Independence Pass, Colorado

Three quarters of the way from Denver to Aspen, we drove over Independence Pass on the Continental Divide, at 12,095 feet. The light is different, the vegetation stays close to the ground, the air is thin but pure and fresh. Newly arrived at this altitude, one has to walk, not run, lest one should get an instant headache due to lack of oxygen. The clouds feel close overhead, and an admiration emerges for all the forms of life that manage to make a living up here where the only months with an average of zero inches of snowfall are July and August and the total annual average snowfall is 337 inches.