The numerous aspen groves on the hike to West White Pine Mountain north of Fort Collins, Colorado, turn the trail into a blaze of yellow and orange in late September and early October.
My love for the out-of-doors started while I was growing up on our ranch and having the freedom to ride my horse wherever I chose. The only rule I had to follow was to be home in time for dinner. While I was riding, my imagination ran wild. Sometimes I was attacked by Indians. Other times I hunted for buried treasure. Like all areas, our ranch had a myth about buried gold lost when an army payroll was sent from Fort Laramie to forts along the Bozeman Trail and attacked by Indians. One of the first stories I wrote was about four girls who found the gold. Unfortunately, the gold was cursed. Anyone who found it would die. My first attempts at writing were dramatic to say the least, but I developed a love for writing. In seventh grade, I was a reported for the school paper. At first, I was certain I couldn't write anything, but after my assignment was published everything changed. In ninth grade, I won second place in a short story contest.
When I graduated from high school, I attended the University of Wyoming. At the end of my junior year, I transferred to the University of Washington where I graduated with a degree in political science. Later I attended Colorado State University and earned a master's degree. For several years, I taught school, but writing beckoned me and I wrote outdoor articles and feature stories for a local newspaper. I had articles published in national magazines. As my son grew, I told him stories and published some of them in children's magazines.
Today I live on a farm where we raise trout. Fish are more work than cattle or sheep. They need constant attention and feeding, a very pure special diet. The farm is not far from the foothills and the Wyoming border in the state of Colorado. We've had elk, deer, bear, weasels, bobcats, foxes, and an occasional mountain lion visit our yard. The bear, deer, and elk love our apples. Hiking is within easy driving distance with such areas as Rocky Mountain National Park, the Rawah and Never Summer Mountains nearby. To the north of me is Red Mountain County Park, an area of red, white, mauve, and green rocks similar to the formations found in the southwest. Next to it is Soapstone, a city park far from the city that provides high plains hiking and biking.
My love for the out-of-doors started while I was growing up on our ranch and having the freedom to ride my horse wherever I chose. The only rule I had to follow was to be home in time for dinner. While I was riding, my imagination ran wild. Sometimes I was attacked by Indians. Other times I hunted for buried treasure. Like all areas, our ranch had a myth about buried gold lost when an army payroll was sent from Fort Laramie to forts along the Bozeman Trail and attacked by Indians. One of the first stories I wrote was about four girls who found the gold. Unfortunately, the gold was cursed. Anyone who found it would die. My first attempts at writing were dramatic to say the least, but I developed a love for writing. In seventh grade, I was a reported for the school paper. At first, I was certain I couldn't write anything, but after my assignment was published everything changed. In ninth grade, I won second place in a short story contest.
When I graduated from high school, I attended the University of Wyoming. At the end of my junior year, I transferred to the University of Washington where I graduated with a degree in political science. Later I attended Colorado State University and earned a master's degree. For several years, I taught school, but writing beckoned me and I wrote outdoor articles and feature stories for a local newspaper. I had articles published in national magazines. As my son grew, I told him stories and published some of them in children's magazines.
Today I live on a farm where we raise trout. Fish are more work than cattle or sheep. They need constant attention and feeding, a very pure special diet. The farm is not far from the foothills and the Wyoming border in the state of Colorado. We've had elk, deer, bear, weasels, bobcats, foxes, and an occasional mountain lion visit our yard. The bear, deer, and elk love our apples. Hiking is within easy driving distance with such areas as Rocky Mountain National Park, the Rawah and Never Summer Mountains nearby. To the north of me is Red Mountain County Park, an area of red, white, mauve, and green rocks similar to the formations found in the southwest. Next to it is Soapstone, a city park far from the city that provides high plains hiking and biking.
