Fall Colors in the San Juan Mountains

by Darren Kilgore

When To Go

Peak fall color throughout the state typically ranges anywhere from September 15 to October 10, with September 27th usually being a good target date. Generally speaking, trees in the northern part of the state will turn earlier than those in the southern parts. It is not an exact science by any means and the trees will turn when they feel like it. In 2002, with Colorado's driest year on record, many were predicting the aspen to turn a week or two ahead of normal. It turns out that it was the latest (in general) in the season I've seen the aspen peak since I've been going out to view them since 1997. The Telluride area, as of October 12, 2002, was just getting into peak colors. In contrast, 2001's peak date was on September 18 throughout much of the state.

It is impossible to get good and reliable reports from the forest service, whether speaking to them directly or viewing their web sites, as to what the leaves are doing and when to go. So, the best places to get the information tend to be the various message boards from people who have just visited the areas. The best forum to keep track of, without a doubt, is Colorado.NaturePhotographers.net. We have a number of folks on there who have the same interests as myself, and they also do quite a bit of traveling, so the updates are current and fast. I typically do a pre-run during the weekends leading up to peak color, and as I did this past fall, I will link updates and pictures here when the autumn season nears this year.

Owl Creek Pass

My second favorite route is the Owl Creek Pass road. This road is 41 miles in length and goes between the little settlement of Cimarron (30 miles east of Montrose) and Ridgway. It is a very quiet road and one can expect to not see a lot of other travelers here. The first part of this section follows the Little Cimarron River in beautiful ranch land country. As the road gently climbs after a few miles, some nice vistas open up to the south up the valley towards Uncompahgre and Wetterhorn peaks. At the 20-mile point, you come to Silver Jack Reservoir. This area is my favorite section of the road and both images here are taken adjacent to the reservoir.

A little further up the road, there are three forks (East, Middle and West) of the Cimarron River which you can drive further to the south to near the Uncompahgre Wilderness, the first two being around six miles in length. There are many great camping possibilities along these spur roads. Just below the pass on the Ridgway side, the aspen really open up and line the road for a good distance. This is also the area of great views of Chimney Rock and Courthouse Mountain. Down the road a ways later as you start to make a fairly steep descent, there are incredible views that open way up and let you view the entire Sneffels Range. And finally, as you're nearing Highway 550 and driving along some of the most beautiful ranch land anywhere, more possibilities of capturing the Sneffels Range await.

County Road 5

County Road 5 starts in Ridgway and goes all the way up to the Mount Sneffels Wilderness boundary. This road is perhaps less traveled compared to the 7 and 9 roads further to the west, but certainly no less impressive. Here you will find another classic shot of Mt. Sneffels towering above the hills and forests, but perhaps just as great is the opportunity of unlimited possibilities of intimate scenes of aspen, as this road is lined with them. In fact, I have found more possibilities (and they are numerous) along this route using the road as a lead-in line through the trees than any other road that I've been on. It could be that I haven't paid too much attention on other roads, but it is so much more apparent along this one! This is a true hot spot for fall photography.

County Road 7 (East Dallas Creek)

County Road 7, also East Dallas Creek Road, is one of my favorite roads in the state. I guess more appropriately, though, this road leads to my favorite place in the state—the wonderful valley at the end at the foot of Mt. Sneffels, the crown jewel of the San Juans, and my favorite mountain. It's just so darn photogenic—from all angles! The turnoff is about four miles west of Ridgway and heads south. It is about eight miles in length and the photo ops don't really start until the last two miles of it. The signature shot comes when you round the corner and the valley opens up before you. If you've never been here before, you will certainly wonder why! This is a fairly popular area in the fall amongst photographers, so you may not be alone. Mid-morning and early evening is the ideal time to shoot here. The end of the road is about a mile further and stops at the Blue Lakes trailhead. This area has a number of great camping spots that I've taken advantage on a number of occasions. Hmm, maybe I shouldn't have given that information out, either! Well, I'll just have to kick you out if I find you in my spot!

You can find more great Colorado info and images at Darren's website, mycolorado.org