At sunset on the eve of her 50th birthday, CMarie hikes up a slickrock ridge with her dog Carhartt. She passes petroglyphs, and cottonwoods, and at the top of the ridge, as the sun disappears over the mountains, she slips on a red evening gown. The light soaks into her hair and skin, and CMarie greets a new decade.

This episode takes place on Navajo, Pueblo, and Ute homelands.

Do you want to reach out to the team? Email us at terrafirma@cpr.org.

We've collaborated with Apple Maps to create a guide to the special places in nature that you've heard about in this podcast. It's a list of beautiful settings in the Rocky Mountains, handpicked by CMarie Fuhrman. To check it out, go to apple.co/terra-firma-guide.

Host and Writer: CMarie Fuhrman

Field Recordist: Jacob Job

Outdoor audio recorded at Oregon Trail Ruts State Historic Site near Guernsey, Wyoming

Editor: Erin Jones

Producers: Rebekah Romberg, Kibwe Cooper

Art: Maria Juliana Pinzón

Executive Producer: Brad Turner

Additional Editorial Support: Jo Erickson, Luis Antonio Perez, Emily Williams

Thanks also to Jodi Gersh, Clara Shelton, Arielle Wilson, Martin Skavish and Jon Pinnow

Terra Firma is a production of Colorado Public Radio's Audio Innovations Studio.