Dear Naturalists,

We were so bored during the pandemic that we drove out on the Eastern Plains. We literally drove past a place called Last Chance, CO.

There’s not much to see out there. Flat and hardly rolling plains in various shades of parched foliage. But, then all of a sudden you’ll see a stand of giant cottonwood trees, and you’ll know that you’re about to cross a stream or a creek (or what used to be a stream or creek).

It’s amazing how large the cottonwood grows under such conditions. Maybe it just looks big because everything around it so small. Any tree would look tall when it’s standing next to a corn stalk.

But I think it’s more that the cottonwood “knows” how to grow in an arid environment. It grows quickly, tall, and cheaply and dies young (for a tree). In that respect, it’s a lot like the people who came out West in the 19th century. They grabbed as many resources as they could as quickly as they could and most of them went bust before they could make it. Our history is often written best in the clues that we unknowingly leave behind.

Sincerely,

Mr. Heimbuck