Colorado Road Trip (10): Maroon Bells Wilderness Area

Maroon Bells reflected in Maroon Lake

The mountains surrounding Maroon Bells Wilderness Area

We spent the final night of our Colorado road trip camping in the Maroon Bells Wilderness Area just outside of Aspen.  It was perhaps the most beautiful campsite I’ve ever stayed at.  The blooming wildflowers, majestic mountain peaks, and changing sky provided scenic views in every direction.

Our campground at Maroon Bells Wilderness Area

Aspen forests and wildflower meadows

Slender trunks of aspen trees

Brilliant green algae and reflections in Maroon Lake (No, I did not saturate the colors!)

Cutthroat trout rises to feed, Maroon Lake

A wildflower paradise

Photographers flocked like paparazzi to capture the sights around Maroon Bells

Native Colorado Columbine

Wildflowers like an avalanche of yellow

 

Colorado Road Trip (1): The Lure of the Open Road

“The great name of the soul is the open road.”
— D. H. Lawrence

Driving through the Rockies on I-70, a runaway truck ramp

“What is more beautiful than a road?  It is the symbol and image of an active, varied life.”
— George Sand

I spent the past week on a road trip through Colorado with my sister-in-law.  There is something alluring about the call of the open road.  There is the promise of new landscapes and experiences around every corner, and this was especially so in Colorado, a state filled with enchanting scenery.  I’m afraid we were almost too ambitious in planning our itinerary — we left every destination too soon, but we had to press on.  Reserved rooms or campsites were waiting.  In the end, I felt as though I had been on a whirlwind excursion.

In the next week or so, I look forward to sorting though my photos, thinking about where I have been, and sharing my favorite times with you.

Here are some scenes from the road . . .

Gravel road to the Soapstone Natural Area north of Ft. Collins, a short-grass prairie preserve.

The Trail Ridge Road in Rocky Mountain National Park

The Trail Ridge Road is the highest continuous paved highway in the United States.

"The feeling of infinity on the horizon line . . ." -- Georgia O'Keeffe. The road toward Great Sand Dunes National Park.

Lots of hairpin turns on the Million-Dollar Highway between Durango and Silverton. "A bend. That lovely arc between what has been and what's to come." -- Tomas Espedal, Tramp: Or the Art of Living a Wild and Poetic Life

An unusual crossing sign on the road to Maroon Bells near Aspen

“The everlasting lure of round-the-corner.  How fascinating it is!”
— Christopher Morley, “Sauntering”