By Robert Stack, Rocky Mountain National Park volunteer
There is a big birthday party happening this year and you are invited!
Your Rocky Mountain National Park, Rocky, is turning 100 years old. Its official birthday was Monday, January 26, 2015. And how do you begin to celebrate 100 years of achievements and relationships on one frosty day in January… or even in one week? Rocky Mountain National Park has organized a year-long celebration that began September 4, 2014 and runs through September 4, 2015.
The multi-layered birthday cake is decorated with beautiful mountain flowers, colorful rock out-croppings, critters that cause curiosity, caution and even chuckles, and it is covered with vistas that awe and cause you to stop, enjoy and appreciate. It has trees so tall that they cause you, in daylight, to look to the crystal blue sky and, at night, to look to the stars that are the candles lighting the cake.
The cake is topped with snowy whipped peaks rising up 14,259 feet and spreading out 415 square miles, plenty for everyone’s appetite. Obviously, it is too large to bring to you, so you have the wonderful opportunity to go to it.
If you have been to Rocky before, you can reconnect with those memories as a child or as your family enjoyed it. If you have never been to Rocky Mountain National Park, you have a unique chance to create a relationship that will stay with you for a lifetime.
Rocky has scheduled re-dedication events within the park all year and has teamed with nearby communities for other celebratory events outside the park. The official Re-Dedication ceremony will be held on September 4, 2015 to begin the next 100 years.
The Centennial’s theme is ‘Wilderness, Wildlife and Wonder’. Its goal is to renew and celebrate the connections and relationships that the park has made with local, national and international visitors, but, most importantly, with you and your family. You can come to the party right now by going on-line to www.nps.gov/romo to see the schedule of this year’s events, how you, your family or any organization might get involved and each bring a present to the party.
Whether you like to hike, fish, bike, explore, photograph or just sit by a mountain stream or on a rocky ledge and think of the creation of
this incredible place, Rocky is there for you. This year there are special Centennial events to help you enjoy the celebration even more. There are always Ranger presentations that help you learn more of what is around you. And as an adult, you can watch with pride as the Junior Ranger program helps prepare our youth to be Rocky’s stewards for the next 100 years. This is quite a 100th birthday party that Rocky has invited you to and it’s right in your own back yard. See you there.