{"id":2457376,"date":"2020-04-18T22:00:00","date_gmt":"2020-04-19T04:00:00","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.aspentimes.com\/news\/willoughby-life-at-a-self-imposed-solitary-safe-distance-in-the-rockies\/"},"modified":"2020-04-18T22:00:00","modified_gmt":"2020-04-19T04:00:00","slug":"willoughby-life-at-a-self-imposed-solitary-safe-distance-in-the-rockies","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kspn\/local-news\/willoughby-life-at-a-self-imposed-solitary-safe-distance-in-the-rockies\/","title":{"rendered":"Willoughby: Life at a self-imposed solitary safe distance in the Rockies"},"content":{"rendered":"
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A miner\u2019s cabin decomposes above Ashcroft, near timberline.<\/strong>
willoughby collection\/courtesy photo<\/em><\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/figure>\n

NPR reporter Rae Ellen Bichell recorded an interview with Billy Barr. He lives between Crested Butte and Ashcroft, at an abandoned mine in Gothic, at around 10,000 feet elevation. Bichell intended to pick up ideas about how to survive social distancing, in Barr\u2019s case living alone.<\/p>\n

Barr enjoys his near-solitary existence. In the winter he sees, rarely, a few backcountry skiers as they pass. And he makes occasional trips to Crested Butte. He recommends a daily routine. His routine includes gathering weather and animal information for the Colorado Avalanche Information Center and the Rocky Mountain Biology Laboratory. Also, he loves movies and maintains a large collection.<\/p>\n

The interview reminded me of men who lived in the surrounding area during Aspen\u2019s mining era. Surely you have seen remnants of their cabins and wondered how they survived.<\/p>\n

Miners built most of those cabins within walking distance of their \u201coffice,\u201d a mine. They occupied high elevation cabins \u2014 a few above timberline \u2014 only seasonally, because winter snow would just about bury them. But other cabins, such as those in Little Annie Basin, sheltered residents year round.<\/p>\n

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