Once upon a time, at the bottom of the Teocalli ski lift in Crested Butte, CO, a young man was warming a can of soup over the propane heater in the lift shack - when in walked a beautiful woman who greeted the man with a friendly, "Sup?".

The two of them began the day's opening ritual of digging out the counterweight, levelling the ramp, setting up the maze and the rest of the morning maintenance. When the mountain finally opened, they took shifts in the cold to load the guests on the chairs two by two. It was a beautiful fresh powder day in the Elk Mountains and they both very much enjoyed each other's company.

Upon entering the shack for the shift change midmorning, the young man was horrified to see a clementine peeled in such an obscene manner displayed for him atop the table. He huffed and scowled at the vulgar exhibition until he came up with the perfect retort to her ribald expose. He picked up a permanent marker and transformed the orange phallus into a perfectly polite and preferable pachyderm. The woman found this to be an adequately humorous response, and thus, a friendship was born.

Throughout the winter, their love language developed into turkey noises and friendly flirtations because, above all else, they were both exceptionally weird. They would explore the mountain together from the trees off Gus's Way to Spellbound having a wonderful time... alas, it would be nearly a year before the sparks would catch and become a flame.

Sadly, as the snow melted to reveal newly budding snow lilies and wildflowers, the woman left for the for the North lands on an equestrian adventure. The man was sad to see her go and quietly awaited her return. Spring and summer came and went. It wasn't until late in the fall that the two would see each other again.

Just before the snow started to fall once again, the man was at a local tavern playing billiards with a group of friends when the woman walked up the stairs and caught his eye immediately. He stopped what he was doing to meet her in an embrace - and as he did, she boldly proclaimed, "Theres something I've been wanting to do."

Then they shared their first kiss.

From then on, they were inseparable. The young lovers spent most of their free time outside of work doing all manner of activities together. In the winter they played in the snowy mountains. In the spring and summer they hiked and camped every chance they could. From the western deserts to the far off mountains of the Northeast, they traveled.

Eventually he would take her home to meet his family and she would return that act in kind. They also adopted a furry red headed child along the way. They named him Rascal and he never failed to live up to that name. The two were deeply in love and anyone who knew them were well aware.

It seemed nothing could stop these two from a beautiful future together.

Three wonderful years flew by and winter was approaching once more. The town prepared itself for Ullr's blessings, but something different began to happen in it's stead.

A darkness crept over the town that winter. The snow never came, and instead, a blight began infecting many of the residents. Not a physical ailment, but a sickness of the soul. The usually outgoing and gregarious townsfolk became standoffish and guarded. The towns atmosphere became suffocating and many good people never fully recovered.

The man in our story was deeply affected by this illness. The woman recognized this and did all she could in order to help him to no avail. In the depths of that miserable winter, the two decided they could no longer go on as they once had. They ended their relationship with an emotional goodbye and agreed to give each other the space they both needed to grow.

And so it went that the young man, filled with self loathing and regret, cast himself into isolation at his family's cottage in the wilderness the following autumn. He and his trusted redheaded fur-child abandoned many modern comforts in order for him to focus inwards on what exactly it was that had cast such an inky shade upon his psyche.

Not all was biscuits and bonbons in that time. Going without socialization and modern comforts weighed heavy on his mind, forcing him to substitute Rascal's conversational skills for all that he had lost outside the cottage. Talks were mostly one sided and dull considering that Rascal was not even a year old, stood less than a foot tall and spoke mostly in whimpers, growls and barks. He was a cattle dog after all.

The winter was long and healthy for the two. While they lived apart and had little to no contact, they both began to come into their own. After he left the hillside cottage to move back with family in the North lands that spring, they remained mostly out of touch for another few years.

It wasn't until the two of them crossed paths several years down the road that they would discover how much they had both grown, but somehow managed to remain the same as they had always been.

It was the day of the annual, "Sleighs and Tankards" festival in Crested Butte. The man had since moved back to the valley, but remained cloistered between his work and home for fear of succumbing to the same old sickness; But today, of all days, was a cause for celebration! His brothers were visiting with his eldest brother's bride-to-be in tow! Music, dancing, sleighs and libations to witness the fast-approaching Spring! What a wonderful time to be had!

The group set off from the neighboring village that morning in their most appropriate celebratory garb. They arrived to a spirited gathering of eccentric and lively revelers dressed in all manner of fantastical clothing while sliding down the well groomed track.

The crowd was nearly impenetrable as they drew close to the entrance, when out of nowhere appeared the most beautiful and familiar face from his past.

They locked eyes as she strode by; and in that moment, he knew he had to speak with her. If for nothing else but to clear the air between the two, he must seek an audience with his past love. In the midst of the chaotic and jovial atmosphere, he spotted an opportunity and took a chance. An opportunity that would prove most fortunate for the two - for upon this chance encounter would lay the foundation of a great future together.

Though he abandoned his brothers and future sister-in-law that evening, all involved would be happy to see themselves gain another sister in turn.

They took their time in the interim. They began to date once again, eventually sharing a home before an unexpected proposal on the ski lift where they first met just a couple years later.

Eventually it came time for them strike out on their own. They left the mountainous paradise for the Northern plains to start their adventure together. The year that followed tested all aspects of their relationship, but they persevered. They also adopted another redheaded beastly companion that they called Cedar. She was a cat in dog form.

The loving couple and their furry compatriots quietly returned to the mountains one day the next June and declared their love for one another in a ceremony witnessed only by the two lovely dogs and the obligatory photography-witch to record the memories made.

In many other fairy tales, the narrator would wrap up the ending with a simple, "and they lived happily ever after". Though this is but the prologue of their journey together. More stories will be written of this beautiful couple. Only time will tell what the world has in store for them, but for now, we will leave these lovers in peace to build a life with one another.

***The fairy tale style story started as a joke but was very fun to write. I hope anybody reading it enjoyed it as well.***

Katherine grew up in a small ski town in the beautiful Green Mountains of Vermont. Her parents Kitty and Ward Smyth raised her and her sibling Logan to think first and be wild and creative the rest of the time. Katherines' childhood was spent sledding in her yard, wandering through the woods learning bird calls and skiing (though, for too long she could only turn one direction).

Unfortunately, tragedy struck the family when cancer took Kitty from this plane. The Smyth family carried on the best that it could, and time began to heal a deep wound.

Joy was sparked anew for Katherine in the way of an over shaggy, sway back mare named Morning Star. Her love for horses that had been growing in the years prior blossomed into a passion. She was able to throw her mother's saddle upon her horse and find new adventures.

It was in her middle school years that her family grew as Ward found love again and married Nancy. Bringing with her, her daughter, Carole.

Wishing to follow in Logan and Kitty's footsteps, Katherine went to her dream high school in Massachusetts, attending Berkshire School she found her independence and her voice. Her next move continued to follow Logan and attended University in Montreal. Though she did not stay in the city long as school and the confinement of tall buildings did not speak to her the way the mountains did.

So, for the first time in a long time Katherine moved back to Vermont to live in her home valley during the winter season. Her childhood love of skiing had begun to feel like something new and more important. She loved working at Sugarbush during the winters, but the summer wasn't bringing the adventure she was craving as Morning Star had grown too old.

Thus began her western adventure, with the encouragement of her grandmother's sister, she moved to Eatons Ranch in northern Wyoming. Here she was able to ride horses and hike in the American Rockies for the first time.

Summers in the Bighorns and winters in Vermont were exactly what she wanted, for a time. The longing for the next adventure began to rise again and this time she wanted the mountains to be bigger.

The first time Katherine drove up the road to Crested Butte, she had no idea what to expect. She wasn't the local ski bum anymore she was a stranger skiing strange runs, but it didn't take long to make friends and even fall in love. Her expectation was to be there for only a hand full of years, but it was nearly a decade later that her journey would continue, this time with Brien in tow.

Brien was born in a town in California but spent each subsequent stage of his life moving from state to state across the country. Elementary school in Texas, Middle school in Utah, High school in Virginia and College in Wyoming before moving to Colorado in order to be nearer to his favorite place in the world; Tincup, CO.

Throughout his travels he always wound up, at one point or another, on the same well worn brown couch at his grandparents cabin in that historic ghost town. The view from that couch out the dusty window is burned into the back of his eyelids. It was always in his cards to wind up Near that cabin.

He didn't know it at the time, but the move to Crested Butte would be the most fortuitous and consequential of his life. He would meet amazing people, have incredibly amazing and formative experiences and ultimately fall in love with his future wife, Katherine - an incredibly wonderful and beautiful woman from Vermont who, by her own admission, had strangely never really been camping before.

If 10,000 hours of dedication to a specific skill or activity actually makes you a master of said skill, Brien would be approaching that mark in only a few things. Soccer, Being alone in the woods / camping or hiking and probably bartending... but the one thing he is, time-wise at least, qualified to claim he is a master of is devotion to his new wife after all these years of shared love and experiences.

Love isn't a science, but both Katherine and Brien are looking toward a bright future together.

Katherine

Birthday- May 13, 1992

Zodiac- Taurus

Favorite Animal- Pine Marten

Favorite Color- Green (she made the website)

Winter Sport- Skiier

Brien

Birthday- July 17, 1989

Zodiac- Cancer

Favorite Animal-

Favorite Color- Red

Winter Sport- Snowboarder

Rascal

Gender- Male

Birthday- March 17, 2017

Favorite Activity- Swimming

Cedar

Gender- Female

Birthday- September 16, 2023

Favorite Activity- Fetch