Jul 25 2015

Trout Lake, Colorado, Evening Panorama

Trout Lake, Colorado Twilight Reflection.

I was back up in the San Juan Range of the Rockies in southwest Colorado. Contemplating where to camp this time.

I drove up to Lizard Head Pass. Maybe there? It sure looked great. But with the sunset colors on the high peaks, I drove around some more. Don’t want to miss any daylight, you know.

Above Trout Lake I pulled over on the highway shoulder. With the reflection from the lake, the sky seemed to be in the pocket of the Earth. I made a series of overlapping photos to be merged in Lightroom into a single high resolution image. Here is a web friendly version of it.

Done with the day’s light, I settled in to camp.

Jun 20 2015

Colorado San Juan Skyway Green

Molas Pass, San Juan County, Colorado.

The San Juan Skyway in southwest Colorado is that portion of US Highway 550 that goes up over the San Juan Mountain Range between Durango, Silverton, Ouray, and Montrose.

Summer comes late to the Colorado high country. And this has been a very wet spring. So on this day, with the rivers and creeks running bank full, there were still clouds clearing off from the last round of storms. Thus the light wasn’t the greatest at first.

My first stop was Molas Pass on the San Juan National Forest, at 10,899 feet (and not a foot more, officially; why not 10,900?). The clouds had cleared enough for some sunshine on the mountain peaks.

Overlooking Silverton, Colorado.

From there it was down to some steep curvy road grades overlooking Silverton. The Animas River was running high and muddy but not flooding. The aspen forests and the high meadows were bright with new springtime growth.

Then it was over Red Mountain Pass, and down to Ouray.

A very round switchback on Red Mountain Pass.

North of Ouray came some of my favorite shots of the drive. The high mountain light was still mostly overcast, but seemed to have a pearly quality to it. I was particularly drawn to the aspen forests on the steep mountain sides, flush with new spring green. The creeks running down were silvery with the brightening light from above.

Springtime aspen greenery and silvery mountain brook.

The dark green spruce and fir trees made a nice counterpoint to the aspen stands.

Mountain peak and aspen slopes.

Photo locations: San Juan and Ouray Counties, Colorado.

Jun 11 2015

Colorado High Country Springtime

Groundhog Reservoir, Dolores County. Lone Cone peak at left, Groundhog Mountain on right.

As the unusually wet spring continued, I took advantage of several days’ break in the rainfall to continue exploring southwest Colorado. This time, the upper Dolores River watershed in the San Juan mountain range.

I drove up the West Dolores River and then Cottonwood Creek, on the San Juan National Forest. Weather sunny, clear, light breezes. Perfect.

At Groundhog Reservoir I stopped to photograph the scenery. Right on cue a “groundhog” (actually a yellow-bellied marmot, I believe) dashed across the road into the grasses on the other side. It did not stop to pose for photos, though.

Groundhog Reservoir State Wildlife Area information signs.

Lone Cone peak was the perfect backdrop to the lake. At 12,600-some feet it’s not one of Colorado’s vaunted “fourteeners”. But it’s the westernmost peak of the San Miguel Mountains, the western vanguard of the San Juan range. It’s…alone from the rest, and recognizable from far away.

Lone Cone peak, elevation 12,613 at the summit.

Driving out of “town” (a commercial campground and convenience store) at the reservoir soon brought me back onto the National Forest. Public land, open to primitive camping. No need to do an extensive search for the best campsite. It felt wonderful to be back up in the aspen forest, so almost anyplace was quite fine. Lots of birds calling, and frogs croaking down at the creek below. High country Colorado serenades.

Morning has broken: Springtime aspen forest camp.

The rains returned the next night, and I sat tight in my camp. Reading, listening to music, photographing. Listening to the music of the rain on my vehicle’s roof, and in the aspen canopy above. Soft, relaxing.

The second morning it was time to go. The sojourn’s expiration date was at hand. The forest roads were sloppy with mud from the rain, even the main roads. It took almost two hours just to carefully make my way down out of there, back to paved highway.

Rocky Mountain Iris meadow.

At one point on the way out was a lush meadow with more Rocky Mountain Irises than I’ve ever seen in one spot. It was still raining, but fairly gently. So I stopped to photograph, and was quite pleased with what I had gotten.

Rocky Mountain Iris, (Iris missouriensis Nutt.)

Photo location: Dolores County, Colorado. As always, click on any photo for a much larger version.

Nov 10 2014

Shining Colorado High Country, Again

Sleeping Ute Mountain, from Dolores, Colorado.

On an excursion to Cortez and Dolores in southwest Colorado I had a couple days to spare (as people say, as if days with nowhere that you need to be are in your personal life savings account or something), so I decided to spend them going up into the San Juan Mountain Range. Why? Because I hadn’t been up there in several years — was too engrossed in living in wonderful northern Arizona — I guess — and because the first real snowstorm of the season had blown through, leaving in its wake perfect cloudless deep blue skies and the high peaks shining with brilliant snow. Sounded good to me. After all, I was in charge of me, and there was no one else along to consult.

So up the Dolores River canyon on Colorado Highway 145. Winding and slowly climbing in elevation. Up toward the snowy high country.

Downtown Rico, Colorado.

After a while I came to the tiny old mining town turned tourist stop of Rico, CO. I love these old mountain towns and love seeing what is being done (or not) to revive small businesses and keep the place liveable. I pulled over to the side of the street to get a quick shot of downtown (the only part of town, too) Rico. Behind me the owner of a (the only?) hotel alertly spotted me and leaned out his front door calling: “Would you like to see my restored hotel?” A good entrepreneur: it was past the summer tourist season, almost nobody about on the street, and he’s trying to drum up business. I would have loved to, but I declined. I may have had two “free” days to play with, but my cell phone had messaged me and given me an important mission for the day. I would have to overnight some papers, and I was in the middle of nowhere. But Telluride was up ahead, surely they will have a FedEx facility.

But I will be back to tour your hotel, Mr. owner. Thank you for the invitation. I like this town.

Then I went up a few of the side streets. You can learn a lot about a town by getting off the main drag. In this case, I stumbled upon the Rico Town Hall, a fine looking historic sandstone building. How would you like to have your office in something like this? It would make going to work five days a week a lot nicer.

Town Hall, Rico, Colorado.

But enough of that kind of daydreaming. Rico was giving tantalizing peeks at the snowy peaks above. So onward and upward, further north on Highway 145. I came to Lizard Head Pass, elevation 10,222 feet. No lizards up here, that’s for sure. It’s named after nearby Lizard Head Peak and the Lizard Head Wilderness. Gorgeous. And I had finally left the upper Dolores River canyon, which had veered off to the southeast without saying goodbye. Canyons tend to do that. Not say goodbye, I mean.

Snow Spur Creek, Dolores County, Colorado.

Meanwhile, I was saying goodbye to Dolores County and hello to San Miguel County, which apparently allows some of their highway signs to be bulletin boards as well. Unless you get caught. If you did you could always serve your public service sentence by scraping off all the other stickers. Straighten the sign while you’re at it, the snowplows seem to have taken their toll on it.

San Miguel County sign, Lizard Head Pass.

Down the other side of the pass. Reveling in the brilliant early winter (late fall, really) light and mountain air. Dark green alpine forests and steep, steep mountainsides, crowned by peaks with their summits above timberline. So they can show off their snow.

San Miguel Mountains, Vance Junction, CO. (Click on image for larger).

Then into Telluride. I’ve only stopped there briefly before this, and would do so again today. It’s awesome but too crowded jet-set trendy expensive for a mountain man. I had no idea where the FedEx agent would be, so I stopped in at the official Visitor Center (15 minute parking only, don’t dawdle, now) and what do you know there was a FedEx sign in the window of another small business in the same building. Are things going right on this trip, or what? I would be a zillionaire today if I played the lottery, but I hear you have to buy a ticket. Mountain men don’t buy lottery tickets. We are one.

Went to the historic main street smack dab center of Telluride town to get me a few tourist photos before I escaped. Lots of construction going on, the real estate market sure is coming back. Historic old buildings and houses being rebuilt. Landscaping workers cleaning up yards and such. Glad everybody’s happy, I’m getting outta here. Back to the wilds.

Telluride, Colorado.

Now it was down the San Miguel River canyon. Exit Uncompahgre National Forest land, onto BLM (Bureau of Land Management) land. I was looking for a great campsite for the night, and I found one, right along the river bank, cement picnic table and all. I was the sole camper, and a happy one. Found enough Gambel oak wood on the ground for a nice fire. The sound of the rushing stream below was both soothing and invigorating. I had been living and camping away from that sound, from these mountains, for too long.

And one more “spare” day to go.