On November 10th, an 80-foot Christmas tree visited Cabela’s in Grand Junction, giving people an early taste of the holiday season. Each year, a tree from one of the 154 national parks throughout the USA is delivered to the Capitol to be decorated and set out on the lawn for all to see.
This year, the tree is a Sitka Spruce from the Tongass National Forest of Alaska, transported across the country to the Capitol. The tree stopped at Cabela’s from 3:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. as hot cocoa was served, as well as a visit from Santa, and kid’s Christmas giveaways. As the giant tree finally arrived, the crowds were already gathering, and people marveled at the size of the truck carrying the tree. Festivities began and people started drinking hot chocolate and talking, while their kids waited in line to talk to Santa, and people were allowed close to the truck to wonder just how big the tree inside was. After the tree arrived, the air was full of noise as people marveled at the ginormous truck, and kids chatted while waiting for a turn to talk to Santa. Still, eventually, everyone quieted down as the excitement wore off and people started to talk about the tradition and why it existed. Also known as The People’s Tree, the Christmas tree for the Capitol has been selected annually from a National Forest since 1964 when John McCormack planted a live Christmas tree on the Capitol lawn. Since then, it has been the honor of the US Forest Service to coordinate the transportation of the Capitol Christmas tree.
