With the change of seasons comes a splendid show of colors. This year our leaf peeping moments in the Colorado mountains came early due to a week long stint of cold evening temperatures in August. Luckily a little rain and plenty of sunshine made it last for almost two weeks and provided the perfect opportunity to invite friends for a hike in through Stinky Gulch to Dream Canyon.
With mainly Aspen as our backdrop of deciduous trees the typical color gamut is a variety of yellows, but there is an occasional stand that presents a flaming orange, appealing to the eyes like fire on a cold and wet day. The simple round leaves shimmer like glitter when the wind blows and complement the crisp scent of fall in the air providing a feeling of hope despite the inevitable winter ahead.
On our hike, we visited the ruins of an old homestead from the 1930’s with an old log cabin damaged over the years by the windstorms of early spring. It wouldn’t be a mountain adventure without the quintessential shot-up 1940’s cars. Out of curiosity we jotted down the VIN numbers to see if we could get the history on the vehicles, and found the yellow car to be a 1960 Buick Invicta, which is clearly not the case, so perhaps a VIN swap occurred...truly gangster style and in line with the overall feeling of the locale.
We enjoyed lunch on a rock by the creek overlooking a sunlit hole filled with hiding trout. The occasional white tips against the gray rocks gave away the curious Brookie. Two crossings on fallen trees and we were on our way back home. All in all, the trip with friends, both human and furry, took just one hour and made us all feel a sense of accomplishment surely to be followed by a good night’s sleep.
What will your leaf peeping moment be this year? By a lake? Biking through the neighborhood? Climbing a rock wall? Whichever way you choose, enjoy!
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