Tag: maroon bells

Autumn in Colorado – 2019

A few weeks ago, I took a break from the relentless Texas heat and headed to the mountains for a week of cooler temperatures and colorful landscapes. While fall colors are on the way here in Texas, the oranges and golds of Autumn leaves have already come and gone in Colorado. I’ll dive into the highlights of my trip to the Rockies just down this blog, but first, I invite you to peruse my Colorado Fall Colors gallery.

Before I start reminiscing, I’d like to share some good news. First, one of my Autumn images from Garner State Park was chosen as the cover for the October edition of Texas Highways Magazine.

Texas Highways Cover from October edition showing fall colors at Garner State Park.
Thank you to the folks there for continuing to use my work in their publication.

Next, Fox Sports contacted me to use nine of my Houston skyline images during their broadcast of the ALCS and the World Series.

Screen shot of one of nine Houston skyline images used on Fox Sports n during 2019 World Series.

Now, let’s get to Colorado. I started from my home away from home, Winter Park. From there I traveled through Estes Park and Rocky Mountain National Park, then through Grand Lake and west to Carbondale. I then headed further west to the Grand Mesa, then south to the Dallas Divide and Silver Jack areas south of Cimarron. I completed the loop by returning to Winter Park before spending the day with my summer hiking buddy in Denver. All in all, I covered over 1700 miles in 7 glorious days and took over 1700 images (all RAW files).

I haven’t shot fall colors in Colorado in several years, but I do remember in years’ past when exploring in September and October being struck by the richness and depth of color – from the golden aspen to red-orange of scrub oak to the yellow leaves of cottonwood along creeks and rivers. Colorado is beautiful when the Autumn season passes through like a cool breeze.

From this adventure, I’d like to offer a few of my favorite images and locations from the trip.

Rocky Mountain National Park

I only focused on the northeast and most visited side of RMNP. I knew where I wanted to shoot based on previous trips – on a slope facing southeast overlooking Bear Lake with Longs Peak in the distance. From high up on a boulder field, this scene peeked out between colorful aspen leaves.

Longs Peak and Bear Lake at sunrise through Autumn aspen trees.

A little later in the morning, this image came from a trail not far from Bear Lake:

A trail through golden aspen in Rocky Mountain National Park.

Maroon Bells Wilderness Area

One of my favorite places in all of Colorado is the Maroon Bells and Maroon Lake. The problem is that this area is a favorite of many people – both locals and tourists. In the fall when the leaves are changing, the parking lot often fills up by 5:00am with photographers waiting for the perfect shot. In addition, the rangers that protect this sensitive area have installed a small fence around the lake, thus preventing any really good angles where a reflection of the mountains can be seen in the clear water. Instead of the iconic photograph that many are familiar with, I chose to explore more areas (and visit some of my favorite spots to take in this scene. Here are two images – one of the colorful aspen and leaves; the other is a panorama of West Maroon Creek with Maroon Peak and North Maroon Peak, both 14,000’ summits, in the distance.

The Maroon Bells on a fall evening.

Aspen trees in the Maroon Bells Wilderness in fall.

Mount Sopris
Southeast of Carbondale is a lone peak that rises to nearly 13,000’ – Mount Sopris. Numerous backroads can be found around this summit, and after some exploration, I found a spot where I could capture the remarkable fall colors in the foreground at sunrise. To photograph this area required an early wake-up call, and soon I was bumping along a dirt road to the previously located location – a park and hike up a hill to shoot across a beautiful valley. The temperature was around 28, and my fingers felt frozen as I watched low clouds move across the landscape. I was a bit concerned at the conditions (the forecast called for clear skies), but fortunately, the clouds began to break up.

Autumn morning near Mount Sopris.
This panorama was taken during the breaking-up part before the skies went clear. And it all happened in about 10 minutes. Mountain weather changes quickly, for sure.

Dallas Divide
Home base was Montrose, just north of Ridgway, for this part of the trek. I met up with a good friend, Mike, from San Antonio. He’d been able to scout out a few areas before my arrival so we made good use of his recon and immediately headed to County Road 7. Over the course of a sunset this night as well as a sunset the next night, we covered the dirt roads County Roads 5, 7, and 9, and came away with some nice photographs of the Dallas Divide, a range of mountains that include Mount Sneffels, and Mt. Wilson. The red scrub oak and golden leaves of aspen trees filled the mountainsides and valley with amazing color, making for nice views in all directions.

The Dallas Divide from County Road 9 on a fall evening.

Silver Jack Reservoir
The unincorporated town of Cimarron, Colorado is about 30 minutes from Ridgway. From here, CR 858 turns south and winds back into the San Juan Mountains. One of the most well known areas is Silver Jack Reservoir. With its backdrop of rugged mountains and slopes of aspen, this location made a great place for our sunrise stop. The clouds were constantly changing. In the course of 30 minutes, we experienced snow, wind, sunshine, and a little rain, as well. The dynamic conditions gave us a lot to work with. Here is one panorama from that morning overlooking the reservoir with Turrett Peak in the distance.

Autumn morning at Silver Jack Reservoir in the San Juan Mountains.

From here, we traveled further down 858 to Owl Creek Pass, stopping in several locations to take in the colorful aspen groves and expansive, colorful vistas.
Aspen trees show off their color in the cool morning light.

These were some of my favorite locations, and while I stopped a few times on the way home to shoot a few areas (McClure Pass and Lake Creek on the east side of Independence Pass), my time on this journey was drawing to an end.
Looking back, and even in the midst of the trek, I am grateful for the beauty I saw as well as time spent with good friends. It was a week I won’t soon forget. But I’ll be back to explore even more areas the next Autumn. In the meantime, safe travels, everyone! I hope you enjoyed some of these moments from the Rocky Mountains.

~ Rob
Images from Texas
Images from Colorado

Summer in Colorado – Escaping the Texas Heat

If you’ve been following my work, you probably know my business keeps me busy photographing great landscapes and even some skylines across our great state. But each summer for the last 20+ years, I’ve spent a few months in Colorado with a home base in Winter Park. Last year, because my Texas photography business was going so well, and since I had a plethora of Colorado images, I decided to branch out to Colorado. With my kids in school, it is harder for me to trek to the mountains in the non-summer months, but I’ve been trying. But for now, summers are my time to roam, explore, and shoot. This past June and July have been no exception. So in this blog I wanted to share some of the highlights from outside of Texas.
First, I spent about a week total shooting a place that reminded me very much of west Texas and one of my favorite places, Big Bend National Park. Colorado National Monument is just west of Grand Junction. It is a hidden gem and not very visited by tourists, but the canyons are mesmerizing, especially in the morning and evening light. Rim Rock Road runs along the rim of several canyons, offering access to amazing hiking trails and beautiful vistas.

Colorado National Monument's Monument Canyon at sunrise.
Monument Canyon stretches out as a grand landscape of the western slope. Colorado National Monument is a gem just west of Grand Junction – and not as well known as it should be. Rim Rock Road runs 22 miles through these canyons through this portion of the Colorado Plateau, providing amazing views of several cliffs and rock rock monoliths. This panorama was taken just before sunrise on a peaceful summer morning.
This Colorado panorama is available in custom and larger sizes.

Further west, with Black Ridge Road connecting the two, McInnis Canyons, and especially Rattlesnake Canyon and Arches, are just a few miles away. The catch is, to access the arches requires a heavy-duty 4WD, high clearance vehicle. Fortunately, I have a friend and a Grand Junction native offer his services, so we drove approximately 8 miles in about an hour over absolutely terrible roads to shoot at the Rattlesnake Arches for a sunset and sunrise. The light was spectacular and provided both images and memories that will last a long time.
Summer evening in Rattlesnake Canyon
From iconic Rattlesnake Arch in Rattlesnake Canyon, the evening sky lights up at the end of a July day. This beautiful area is found in the McInnis Canyons National Conservation Area. While this is open to the public, access is difficult, requiring either a rugged 4WD truck or a 15 mile round trip hike. But the views at sunrise and sunset of this canyon landscape are unparalleled and quite distinct in Colorado.

Each summer, I spend some time hunting Colorado Wildflowers. Despite the drought conditions in much of Colorado, some colorful blooms were still out there. Probably my favorite place this year was on a hike to Lost Man Lake near Independence Pass. I had to drop about 10 feet down into a ravine, then cross a very cold stream, but a cluster of Columbine caught my attention and provided a beautiful foreground for a fast-flowing cascade near Aspen, Colorado.
Colorado wildflowers near Independence Pass
Beautiful Columbine, Colorado’s state wildflower, fill in the rocky crags of a small stream flowing down from Independence Pass. This area, while not in the Maroon Bells Wilderness, is a short drive from Aspen on the Lost Man Lake Trail. The July morning was amazing and the flowers were prolific.

Another location with good wildflowers was a hike along the Upper Piney Lake Trail. About five miles up the trail, the last three providing some class three scrambles, a friend of mine and I finally made it into a large cirque. Here, golden sunflower and purple aster flowed down from the steep slopes.
Wildflowers in Summit County
Aspen Sunflowers and Purple Asters line a small stream flowing down from the peaks of Summit County. These wildflowers were found about five miles up the Upper Piney Lake Trail outside of Vail in mid July.

Closer to home, I took advantage of the full moon to photograph a Fraser Valley icon, Byers peak.
Moonset over Byers Peak in Fraser, Colorado
Taken with a 400mm lens, this long range view shows the full moon setting over Byers Peak near Fraser, Colorado, on a very cold morning. With the temperature at 30 degrees here in Grand County, my fingers were nearly frozen as I waited for the moon to start its descent behind this icon of the Fraser Valley.

Each summer, a friend of mine and I climb a few mountains. This summer, we hiked up a repeat – Grays and Torreys Peak. We’ve climbed 31 of Colorado’s 54 14,000’ peaks, but summited nothing new this year. Still, here is an image from the top of Grays
Torreys Peak - one of Colorado's 14ers
A cairn marks the path down from Grays Peak (14,270’) to the saddle and back up to Torreys Peak (14,267’). The skies were beautiful and the trail down and back up quite rocky. Still, the views from these 14ers are amazing, and I’m grateful for the opportunity to see the world from up here.

The wildflowers along the trail were pretty amazing, as well.
Wildflowers along the way to Grays and Torreys Peak
With Grays Peak (14,270’) in the distance, the wildflowers in Stevens Gulch and along the Grays Peak Trail add an explosion of color to a mild summer afternoon. The hike up and back is nearly 8 miles, and the scenery along the way can be breathtaking (and not because of the altitude!). This trail follows the Continental Divide Trail, as well, and leads the way to two of Colorado’s 14,000’ peaks – Grays Peak and Torreys Peak

One of my favorite places in all of Colorado to spend time is the Maroon Bells. A lot of other folks feel the same way, as it is the most photographed place in the state. The two peaks, North Maroon and Maroon Peak, both rise over 14,000 feet high. With Maroon Lake in the foreground, the photographic options are seemingly limitless. As a bonus, each June the Milky Way rises over the peaks for a few days between 3:30am-4:00am. The whole scene is beautiful, and the only folks out at that time are making their way along the lake and heading for an ascent of one of the Maroon Bells peaks.
Milky Way rising over the Maroon Bells
On a beautiful very early morning at Maroon Lake, the Milky Way rolls across the sky. In the month of June between 3am-4am, the Milky Way lines up over the iconic Maroon Bells, both over 14,000 feet high. In the foreground, the waters were relatively calm and clear.

One of the most spectacular sunsets I witnessed this summer came from Rocky Mountain National Park. I had driven over to Grand Lake one evening and into the west side of the park. Up the road a ways is an old barn – locally known as the Little Buckaroo Barn. Despite the whimsical name, this barn is part of a homestead from the early 1900s and is on the National Register of Historic Places. The sunset on this particular night was amazing.
Betty Dick Barn in RMNP
As part of an old homestead dating back to the early 1900s, this barn, locally known as the Little Buckaroo Barn, is on the National Register of Historic Places. It sits in the Kawuneeche Valley, beneath the Never Summer Mountain Range in Rocky Mountain National Park. This image was taken on an amazing summer evening as the setting sun lit up the sky in a final explosion of color before night settled in.

I still have a week or so until I have to take my girls back to Texas and get them ready for school, but it won’t be long until I can spend more time up here in the fall.
Until then, I hope you enjoyed this escape from the Texas heat!

In the meantime, Vaya con Dios, my friends,

Rob
Images from Texas