The Aspen trees are bare except for the few brown leaves that remain on the branches, not blown off by the wind. It is the third week of October, after a month of brilliant Fall colors. I captured many of these colors in Pike National Forest, Breckenridge, Twin Lakes, and Aspen. After a dry August and September, the Aspen trees were stressed and turned intense yellow in all the groves I visited. A month is the shortest time to scramble between different areas of Colorado and catch the colors before they fade from yellow to brown. All the leaves are brown and the trails are carpeted with them. There is a certain sadness to the fleeting nature of colors in the Fall. Winter will come soon - sooner in Colorado, due the high elevation. And Winter will not be so fleeting - it could last all of 7 months. But there in the ski season that approaches; with snow-making for early season openers, Arapaho Basin and Loveland are already open - with single runs to entice those first turns. As for myself, I bought another season pass at Copper Mountain, another season on the snow after 2,000 ski days in Colorado. I can ski way better than I limp on the trail with a cane. I spent my early childhood in Switzerland and acquired a truly lifelong passion. The Aspen leaves are brown, the sky is grey, and the majestic mountains of Colorado are a brilliant white.
