetery on the hill above the creek outside of town. From above the park, Erie and its landscape take on a character of their own, and while that character keeps changing with the times, its nature is its own.

The town itself has a resilient character, and shows in the revitalized architecture and festive decorations. Revisiting images of Erie once more, like seeing the following image from three years ago, is like seeing a time capsule reveal the secrets hidden by time.

Erie looked even more peaceful back in January of 2023, after a snowstorm. One of the improvements to the old town of Erie had been under construction since that time, and now finished. The Coal Creek park that was once just a sandlot now has many more uses, anchoring the east side of the original town plot.

With the rising of the sun, the spirit of the season is renewed! Even the little town of Erie can look like a holiday ornament, thanks to the 360° panorama style making yet another appearance here. Unlike my earlier visits to Erie, the sky was almost completely clear. Everywhere the sun touched, the light warmed the landscape. Once again, I find I’m grateful for discovering a point of view, of seeing something old as if new, and for helping me find the reason for the season.

Once more, this time with feeling! I played around with some holiday themes, and there will be more to come in the editions that follow. Let me know what you think.

Thanks for reading all the way to the end, and enjoy the season!