Tag Archives: National Park Mysteries

The Great Labor Day Marmot Heist

Labor Day was practically engineered for marmot misconduct. It had everything they needed. The end of summer. Exhausted humans. Crowded trails. Picnics. A long weekend. And, most importantly, the rapidly approaching realization that winter was coming. For the marmots of … Continue reading

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Cap’n Cheeks McSnatch and the Fiery Gold of the Sun God

The Summer Solstice arrived over the high country with all the subtlety of a marmot falling off a boulder. Long before dawn, the tundra above the Alpine Visitor Center glowed silver beneath the first rays of sunlight. Wildflowers stirred. Pikas … Continue reading

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Memorial Day at Altitude: The Case of the Liberated Vending Machine

By Memorial Day, the snow finally loosened its grip on Trail Ridge Road, like a grumpy marmot reluctantly letting go of a sun-warmed rock. Plows roared, gates swung open and the Alpine Visitor Center emerged from its winter cocoon looking … Continue reading

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The Ballad of Picktail and the Eternal Haul

The burrow was a symphony of snores. January had settled over Rocky Mountain National Park like a weighted blanket, woven from snow and existential dread. Nutmeg McChunky was three months deep into his Maintenance of the Sphere protocol, occasionally twitching … Continue reading

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