Jack's Jaunts | Rocky Mountain Outdoor Writers & Photographers

Travels and Travails of a Magazine Photographer

By Jack Olson

[Ed. Note: This article was first printed in the April-May 1996 issue of Rocky Mountain Outdoors.]

I recently had a magazine assignment which I thought might be of interest to members who are aspiring photographers. It seems pretty funny now that some time has passed but it didn’t tickle me too much at the time. Experienced photographers in RMOWP will probably recall similar stories of their own.

Hoop Hoop Hurray!

By Jack Olson

It’s time for a bit of nostalgia. Do you remember the hula hoop? I was traveling in Europe when I saw my first hula hoop. Some boys were playing along the Appian Way south of Rome. I believe there is WWII damage in the background of the photo. It was January, 1959.

Colorado’s Surprising Eastern Plains

Text and photos by Jack Olson

Paint Mines Interpretive Park on Colorado's Eastern Plains — Gaunt yet colorful terrain in Paint Mines Interpretive Park on Colorado’s Eastern Plains. © Jack Olson

Colorado has the highest average elevation of any state in the country, even including Alaska. Colorado is all mountains. Right? Wrong! About a third of the state is prairie; some regions are near 3,000 feet elevation.

One of the most surprising and unique areas of Colorado is Paint Mines Interpretive Park, named for the colorful bands of clay that were used by early American Indians to make paint. Fifty-five million years ago this area was a region of tropical forests. Now, animals including coyotes, hawks, rabbits, and falcons call it home.

A Rare Wildflower

Text and photo by Jack Olson

Your wildflower of the day is the endangered wood lily, also known as a Rocky Mountain lily and a red lily. This flower is very, very rare. I’ve been in Colorado over 50 years and have only seen it blooming in the wild twice. The first time was in the late ’60s or early ’70s. There was a known patch by a popular trail in Rocky Mountain National Park. I saw them there once, but they were not seen again and I’m afraid someone picked them or dug them up.

Celebrating the Fall of the Berlin Wall

Text and photos by Jack Olson

Building in East Berlin 1959. Translated, the sign reads “We demand: peace treaty for Germany and a demilitarized, free city of West Berlin!” © Jack Olson

November 9, 2019, marked the thirtieth anniversary of the fall of the Berlin wall. I was in East Berlin in 1959. It was two years before the infamous wall was built and during a time when the Iron Curtain had imprisoned most people in Communist nations. At the time, I was a foreign exchange student with the Dutch Foreign Trade School. It was during my junior year at DePauw University in Greencastle, Indiana.

The Legend of Silverheels

Text & photo by Jack Olson

Mt. Silverheels, Colorado — Mt. Silverheels from Kenosha Pass © Jack Olson

I first climbed 10,000-foot Kenosha Pass in the late ’60s, where I met a party from the Colorado Mountain Club. I joined the club, made new friends, learned about many wonderful places, and became a hike leader with the group. Among the things I learned was about nearby 13,829-foot Mt. Silverheels, named for the “Legend of Silverheels.”

Sweetheart of the Himalaya

By Jack Olson

In 1977 we began our Nepal trek, and for the first few days we were in the foothills, maybe the 5,000-foot range. Since we were the only trekkers, we created quite a stir. We would almost always camp near a village. Children would come rushing out screaming “Mithai” (candy). That might not be welcome these days, but our trek organizer recommended that we carry some candy. It was hard candy, not Milky Ways.

Bargaining in Nepal ~ 1977

Text & by photos Jack Olson

Before I went to Nepal I’d never bargained for anything in my life. See the price and either pay it or walk away. I mean, easy, isn’t it? Then, Nepal changed everything.

Hindu symbols carved into wood — Wooden block of hand-carved Hindu symbols

We’d only been out a day or two on our trek, still in the foothills. We made camp and were just sitting around when a boy, maybe eight years old, wandered in and displayed this wooden block with Hindu symbols and said 12 rupee. I didn’t know how to respond but was still thinking dollars. I said 8. He said 11, I said 8. He looked about to cry. One of our party said, “Jack, you’re supposed to go up.” We finally settled on 10. Even then my troubles weren’t over. I pulled out a 10 rupee note and he shook his head. Paper money had recently been introduced and people in the back country didn’t trust it. They wanted coins. Fortunately, I had ten metal rupees.

Sharing

Text & photos by Jack Olson

Around the year 2000 I read a wildflower hiking book for the Colorado mountains. It profiled a feature called Shrine Ridge and, furthermore, bestowed upon it the title of Century Hike. That would be at least a hundred different wildflowers in the course of a season. What the authors had shared would turn out to be life-enriching for me.

Rocky Mountain Dreamin’

By Jack Olson

The Big Thompson River flows through Moraine Park.
© Jack Olson

I sure hope you’re planning to attend the RMOWP conference in Rocky Mountain National Park in September. It’s stunning, inspiring, magical. That’s just a few adjectives. Supply your own when you come. I taught up there for about a dozen years at the RMOWP photo workshop and I figure I’ve been in the park two hundred or more times.