Merry Christmas and Happy Anniversary, JasperColorado.com !

Jasper friends and family,

Today is Christmas Eve, 2023 which always reminds me of 1 unusual but interesting fact about our beloved little town in the mountains. I remember the day, December 25, 2001 when I first registered the JasperColorado.com domain name. Can you believe it? Yes, it was devised 22 years ago but I found the internet archive and the first website posting was 2003 so we'll split the difference and call this the 20th anniversary of the JasperColorado.com website. I'm feeling nostalgic and typed up some back story you can read below, at the end of this post.

The very first website landing page says it all. For over 20 years, I've held true to that simple statement of giving Jasper a home on the internet, and it's worked!

"Welcome to JasperColorado.com!

The Skeleton Site is Up - Well, it's not the greatest web site around, but it's a start. The intention for this site is to have a fundamental internet presence for Jasper. Do not expect all of the bells-n-whistles here, but a great place to find links and basic information about Jasper. In the Links section, we have several great places for you to visit that are maintained by other Jasper enthusiasts like yourself. Please feel free to email us directly to contribute to the site in any way.

We are Looking for Links and content! Please, by all means consider sharing any pictures, information or links that others may find of value.Jasper, Colorado is a historic town high in the Rio Grande National Forest. It is surrounded by mountain, trees, water and wild life.

Blah, blah..

More introduction stuff here."

Here's some back story about how this website was started.

Another weird but true Jasper story is that I found my cabin in the year 2000 in eBay, of all places. I was looking for parcels of land that were off grid and stumbled across a listing on eBay. No, I did not bid on it but was watching carefully and after it ended, I decided to call the listing agent in Alamosa (Mike Porter). Mike wasn't able to meet me up there but he did provide directions and instructions on where I could find the door key. The next weekend, I took a 5-hour drive south from Denver and discovered Jasper! The crazy thing about Jasper at the time was that it was not to be found on any maps. Remember those strange paper things we kept in our cars to help us find our way? LOL. There was an internet at the time but it was very rudimentary compared to what we have today. For a mapping alternative, we used Map Quest, which would find locations and provide simple driving directions which could be printed and taken along with a picture (map). Well, at the time, Map Quest didn't know about Jasper and there was basically zero information available about Jasper anywhere. Eventually, Google Maps and other mapping services started popping up but none of them had any knowledge of Jasper. Eventually, I learned that they relied on zip code databases to establish locations at the time and we all know, Jasper does not have a zip code. I sent emails and opened trouble tickets with all of the different mapping services at the time and didnt not have much luck lobbying them to add it. THIS, was the main reason I decided to register JasperColorado.com and give our town an official point of reference on the internet. Eventually after going back and forth with Google for 2 years, they agreed to add Jasper to the map as a "ghost town" which didn't have a zip code. Isn't that funny?! Times have changed a lot but thankfully, most things in Jasper have stayed the same.

For those of you who remember, the first people that I met in Jasper were Mary and Clifford Green. I drove up to look at my cabin and they were neighbors at the time. Mary walked over and introduced herself and we had a lovely conversation. Imagine showing up in Jasper without having any information or background, that's how it was back then. Mary was very gracious and entertained tons of questions that I had. We must have talked for an hour. The second person I met was the caretaker at the time, BILL OSTER! Bill was a near-neighbor on the other side and he noticed me checking things out. He came over and introduced himself so we stopped by, got a tour and met his lovely wife, Sally. Bill was a real character, always quick on his feet and full of old stories and information about the area. Eventually, my dad moved to Jasper (Larry Sr.) and became good pals with Bill, Allen and the "coffee crew" of Jasper, and they've all moved on and passed the torch to us.

Well folks, I feel so fortunate to have stumbled across Jasper on eBay 24 years ago. I was in my late 20s at the time and now have a family with (almost) teenagers, who have grown up there since they were born. We have had such an incredible time and so many treasured memories together in Jasper. It's impossible to imagine how life would be without our wonderful retreat in the wilderness. God has blessed us all.

Merry Christmas, happy New Year and God bless you, from the Wolcott, Migliore and Hyde families.

-Larry Wolcott