The Cortez area will be receiving an early Christmas present this year.
Residents will have the rare opportunity to see the Capitol Christmas tree during its tour across the nation to Washington D.C.
The tree will be in Cortez on Friday, Nov. 9.
The Peoples Tree, as its called, is a 73-foot tall Engleman Spruce that will be cut down in the White River National Forest near Meeker, Colo. on Nov. 6.
The journey will take the tree across the country before arriving in Washington D.C. the day after Thanksgiving.
The tree will be decorated with more than 5,000 ornaments from Coloradans.
A truck will transport the tree more than 3,000 miles over the course of 23 days.
The tree and the truck will stop in about 30 cities and towns, journeying through Colorado and across the country.
Colorado artists of all ages and abilities are invited to create ornaments that depict the theme of the 2012 Capitol Christmas Tree: Celebrating our Great Outdoors.
The tradition of selecting the Capitol Christmas Tree from a National Forest is nearly five decades old.
As Nov. 9 approaches and more details about when the tree will arrive and the Cortez location, the Journal will announce them.
For more on the 2012 Capitol Christmas Tree go to http://www.fs.usda.gov/whiteriver.
