MOUNTAIN LIVING
telluride's old world charm

There is a reason people prefer to dwell in the mountains instead of at the ocean or in the prairies and deserts. Alpine occupants thrive on nature's rugged biorhythms, clean air and the simple, friendly surges remote mountain towns emit. Tellurideans, in particular, have a fetish for sublime seasonal changes, the rich hues that adorn the mountainscapes in the spring, summer and fall and the quiescence winter's white brings to the wilderness. The snow-blanketed landscape brings a temporal quality to the rock-strewn cliffs and rolling glens of Telluride and Mountain Village . On the surface, life's activities seem to shrink in the wintertime. Animals hibernate, migrate South or become dormant, which seemingly reminds mountain dwellers of the preciousness of their ecosystem. For some, the cadence of mountain living is seductive—viewing the sun setting over the western horizon, spewing off ethereal colors of the rainbow. Watching the ever-so-gradual fade of yellow and orange tints giving way to magenta and violet tones, soon turning to a dark satiny blue and eventually spilling into a midnight sky carpeted with twinkling diamonds can be a mesmerizing experience. Mountain people love the slow, but constant climactic dance nature brings forth. Rather than take cover from the conditions, however, Telluride inhabitants have long been noted for rolling their sleeves up and filling their lives with abandon—finessing their way down tight, freshly powdered chutes, skate-skiing deep into the hinterland or flying their paragliders in loop-d-loops as though they were an eagle's soul mate. A good percentage of Telluride's populous are adrenaline junkies or, at the very least, they are outdoors devotees who crave the distinctive qualities only mountain places can offer. Ostensibly, mountain style living translates into a celebration of an active life fused with an appreciation for nature and history. Home decor and architectural design mingle with nature into nearly every nook and cranny of Telluride's living spaces nowadays. Natural colors, large viewing windows, indigenous stones and woods are incorporated throughout residences and commercial spaces. Alive with gifts of the earth, Telluride dwellings, quaint or colossal, are generally harmoniously constructed to blend into their environs. Cheerful Victorian tints not only create a gingerly mood, but commemorate the way of the forebears that founded Telluride in the 1800s. Quaintness coupled with intricate designs establish Telluride's Old World charm; echoing infinite stores of historic energy.