Photographer Jeff Olson and his wife, Joanne Plager Burke Olson, recently hiked the trails along the Devil’s Backbone between Loveland, Colo., and the Rocky Mountains, whee they experienced several moments of zen, a fine way to wrap up Jeff’s birthday weekend. The Backbone is a two-mile strip of Dakota sandstone that rises from the rock and soil in a buffer zone between mountains and plains west of Loveland. Pinnacles, which rise more than 200 feet above surrounding valleys, are eroded into angular arches, the most famous being the Keyhole. The Backbone’s crags are safe haven for nesting raptors, and mammals like mule deer, elk, bear and mountain lion live under its slopes. Nearly 2,200 acres on the east side of the formation are preserved under Larimer County law as the Devil’s Backbone Open Space.