Spencer Christensen is conflicted when he talks about Colorado's Grand Mesa.
"As a person who likes the Grand Mesa for personal reasons, I want it to be kept secret," he said. "But as a business owner who has the Grand Mesa Lodge, it's just the opposite. The more people who find out about it, the better."
The world's largest flat-top mountain, the landmark looming in view just about anywhere you go in western Colorado, is a "secret?"
It can indeed feel that way, said Melissa Newell. A scenic byway, the paved Colorado Hwy. 65, runs from enveloping canyons off Interstate 70 outside Grand Junction to the lesser-known portal of Cedaredge, Colo. This town of apple orchards is Newell's home.
The town is a "hidden gem," she said — not so unlike the mountain lining the sky above.
"It's definitely a hidden gem still," said Newell, who has avidly explored the Grand Mesa since moving to its base seven years ago. "People who've been around longer will say it's getting a little bit busier, but it's still pretty remote and takes quite a bit of effort to get here for a lot of people. So it still has that sweetness about it."
A land of lakes
Sweet like the fruit of the valley, one might say. Generations of farmers have thanked irrigation canals and other diversions that have delivered water from lakes spotting the mesa spanning some 500 square miles above 10,000 feet.
"This is truly a land of lakes," reads one U.S. Forest Service sign perched at one spectacular viewpoint, overlooking the San Juan and West Elk mountains above 14,000 feet, the Book Cliffs and, yes, waters like blue strokes of a paintbrush across the canvas.