Why you keep hearing howling at 8 p.m. across Denver
You’ve likely heard it already. And if you haven’t, you’ll likely be hearing it soon.
The howl.
You might think it’s wolves or coyotes. You may wonder what’s going on with the neighborhood dogs. Or you may even check your computer to make sure you didn’t leave that nature documentary running again. But no, listen closely and you’ll soon realize it’s the city of Denver that’s howling.
Partners Shelsea Ochoa and Brice Maiurro started the Facebook group Go Outside and Howl at 8pm on March 27. A little more than a week later, that group has more than 420,000 members. Many are in Colorado, including Ochoa and Maiurro (who live in Congress Park), but many others live elsewhere, spreading from the East Coast to Switzerland and Brazil.
“We can’t necessarily see the people we want to see or hug the people we want to hug, but we can reach out to people through this,” Ochoa said.
Both Ochoa and Maiurro are part of Denver’s art and community activism scene. Ochoa is an educator at the Denver Museum of Nature and Science and the creative director of the local storytelling group Soul Stories. Maiurro works in administration at National Jewish Health and is the poetry editor for the local literary magazine Suspect Press.
But let’s get back to the howling.
How does it work?
Step one: Note when the clock strikes 8 p.m.
Step two: Open up your window or step into your backyard. Step three: Howl.
But, like, why?
That’s the thing. There’s not really a set reason. Some people howl to find joy in a communal experience. Others howl to grieve. Some howl to honor medical workers. Ochoa and Maiurro left the reasoning behind the howl open-ended. It’s up for you
to decide. Personally, I’ve been howling because it’s freaking fun — and I’m not the only one who thinks so.
Many of the group’s participants comment that there’s something innately enjoyable about howling. Maiurro suggests that it’s a mix of being given permission to do something so wild and hearing the call and response with your neighbors. Plus, “there’s something Western about howling that people really enjoy.”
The idea itself came up organically, Ochoa said. The two have a friend who lives in a “hippie” neighborhood in California. Every sunset, the whole neighborhood howls. Maiurro has another friend who hosts poetry nights every full moon in Boulder, where howling is apparently common.
The evolution of nighttime howling isn’t surprising for Ochoa and Maiurro. They pointed to the balcony music performances and cheers for medical workers that are happening across the world as people navigate new realities in cities and countries shut down due to the coronavirus outbreak. The two Denverites happened to make the Facebook group, and if they hadn’t, someone else would have, Ochoa said.
Finally, will there be howling tonight? Open your doors at 8 p.m. and find out.