Snow Peaks & Aspens: Along our journey on Boreas Pass Road a high peak is covered with light snow and a stand of aspens shines in the foreground. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Boreas Pass Road: After passing through the small town of Como, Colo. the pavement comes to an end and Boreas Pass Road begins. This photo shows a peak snow covered from an earlier storm and scattered aspen trees showing off their fall color. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
By Gary Warren
Photographer
Formerly of Los Alamos
Travel days or even day trips usually progress as planned; but not always. When we meet obstacles that delay or hamper a planned journey it’s often caused by factors that are out of our control; weather and traffic or road conditions.
During a recent day trip to view fall colors weather became a deterrent. We left Denver on a beautiful fall day. Our destination was Boreas Pass Road which is about an hour and a half away. Traveling this route is one of our favorite fall color trips suitable for a day trip from home.
While driving south on Highway 285 we noticed that clouds were forming in the direction we were headed. We reached the South Park area where we would exit the highway and begin our drive across Boreas Pass and then into Breckenridge, Colo.
We exited 285 at Como, Colo. a small town which developed over 100 years ago during Colorado’s mining boom. Como was a railroad town that provided service to trains which served the mining industry in the mountains. As we exited the highway and drove the three miles into Como, clouds had formed but we drove on through Como to the beginning of Boreas Pass Road.
The aspens were beautiful as they shined in the spots of sunshine but a little more dull or flat when the clouds covered the area. Boreas Pass Road is just under 25 miles long but in normal conditions it takes at least an hour to travel. Most of the journey is on a maintained dirt road which basically meant it was accessible in a normal car or truck without four wheel drive or any off road options. With a camera in the vehicle you can almost double that time for photography stops.
There are places to stop by the road as we began to traverse our way upward in elevation. The first couple of stops provided some photo opportunities that were pretty good but not great because of the cloudy skies. The color was great but the lighting was not so good.
Boreas Pass sits at the Continental Divide about 12 miles into the drive at an elevation of 11,481. At that elevation we knew anything would be possible with the weather. The ominous clouds were now blanketing us and the sun was gone and as we approached the pass a few drops began to hit our windshield. Minutes later we were experiencing near white out conditions as snow was blowing sideways in front of us.
This was a Saturday so there was traffic even in the mountains on a dirt road crossing a high elevation pass. Several cars were parked at the pass but most visitors were sheltering in their vehicle or in a building at the pass. We chose not to even stop and get out and continued on our journey. Snow continued but the road was just becoming muddy as the snow was not accumulating at our elevation but the high peaks surrounding us were all covered with light snow from earlier that week and the fresh snow that was falling.
On the positive side, we had crossed the pass and began to edge our way downward in elevation. With each mile the snow became less and less and visibility became much better. By the time we reached the hillside which drops into Breckenridge, the snow was light but the road was still muddy. At least we were able to stop and take the camera out again. I had only stopped at about three areas which were near Como and before the snow began to fall.
Of course I had envisioned a day of photography and beautiful fall scenery. That just didn’t happen. The weather won on this day. We made a couple of stops in Breckenridge which had only received rain but everything was soaked. We chose to exit Breckenridge to the south to Fairplay, Colo. and drive back to Denver on Highway 285. Our other option was I-70 which was more direct but heavy traffic due to an accident had the Interstate slowed to a crawl.
As we drove out of Breckenridge, the clouds began to part as the little storm had passed through the area and clearing skies were ahead. We actually made a couple of photo stops along the short drive to Fairplay which was now in just partly cloudy conditions. We got to Fairplay and headed north on Highway 285 in almost sunny skies. By the time we returned home late that afternoon we noticed signs of a small shower in town but that was it. Once again, the moisture fell in the mountains and the front range of Colorado remained mostly dry.
Did the day trip go as planned? Far from it but all was good. We did get to see the fall color with a little winter weather mixed into the day. The day was not a loss but we definitely deviated from our original trip plans!
Editor’s note: Longtime Los Alamos photographer Gary Warren and his wife Marilyn are traveling around the country, and he shares his photographs, which appear in the “Posts from the Road” series published in the Sunday edition of the Los Alamos Daily Post.
Fall Colors: The fall colors of the aspens were beautiful and almost at their peak as seen on this hillside along Boreas Pass Road. However, lighting was not as cooperative as a heavy cloud cover blanketed the area. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Ominous Skies: The skies became ominous and we didn’t know what to expect as we moved closer to the Continental Divide at Boreas Pass. It was shortly beyond this point that the snow began falling. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Muddy Road: Another car passes by as we stop to admire the colornear Breckenridge, Colo. The trees were beautiful but Boreas Pass Road was a muddy mess. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com
Bright Aspens: A stop on the highway between Breckenridge and Fairplay, Colo. revealed a much brighter stand of aspen trees as the skies were beginning to clear. The storm had passed, the clouds were scattered, and the sun was beginning to shine. Photo by Gary Warren/ladailypost.com