Services for naturalist and author Kent Dannen set

After a family member made a report for a wellness check to local authorities on Jan. 21, the body of naturalist, author, and award-winning photographer Kent Dannen was found half a mile from his home on Big Owl Road in Allenspark by a search and rescue team on Jan. 23.

He was the author of more than a dozen hiking and outdoor books including several FalconGuides about hiking in Rocky Mountain National Park.

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Dannen’s sister, Debbie Lanham says the exact cause of her brother’s death may never be known but he had recently had a fall and may have experienced another one while out on a hike, something he continued to do almost daily. Dannen was in good health, according to Lanham, but had not been heard from for five days, which prompted the request for help. He was 78.

Dannen grew up in St. Joseph, Mo. When he was a boy, his family vacationed yearly at the YMCA of the Rockies. “My dad’s dad was coming out here when it was still a teaching camp for Y staff,” said Lanham explaining the family’s history in the area. “So really it goes back a long way with the Y.”

Dannen’s father, Dwight, served on the board of the Y in the 1950s and as president of the organization in the 1960s. His brother Doug also served on the board and his brother-in-law, Curtis Lanham, is a current board member. The Dannen Chapel, Dannen Library, and the Dannen Family Reunion Cabin at the Y are named for members of the family.

After graduation from the University of Kansas, Dannen, he enrolled in the Lexington Theological Seminary in Kentucky where he earned a master’s degree and was ordained by the Disciples of Christ.

He married Donna Harward, a student at Ohio University, on June 19, 1971, at the Northminister Presbyterian Church in Finneytown, Ohio. The couple moved to Estes Park in the early 1970s where Dannen worked as a hike master and naturalist for the Y.

Drawing on his passion for the mountains and hiking, Dannen began his writing career. His first major work was “The American Wilderness in the World of John Muir,” published in 1973, the centennial year of Ansel Adams birth. The hardback book featured colored photography by Ed Cooper and David Muench originally photographed by Adams. 

He developed a talk and slide presentation, “John Muir – Wilderness Profit,” that he and Donna, who worked as a seasonal ranger naturalist in Rocky Mountain National Park, presented for many years to park visitors and local groups.

In 1978, the couple authored “Rocky Mountain National Park Hiking Trails—Including Indian Peaks,” a detailed guide to hundreds of miles of trails in the park and included photos, maps, and drawings. The book’s cover featured a photograph of Dannen.

Considered a hiking bible, the pocket-sized book was dedicated to their parents, Martha and Don Harward and Mary Ellen and Dwight Dannen. A page in the book’s front matter included a quote from the Book of Jeremiah in the Old Testament, “Ask for the ancient paths where the good way is; and walk in it and find rest for your souls.” Over the years, the book has been updated and expanded numerous times.

Dave Rusk, publisher of Hike Rocky Magazine, credits Dannen with inspiring him to pursue his passion to publish about hiking and history in the national park. “I only met him once, but his pocket guide was the only hiking guidebook of its kind for years,” said Rusk whose monthly on-line and annual print edition “has been telling people to take a hike since 1998.”

Dannen went on to write and coauthor more than a dozen hiking and outdoor books including “Short Hikes in Rocky Mountain National Park,” “Rocky Mountain Wildflowers,” “Hiking Pennsylvania,” and several Falcon Guidebooks, including “Best Easy Day Hikes in Rocky Mountain National Park.”  

His photos and articles were published in national magazines and used by many publishers including Field and Stream, National Wildlife, Colorado Magazine, American Forests, Backpacker, American West, Chanticleer, The Disciple, and National Geographic.

A lover of dogs, in 1998 Dannen wrote additional material for an updated edition of Enos Mill’s book about his dog, “The Story of Scotch.” As a member of the Samoyed Club of America, Dannen bred and showed many of his dogs and also did professional pet photography, often as a fundraiser for pet organizations.

He taught nature photography for the National Wildlife Federation and in 1995 the U.S. Forest Service presented him with a U.S. Department of Agriculture Certificate of Appreciation for his volunteer services in developing educational materials to manage and protect the Indian Peaks Wilderness.

In 2019, Dannen authored “Search and Rescue—Rocky Mountains,” which traces the story of rescue efforts in the Rockies from the 1840s. The book focuses on the bravery and skill of park rangers, first responders, pilots, and rescue dogs in the effort to save people who have experienced a crisis in the wilderness.

It is poignant that search and rescue personnel—including the Boulder County Sheriff’s Office, Allenspark Fire Protection District, Arapahoe Rescue Patrol, Boulder Emergency Squad, Colorado Search and Rescue Association, Front Range Rescue Dogs, Larimer County Search and Rescue, and Rocky Mountain Rescue Group—were employed to help find Dannen.

After a three-day search in bitter cold winter weather with temperatures that dipped below zero, Dannen’s body was discovered by members of the Arapahoe Rescue Patrol, a trained group of high school students who assist with search missions.

In the introduction of “Search and Rescue,” Dannen wrote, “Like all other wilderness travelers I do not expect ever to need the services of a search and rescue team, but I certainly am glad they stand ready just in case.”

He went on to write, “Humans have needed on occasion to organize themselves to search for and rescue their fellow human beings for as long as there have been humans. Even before humans, there were Neanderthals, who showed the social concerns and compassion found in the humans who came later. Such traits turn up in archaeological sites, where these prehumans (or oldest of humans) treated their neighbors’ injuries and buried them ritually with flowers. It seems reasonable that the hunter gathers who carried out such activities of mutual concern also would set out to search for and rescue missing friends they held in such regard.”

Although Dannen did not work in congregational ministry, he conducted a weekly non-denominational radio worship program in Estes Park called the Church of the Air for many years on KRKI. He had also been a columnist for The Disciple, the magazine for the Christian Church Disciples of Christ.

Dannen drew on his theological background for a book of spiritual meditations, “Listen to the Sparrow’s Song,” and developed a photo slide show, “From His Holy Hill,” that presented biblical teachings about the relationship of humans and creation, the revelation of God in nature, and the role of stewardship.

Dannen is survived by his son, Patrick, his ex-wife, Donna, a brother, Douglas and his wife Carolyn of Florida, a sister Patti Morrow and her husband Michael of Arkansas, and another sister, Debbie Lanham and her husband Curt of Estes Park. He is also survived by many nieces and nephews.

According to Lanham, Dannen always led the family in prayers at family gatherings and moving forward they will miss his presence in their lives.

Services will be held at the Presbyterian Community Church of the Rockies on Friday, Feb. 7 at 1 p.m. In lieu of flowers, the family has asked that contributions be made to the Presbyterian Community Church of the Rockies.