Past Walden at Night

Some friends and I were driving to Steamboat, Colorado for a ski trip and were on the leg of the trip where it’s all rural highway driving. We’d started a bit late so it was nighttime and very dark as we made the turn near Walden, Colorado.

There’s not much out there, and this trip took place before cell phones and GPS told us where to go. When we found ourselves on the wrong road, we made a pit stop and turned around. Getting out of the car on a cold winter’s night in the absolute middle of nowhere had one benefit, though: Crystal clear skies, brisk, fresh air, quietness, and more stars than we ever get to see when city lights drown out the universe all around us.