Monday Oct 05, 2009 at 21:39
Fall 2009 in Colorado - Part 1
Alice and I are currently in Ridgway, at the end of Colorado’s Fall photographic season. Nothing better than having a Monday off and nothing else to do buy enjoy the scenery. I heard that my boss said at this morning’s staff meeting, from which I of course was absent, that I was “off somewhere shooting trees and leaves and shit”. Yes, that’s about it.
It’s been something of a challenging year in terms of autumn colours. The leaves haven’t generally been close to the levels of 2008, often appearing dull or affected by black leaf mould, or instead changing immediately from green to dead brown, or gone altogether.
Maroon Bells 2009 (click image for larger view)
The main lesson, of course, is that you simply have to work a little harder to find suitable subjects, i.e. beyond the Bells…
We spent the last weekend of September in Aspen. A storm had come through mid-week before causing many of the other upper stands to lose their leaves. Nonetheless, with or without perfect foliage, the view remains spectacular.
Independence Pass offered some decent opportunities on the way home:
Golden Aspen (click image for larger view)
Aspen Boles (click image for larger view)
As did Castle Creek Road:
Backlit Aspen in Castle Creek (click image for larger view)
In other circumstances, the weather for our three days in Aspen would be nothing short of perfect – crystal clear blue skies and temperatures in the eighties. Of course, for photography, it’s rather a nuisance.
Theories for the below average fall colours this year that I’ve heard include:
- A wet spring – stops the leaves drying out in autumn and encourages black leaf mould
- A June frost, damaging the foliage
- Early autumn storms
Likely some truth in all of those.
Posted in Locations
Stephen · Monday, October 05, 2009, 21:39 · Permalink
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01:55 6 Oct 2009
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22:17 5 Oct 2009