There is a stretch of Colorado aspens that feels protected even though nothing is fenced. The grove sits in a bowl of hills, trees tall and close, the ground carpeted in fallen leaves that muffle sound. I walked in on an autumn afternoon when the light was filtering through yellow leaves and turning everything the same warm gold.I stopped when the trunks aligned into a natural aisle, the canopy closing overhead like a roof. No dramatic peak in the background, no river, just the quiet geometry of white bark and gold leaf. Sanctuary in Gold is about that enclosure: the sense that the forest has made a room for you if you arrive quietly enough. Wind moved the upper branches. The lower grove stayed still. I made the exposure and stood there longer than I needed to, listening to leaves touch leaves. Some places feel like shelter without offering any promise of safety. This one felt like both.
