Fall Color at its Peak in Colorado
I’m getting plenty of material with the Hasselblad X2D, but currently have such poor cell phone bandwidth that it is not feasible to publish it.
Near Glenwood Springs and Aspen Colorado, fall color is at its prime and will start to fade within a few days, though it should be quite nice for a week or so. At the 9000-10000 foot level, there are pockets of green aspen but most are yellow and some are already going bare; it’s an interesting mix.A few are red/orange, but not many. Clear weather is expected to hold for a week or so. Today there was a brisk breeze up on Red Table road that was pulling leaves off the aspen that went yellow a week or so ago.
Reader Tom S writes:
Welcome for visiting our “colorful” state. You noted that the Aspen trees are near peak, but I’d like to call your attention to my preferred colors coming up in the 2nd & 3rd weeks of October.. The Gambels oaks turn a wonderful yellow, orange, red, and brown that I find more beautiful than the Aspen. These oak forests are very common South of I-70 at altitudes of 5,000 to 9,000 feet or so. They come into their glory after the peak of the aspen color, and if you are lucky there is some overlap. This is my favorite time to travel for Fall colors in the San Juan mountains down near Ridgway, alas not this year.
Here is one of my favorite photos of Mount Marcellina at Kebler pass. On subsequent trips, I have yet to match it in terms of color and composition. It was taken with my Leica M-7 on Sensia film. 35mm Summicron.
If you are a little later, only the Cottonwoods retain some color, but by then the Aspen are mostly gone. This is from last year which was pretty dry and dreary. Mt Sneffels from Rd-7
DIGLLOYD: agreed, the Gambel oaks also has very attractive color that can be quite striking and even multi-color.
Good color at various elevations should last the rest of the month or so. But high winds (30 mph) on Oct 11 are going to strip-off a lot of the 9000+ foot elevation leaves, though there are patches of fully green aspen still and those may persist.