Colorado Fall Road trip: Incredible 7-day Adventure Chasing Fall Colors through the Rockies
Fall in Colorado is as mesmerizing as you can imagine. The slopes of the mountains transition from green to lime to yellow gold, and finally to orange. Even though I grew up in Arizona, I never once thought about chasing fall colors in Colorado. But now that I live here, I couldn’t pass up a Colorado fall road trip.
The last week of September into October, I grabbed a campervan from Roadsurfer and headed west on I-70. As soon as I started going up in the mountains, the yellow began to appear, figuratively lighting my path into the Rockies.
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What you should know about fall in Colorado
When’s the best time to see the fall colors in Colorado?
You’ll want to circle mid-September to the first week of October as PRIME fall color season in Colorado. From there, you can hope there isn’t a big storm that blows off the leaves. By mid-October, you’ll want to stick to lower elevations (think 7,000 feet).
By the end of October, Denver is at the end of its fall color season, with most leaves on the ground.
Fall colors happen at different times across the state
Typically, higher elevations and more northern locations turn first. An example of this is Guanella Pass, which is around 11,500 feet. This is because fall colors occur as temperatures begin to drop and trees conserve energy and water, allowing their leaves to die. (Rudimentary explanation.)
Then, locations like the San Juans, in the southwestern corner of Colorado, change a bit later, somewhere around October 1.
But remember, it can vary. Drought or non-drought, and temperatures, play a big role in how fall colors look. So, while it’s obviously nice to be able to plan your Colorado fall road trip in advance, you may want to leave some flexibility.
Be prepared for winter even in September and early October
On my final day on the Colorado fall road trip, I experienced everything that the state could throw at me. Rain, wind, sun, and snow. So that’s what you should plan for. You never know what the weather gods will throw at you.
Campgrounds begin to close down on October 1
I think this tends to be higher-elevation or private campgrounds. I believe this is due to colder temperatures, the risk of frozen water lines, and fewer visitors.
We found Ridgway State Park to be open, and it has a great campground.
I mention this in general because campgrounds are a great place to fill up water or drain tanks. For the first couple of days near Aspen, I didn’t have any water in my camper van tank. Just a jug that I brought.
Maroon Bells Requires a Reservation or a Shuttle Ticket
If you want to visit Maroon Bells (you should), you’ll need a reservation ticket, a campsite, a backpacking permit, or buy a shuttle pass.
Planning to stay in hotels?
If you’re planning to stay in hotels, book this semi-early for your weekend stays. Weekday lodging should be much easier to get near the end.
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7-Day Road Trip Exploring Colorado in Fall
It’s adventure time! Let’s jump in, shall we?
Day 1: Pick up the van and drive to Aspen
I’ll be honest, this was a dud of a day. The van I was supposed to have was returned damaged, so my pickup time was bumped back by 2 hours. As a result, once I got the van and was fully packed, all I accomplished was driving four hours to Aspen.
With an early wake-up call, I made some food and went to bed.
Day 2: Maroon Bells and Cathedral Lake
At 5:40 am, sleepy-eyed, I pulled into the Maroon Bells parking lot. I grabbed my fleece, down jacket, beanie, and gloves to brave the 30-something-degree temperatures. After bundling up like the Michelen-man, I threw my camera bag over my shoulder and stepped out into the pitch black,
Flicking on my headlamp, I started towards Maroon Lake.
It was a pretty short walk —let’s say five minutes —to reach where I figured the photo spot would be. I arrived so early, anticipating throngs of other photographers. But not this day. I was one of the first here. And so I waited.
Sunrise at Maroon Bells: Part 1
With sunrise at 7:03am, light finally began to illuminate the peaks and the lake around 6:30, thanks to cloudy skies. It was my first time seeing this famous area.
Seven to 10 minutes before sunrise, a segment of clouds finally broke, letting a stream of light hit the clouds above the peaks unabetted. Almost instantaneously, it turned them from grey clouds into the most vibrant pink, red, and orange.
It was magical.
And just as quickly as the color came, it was gone. But for those five to ten minutes, my mind was blown. Thankfully, the clouds kept parting sporadically, hitting the peaks with splotches of sunlight that looked like a car dealership spotlight.
After a while, I meandered around, trying to find different compositions after basically standing in one place, awestruck. Once I was happy with the photos, a friend and I, whom I had met up with that morning, went back to the campground for breakfast and coffee.
Hiking Cathedral Lake
My friend suggested what looked like a cook hike a couple of valleys to the east of us off the Castle Creek Road. I said sure, always up for a good hike!
The hike, decently steep to begin, starts with lovely aspen before transitioning above them into more traditional conifers. About 2/3’s of the way up, the rain came, and it came hard. I ended up hiding under a wide pine tree, trying my best to stay warm.
We almost turned around. Thankfully, the two of us persevered because Cathedral Lake turned out to be epic.
The lake sits over 12,000 feet, giving it alpine tundra vibes. Thanks to fall, the bushes had turned a red/orange hue. Additionally, there are massive rock walls and peaks surrounding the lake. I was pretty stunned by how pretty it all was.
At this point, the sun had come out, and vibes were high. The lake’s color looked tropical near the shores, and the warm sun began drying us out.
After 30 minutes hanging out at the, we began the three-mile trek down in good spirits.
Sunset along Castle Creek Road
That evening, we came back to the same area to photograph the aspen along the road. I tossed up the drone to get some aerial shots and unique perspectives of the valley.
Day 3: Sunrise at Maroon Bells and drive to Kebler Pass
This morning, I learned my lesson from the day before and slept in an extra 45 minutes. We arrived around 6:30 am and found the area to be much more crowded.
(It was the first day of the 2025 government shutdown, and people thought there wouldn’t be staff monitoring the area. They were wrong and tickets were issued.)
Again, it was cloudy, but just before sunrise, another opening appeared, and the sky lit up. It wasn’t as dramatic as the previous day, but it was still a mesmerizing sight.
Getting the opportunity to spend two mornings at Maroon Bells was the perfect way to start the Colorado fall road trip and land some bucketlist photos.
Penny Hot Springs
On our way to Penny Hot Springs, we stopped in Carbondale for coffee and a couple of hours of computer work.
I’d never heard of Penny Hot Springs, but it’s right off the road heading south, and we figured, why not? I had no expectations, but seeing a full parking lot on a weekday was a bit surprising.
These are totally natural hot springs right next to a chilly river. So, we did what any sane person would do. Took a quick dip in the chilly river to rinse off, then enjoyed a warm bath.
Kebler Pass
On our way to Kebler Pass, you have to go over McClure Pass. Make sure to spend a little time up there and enjoy the views. I was blown away on the drive.
From the hot springs to Kebler Pass is somewhere between 90 minutes and two hours. It’s a lovely drive. Once you get onto Kebler Pass Road, it’s a nicely maintained dirt road with hardly any potholes. Slowly but surely, you wind your way up and soon enough, you’re surrounded by the most aspen I’ve ever seen.
We stopped at Horse Ranch Park to spend the night and hike the Dark Canyon Trail to a gorgeous overlook with aspen as far as the eye can see. (Hike two miles clockwise and you’ll come to the viewpoint.)
The trail is relatively mild and weaves you through aspens and past a beaver pond. After 55 minutes, we reached the overlook and enjoyed a cloudless sunset.
Day 4: Crested Butte
Day four of the Colorado fall road trip was a slow one. I got the drone up around sunrise (still cloudless, uggh), before making some coffee and eggs in the warm van. Kebler Pass sits at around 10,000 feet, making it the highest overnight stop on the road trip.
Once bellies were full, we headed down into Crested Butte and made our way to Washington Gulch. This is a dispersed camping area with open campsites and great views. While you’re only a few miles from the city, you feel like you’re in the wild.
Sunset along Gothic Road
Ninety minutes before sunset, we did a quick hike starting at Snograss Trailhead. It didn’t pan out exactly as we had hoped – which was fine. Then, we drove down Gothic Road to see the sights.
Just as the sun was setting, clouds finally appeared over Mount Crested Butte. I hurried to get the drone up. With pink skies and golden aspen below, it made for some of my favorite photos of the trip.
Day 5: Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park and Ridgway
I left before my friend, wanting to do a quick stop at Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park. I had never been and figured if I was driving literally next to it, I might as well stop.
With only an hour or so to spare, I didn’t do it justice one bit. That said, it is impressive, but also underwhelming. All I did was bounce between overlooks. And with harsh sunlight in the middle of the day, my photos are hardly anything to write home about.
Sunset at Owl Creek Pass
I badly needed a shower and stopped at Ridgway State Park and used their camp showers. (A $10 entry fee for showers is a ‘heck yes’ from me.)
After cleaning up, we ventured up County Road 8 (aka Owl Creek Pass Road) for our sunset adventure. Oh boy, an adventure it was!
But first, we got a super cool rainbow on the way up.
So, our goal was a ridgeline that looks out at Courthouse Rock. There’s no straightforward trail, so it required bushwacking. And we were also running late. This meant we were basically sprint-walking up a steep slope, over logs, and through bushes.
Once we came to a clearing, exhausted and breathing very hard, as the sunlight began to fade, I called it quits. I only did this because of my drone. I figured I’d save my body and not miss the rest of the light.
A better option
A better option would be to photograph and hang out at Debs Meadow. No bushwhacking required, and you’ll get a gorgeous view of Courthouse Rock and tons of aspen.
Day 6: San Juans
The San Juans are my favorite part of Colorado. When I lived in Arizona, I made a handful of trips to this region to backpack Ice Lakes Basin, Blue Lakes, and Columbine Lake. The wildflowers, alpine lakes, and stunning peaks live rent-free in my head.
But it was my first time doing fall here.
A Morning with Mt. Sneffels
At 5:30 am, my alarm went off. Another sunrise hunt was on.
We left Ridgway State Park with a 45-minute drive ahead of us to a viewpoint of Mt. Sneffels with golden aspen. The only issue we faced was whether an impending storm would douse our views.
It was still dark when we arrived, though 8-10 other cars were already lining County Road 7. And in front of the cars was a row of tripods.
This was our sunset spot.
As light slowly appeared, our hopes dimmed. The clouds surrounding Mt. Sneffels’ peak looked ominous. I took a couple of long-exposure photos before the winds began to pick up and rain slowly fell.
I managed a few more photos before the rain started coming down heavily. At this point, our group (which had grown to three) called it quits. A 35-minute drive back led us to Cimmaron Coffee & Books. With better coffee than the instant I’d been having days prior in hand, our group enjoyed breakfast in my campervan.
A windy yet beautiful Dallas Divide
With the weather coming and going, we decided to head up to Dallas Divide and shoot Mt. Sneffels and the San Juans from this vantage point. Right off the highway, you get a fantastic view of the mountain range.
Unfortunately, 50mph wind gusts made the place much colder and less hospitable than we’d hoped. Still, the time lapses of the clouds moving by turned out really cool!
At this point, with the weather looking uncertain for the next 24 hours, I decided to head home to Denver. It had been a crazy month with two weeks in Rwanda, a travel conference in Medford, and now a week on the road.
That said, there are still plenty of places to enjoy for your final day and a half in the San Juans.
A few ideas for wrapping up your fall road trip. I’d check conditions. If it’s later in the season, the San Juans are where you’ll want to be.
- Explore Telluride: See aspens and ride the free gondola.
- Head east towards Twin Lakes/Leadville Area. There are gorgeous fall colors there.
- Go to Vail or Breckenridge.
- Head to Grand Lake and Rocky Mountain National Park.
Day 7: Final Day of your Colorado Fall Road trip
On your final day of the Colorado Fall Road trip, enjoy the last bits of fall colors across Colorado. If you’re in the San Juans, you’ll have a six-hour drive home. I was snowed on at Vail Pass and the Eisenhower Tunnel on my way home.
It made for a scenic and slightly nerve-wracking drive.
Dropping off the Roadsurfer at the Denver branch was super easy. It’s just a mile or so off I-70, and if you need to get to the airport, it’s a 40-minute drive.
Fall Hiking Gear in Colorado
- Base Layers
- Sun Hoodie – Men’s & Women’s
- Fleece – Men’s & Women’s
- Hooded Puffy Jacket 800+ down – Men’s & Women’s
- Lighter Puffy Jacket, no hood – Men’s & Women’s
- Beanie
- Gloves
- Hiking Poles
- Waterproof Boots
- 30L+ Hiking Pack – Men’s & Women’s
- Snacks while on the trail
- Bear Spray
- Headlamp
Final Thoughts on my Week-long Colorado Fall Road Trip
For years, I’ve wanted to explore Colorado in the fall and was so stoked to see the sights this year. It is 1000% worth it and one of the most magical times of the year in the Rockies.
This is just one Colorado fall road trip itinerary out of dozens you can create. I hope it gives you a little inspiration to plan your own and set out to see the wonders of fall in Colorado!
Until next time, adventurers, stay safe.
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