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Martin J. Smith

Martin lives in Granby. He’s the author of five novels and five nonfiction books, including Going to Trinidad: A Doctor, a Colorado Town, and Stories from an Unlikely Gender Crossroads, which this year was a finalist for
a Colorado Book Award.

Articles By Martin J. Smith

After a Rash of Family Deaths, One Colorado Man Needed to Find a Different Way to Grieve

He found it by turning his parents into sustainable energy.

Is Van Life Actually Any Fun?

A rented camper van, 2,500 miles, and 10 days exploring the abyss between Instagram fantasies and open-road reality.

Choosing to Spend Life’s Final Act in Colorado’s High Mountains

Slowing down to enjoy life’s final act from a house by the side of the road in rural Grand County.

The Visionary Surgeon Who Put Trinidad on the Map

For decades, thousands of people came to Trinidad, Colorado, to have gender confirmation surgery done by Dr. Stanley Biber. This excerpt from Going To Trinidad tells his—and one of his patient’s—poignant stories.

How One Perfect Memory Survived the East Troublesome Fire

A friend, a long hike, and the regenerative nature of the wilderness.

Bird’s-Eye View: Nature’s Dramas Don’t Always Have Happy Endings

How a Grand Lake webcam focused on an osprey nest brought viewers from around the world together—and re-taught them nature’s sometimes difficult lessons.

Adventure Racing Past 50 Years Old

When a Grand County sexagenarian tries the Never Summer Adventure Race two years in a row, he’s left reflecting on the delusion of immortality.

Damned If They Do

Are the beavers living in Colorado’s high country ingenious critters or inveterate nuisances—or both?

Can Public Shaming Help Stop Littering?

How do you change the incorrigible? One Granby resident assesses the value of publicly shaming an unrepentant litterbug in an uncivil world.

One Man’s Complicated 50-Year Relationship With Cannabis

It’s been a long, strange trip.

The Existential Dilemma of Wearing a Cowboy Hat

Does a transplant have the right to wear the iconic Western headwear if he’s not, you know, an actual cowboy?

How an Indoor Soccer Field Is Bringing Grand County’s Population Together

For Granby’s increasingly diverse population, the Grand County Soccer Club is a magnet for people of all kinds to gather and play.

Wild Thing

A city dog confronts porcupines, coyote kills, and marmots—and the myriad other challenges of life in Colorado’s high country.

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