The elusive bucket list item….Discretion is the better part of valor!

Ok… that’s not the true Shakespearian quote, which is “The better part of valor is discretion,” but my dad used to say it as it is in the title so that’s what we are going with!

In our last flying based blog we eluded to flying bucket lists, and the pursuit of them.  While we continue to add and cross off items, one continues to elude us: Telluride Airport! Perhaps it’s fitting we use a Shakespeare quote when discussing Telluride.  It kind of looks like some secret strip fit for a superhero or villain perched up on the side of a mountain, at the mouth of a valley flanked by peaks over 14,000 feet. It’s a place to be respected.  So, despite it being on my bucket list pretty much my entire flying career, I still said, “Not today” despite it being a mere few miles away.  

Because Telluride sits at over 9,000 feet, density altitude is a factor, especially for non-turbo charged airplanes.  Those peaks that sit around the south, east, and north of the airport generate tricky air patterns, and the field is on a plateau which doubles down on shifty winds! 

 Our first try at Telluride was in 2022, when we were married there.  We were so conservative then that we didn’t even plan on landing there for our wedding.  Since the tendency for the hazard called ‘Get-There-Itis’ was about as strong for that event as it would ever be, we planned Montrose for our airplane base.  But, we hoped we would have a chance to get a landing in at Telluride.  The weather didn’t cooperate.  

This time, in 2025, we were looking picture perfect.  As often happens in Colorado mountain towns the wind started coming up when we were within about 20 minutes of landing.  By the time we were there the winds were gusty and shifting about, so again, we diverted to Montrose.  We planned to try and land at Telluride the day we left Montrose, but again, weather had another plan.  This time lower visibility and winds moving in from the west.  Airports like Telluride take a lot of experience and careful planning to operate safely, and part of being a professional aviator is exercising careful realistic judgement.  As much as I fly to challenging places at work, its a whole different situation for small airplanes and Telluride.  

Of course, we would be remiss if we didn’t take a similar approach with a transaction in Real Estate.  Often a clients pursuit of Real Estate is a pursuit of bucket lists too!  We endeavor to check them all off but sometimes have to evaluate the list of those with a client to decide to divert, modify our approach, or carefully and professionally proceed.  Each transaction has its challenges, and Elizabeth’s 20 years of experience helps navigate those, calling from a trusted list of resources when conditions warrant.