I migrated to southwestern Colorado to live nearly ten years ago. When I arrived I was neither a camper nor a hiker, but living so close to the great Rocky Mountains, practically forces one to learn to commune with nature. Since I have lived in this beautiful region, I have had the opportunity to explore some of the backcountry of the southern Rockies in a territory known as the Lizard Head Wilderness Area in the San Juan Mountain range.

The area is so named in reference to the awesome rock formation that purportedly resembles the head of a lizard; although you have to sort of squint to see that shape. It is a giant vertical spire that juts 300’ upward from a conical base to an elevation of 13,113 feet. The Lizard Head is visible to motorists traveling along Colorado hwy.145 between the towns of Dolores and Telluride. I had seen the landmark many times on my journeys to Telluride to ski with my family, but I never dreamed I would actually climb Blackface Mountain and stand within the shadow of the great Lizard Head.