Is leaf peepin’ worth it this season?

Following one of the hottest and driest Summer’s on record, Colorado’s leaf peeping season has hit early with many area’s peak fall colors hitting much sooner than normal and with warnings from experts the dry weather may bring less vibrant colors than normal.

With that knowledge, I decided to hit the road on the last day of Summer on Monday September 21st and make my way up to one of my favorite leaf peepin’ spots, Kenosha Pass.

What was a lovely mid 70’s day here in Denver was a brisk afternoon in the 60’s at Kenosha pass.  For most of the drive I saw little fall foliage along Highway 285 until a little after Bailey, Colorado (by the way, make sure you slow down when driving by Platte Valley High School and Fitzsimmons Elementary because police are definitely on the look out for speeders.)

Good news is once you get closer to Kenosha Pass, while passing the Guenella Pass exit, the Fall colors begin to pop.

After easily finding a parking space with it being midday and midweek I made my way up the western trail towards what typically opens up to a big view of a sea of trees and usually a sea of yellow.  First thing I immediately noticed while walking up the trail was how many trees had already lost all of their leaves.  I know there was some storms over the last few days so its possible the Fall colors were more vibrant over the weekend and I just missed it.   Upon coming to the opening of the view I typically see, it was immediately clear the colors were much less vibrant than normal. As seen in the year by year shots I took below, the last two years were much more vibrant, though to be fair those were all in October.

While the colors werent as vibrant, there still were some great patches where I got to enjoy some bright yellows and knock out a few important Fall selfies.

I will say if you’re hoping to leaf peep in the Kenosha Pass or Guenella Pass area you’ll want to get up there this week because the leaves are quickly falling.

According to The Denver Post, this coming week will be a great time to hit up Golden, Aspen and Crested Butte and near the end of the month will be a good time to head to Telluride, Grand Mesa and southern Colorado.

While they colors may not be as vibrant, it’s still a great trip into the mountains for some great hiking and some great Fall vibes after such a hot dry Summer.

 

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