Welcome to YourHub Woodland Park, Cripple Creek and the rest of Teller County!
Today, The Gazette will turn on the switch to our two newest Hubs: Woodland Park and Cripple Creek/Teller County. On May 10, YourHub will launch our printed edition of the area. The printed edition will include Old Colorado City, Manitou Springs and Ute Pass.
This is an exciting opportunity for me. I have been running the Manitou Springs/Ute Pass and Old Colorado City Hubs since January. I have gotten to know many interesting and inspiring people. Their stories have enhanced my life. I am looking forward to making many more friends in Teller County.
I made Woodland Park my home when I first moved to Colorado in the fall of 2001. I lived there for three years before moving to Colorado Springs.
I loved living in Woodland Park for a variety of reasons. Each day I returned home from work in the city it felt like I was on vacation. Driving up Ute Pass gave me a sense of peace as I gazed at the beautiful countryside and awesome mountains.
"The City Above the Clouds," as Woodland Park is called, was a perfect change of pace for me coming from the hustle and bustle of Southern California. I spent many nights gazing at the stars and planets in the peace of quiet that only the mountains can offer. My backyard was a forest of pine and aspen trees. Deer, foxes and other wildlife routinely passed by my door. Woodland Park became my sea of tranquility, despite winter temperatures that routinely dipped to 20 degrees below zero.
While there, my son (now 13) and I spent many days roaming Teller County. We took the scenic drive to Cripple Creek, ventured to the Florissant Fossil Beds, got lost in Divide, and perched ourselves atop a mountain and watched the Hayman Fire burn our precious land in the summer of 2002.
I also had the pleasure of making many fine friends in the area. My pastor at Woodland Park Christian Church, Barry Park, is a lifelong friend. My son started going to Camp Elim out on Highway 67 when he was nine and still takes a week out of his summer schedule to go there each year. People knew me by my first name at banks, restaurants and the grocery store.
I could tell a hundred stories of my three years in Woodland Park. But the purpose of the Hub is to have you tell your stories and share your photos with the rest of us. The Hub is a forum that allows us all to have a voice.
Thanks for letting me be a part of your world.
Danny