Dateline: Colorado, September 20 & 21, 2014
The fall colors are at their peak in the high country throughout Park County according to Jerry and Pam Fields. These photos were taken over the weekend at and around their lot at 179 Sanderling Court located south of the hamlet of Como.
“Reds” along Elkhorn Ranch Road
Rieneker Ridge from The Lot
Driveway into 179 Sanderling
View over South Park
The Fields’ RV is nicknamed “The Box”
Turn right to enter Sanderling Court
Pam Fields walks her 3 dogs, Blondie, Bru, and Jo in their aspen grove
Aspen at height of color season
Its hard to leave The Box and return to the city during “color season”
Although the color season will run for another two or three weeks, both Jerry and Pam agreed this weekend was the high point for color. “Although there are still some green aspen, it won’t be long until the leaves begin to fall and create bare spots on the hills.” said Pam. Jerry added that “Now is the best time to get out and see the broad swaths of colors on the hills and ridges.”
We agree.
This year’s colors have a good deal more red in them than normal, it seems. Due to the cool spring and wetter-than-average August the trees produced more sugar to support late summer growth. Anthocyanins are produced during these “lots of sugar-lots of light” conditions—and then, with the very cool evenings, the veins of the leaves gradually close—leaving behind the gorgeous reds. (Carotenoid pigments, also present, turn other leaves yellow.) At any rate, the annual color change provides vistas of reds, yellows, and greens for us to view and enjoy.
The color season generally runs through the second week in October. A check of the aspen around Vail reveals around 50 percent of them have changed color but a sizeable number of areas are still green or just beginning to change. Vibrant colors are now a common sight but they won’t last long; get out now and enjoy the season!
(End dateline.)
That’s it for now. Thanks for looking in!
Wow! BEAUTIFUL!!! I bet that was worth all the work and all the hassle of the year for this weekend alone!
I think you should have taken the whole week off and enjoyed it–maybe the next two weeks 🙂
love those colors
and thanks for posting the science behind it! Justin and I were just discussing what makes some years more colorful than others without an answer–now we have one.
Good to have smart friends!
‘appreciate your “editorial style”…
The early local cold spell impacted southern Wisconsin, with more “delicate” trees turning a month & a half earlier than normal.
Colorful, but disappointing — winter’s just around the corner, and it looks like another harsh one.
Tabitha:
I wish I had taken off a week or two. This is a great time to be outdoors wherever you are. Not the same as maple and other mid-west trees turning color but still a sight to see.
I had to look up the reason for more ‘reds” this year. I’m not that smart. 🙂
Larry:
I am looking for ways to mix up the format of the posts a bit; the “news story” angle seemed to work OK for this one.
Colors here are about two weeks earlier than last year by comparison of photos taken then and now. Projection is for more below-zero days than normal for the winter. Snow is expected to be about normal where last year we had more snow than normal. We shall see how it goes.