Autumn hillside with aspen and spruce trees, Pike-San Isabel NF, CO, USA
Claudia and I are in Colorado, chasing the fall color once again. By Colorado standards this is a below-average year for autumn color. Apparently a mid-May snowstorm damaged some of the just-sprouting aspen leaves, and those leaves are turning brown or dull yellow before falling off.
But many of the aspens seem to be undamaged. And it’s Colorado after all, where there are so many aspens that even in a “poor” year you can find plenty of colorful trees. And we’ve had some great weather, with rain, snow, fog, and lots of interesting clouds. The combination of weather and color has been really fun to photograph, and the constantly-changing conditions have kept me going from sunrise to sunset every day. Here are a few images showing some of the best moments so far, and I’m sure I’ll post more soon.
— Michael Frye
Aspen and spruce trees, autumn, Pike-San Isabel NF, CO, USA
Aspens below Capitol Peak, White River NF, CO, USA
Related Posts: Autumn Landscapes; More Colorado Aspens
Michael Frye is a professional photographer specializing in landscapes and nature. He is the author or principal photographer of The Photographer’s Guide to Yosemite, Yosemite Meditations, Yosemite Meditations for Women, Yosemite Meditations for Adventurers, and Digital Landscape Photography: In the Footsteps of Ansel Adams and the Great Masters. He has also written three eBooks: Light & Land: Landscapes in the Digital Darkroom, Exposure for Outdoor Photography, and Landscapes in Lightroom: The Essential Step-by-Step Guide. Michael has written numerous magazine articles on the art and technique of photography, and his images have been published in over thirty countries around the world. Michael has lived either in or near Yosemite National Park since 1983, currently residing just outside the park in Mariposa, California.
I can tell you that the San Juans, that well known area by Ridgway, is disappointing, plus I’m here a bit early, still a lot of green trees. Someone said it was so dry in August that a lot of the leaves just dried up and turned brown. The snow on the peaks is nice though.
Thanks Patrick. We were in the San Juans briefly, didn’t find much color, so we moved on. Colorado is a big state, with a ton of aspens, so if they don’t look good in one place, you’re likely to find other spots that are better. Having said that, I heard that the color in the San Juans is improving.
Michael, I love receiving your emails. The images are a respite from this crazy world around me. Thank you for sowing calm and beauty around you.
Thanks Adair – happy to help in any way that I can. 🙂
Thanks as usual for the gorgeous scenery Michael. Colorado is on my list of ”maybe I will go visit sometime!” The scenery is so much like the Eastern Sierras it would be hard not to like.
Dawn
Maybe go visit? How about must go visit! 🙂
Beautiful, Michael. Looking forward to your Eastern Sierra photos soon.
Thanks John!
Thanks, Michael for sharing these. Nice to travel vicariously with you and see beauty through your eyes. Stuck in the bay area now, so loving this. Hope you find more in CO in your wanderings. Best always. – Greg
You’re welcome Greg, and thanks!
About ten days ago I was photographing the Aspen’s along Guanella Pass between Grant and Georgetown, Colorado. Many stands were at peak color, others totally bare. Same was true around Cripple Creek the week before that.
Yes, Colorado’s aspens grow in such varied areas of the state and the weather patterns are so different that each year offers some great color, but where and when that occurs is difficult to predict.
Great shots, Michael, now you better get back to Yosemite before the rest of El Cap falls. What a tragic series of events!
You’re certainly right about the varied areas the aspens grow in throughout Colorado. Each time I come back I find new places. There are just so many aspens!
Michael,
Beautiful images of aspens and parts of Colorado. It is on my list of must visit, see and photograph. I just need to practice driving in the snow. 😁. I prefer to travel in the Fall, Winter and Spring.
I appreciate the way you write our blog,,,just like an adventure.
Thanks Gina! It’s not likely that you’d have to drive in snow in late September or early October when the aspens are turning.