I spent most of my first week in Ouray County walking around wide-eyed, overwhelmed by how stunning it is, unable to believe I could somehow, actually, get to live here.

I had an idea of where I was headed from reading old Plaindealer stories, countless Google searches, and late nights scrolling through pictures on social media, but nothing prepared for seeing it myself. It’s been about a month now, and I’m still just as awestruck.

I’m a “flatlander,” I learned recently, which accounts f...