Autumn in the Colorado Mountains

The summer's drought is leaving the colors a little muted this year, but they're still spectacular.  It had been cloudy and rainy much of this week, when the colors were peaking.  I tried shooting with mixed results.  Then this morning the sun came out and lit up the scenery in a magnificent way.  A little fresh snow on the high peaks makes the scene perfect.

Chair Mountain from Placita, between Redstone and Marble, Colorado

Huntsman's Ridge

Treasure Mountain(left), Chair Mountain (right), and the Raggeds form the backdrop of this scenic view above the Crystal River Valley.

People familiar with the Colorado mountains will find it odd that this shot was taken in early July.  Why?  Because there's hardly any snow to be found!  A below-average winter (with respect to snowfall), coupled with a very warm spring and summer has left the mountains very dry and relatively snow-free.

The Crystal River, which flows in the valley above, is running about 80% below average for this time of year.  Until the rainfall of last week, it was flirting with the record lows of 1977.

All of us out here are hoping that the wildfires making the news are brought under control quickly, and that few new ones take their place.  We remember the summer of 2002 well, when everyone was on edge all summer long. 

This morning, I hiked up Hunstman's ridge again.  I've done this about a dozen times this spring and summer, as it's close to home and makes for a great training hike.  I would like to get up into the other high country some more, but have been busy with a variety of things, and just haven't gotten around to it yet.  Soon, I hope.

East Creek Trail

 

Climbing 4,000 feet over five or six miles, the East Creek trail isn't one to take lightly.  In addition to being steep and long, there's not really much to see for the first four miles.  Therefore I think it's one you don't attempt unless you're prepared to go to the top. 

Once at the top, the successful hiker is greeted with a large amphitheater filled with wildflowers.  The warm dry summer we're experiencing in Colorado this year means that flowers are peaking earlier, and I chose to hike East Creek two weeks before my original target date. 

The trailhead begins above the boulevard in Redstone, about fifteen miles south of Carbondale.  There's a parking area on the boulevard, and as it's been eight years since my last hike up this trail, I was fooled into thinking I had to park there.  There's also room for a few vehicles at the trailhead, and if you drive up there, you'll save yourself a mile of hiking and several hundred feet of vertical gain.  Had I done so, I'm sure my knees wouldn't have been as sore that evening.