Latest Photo Stream
Orange Wave over Sneffels
Sunset light illuminates dramatic high clouds over the Sneffels Range - May.
Aurora Over Sneffels
A very rare Aurora Borealis over the town of Ridgway and the Sneffels Range in southwest Colorado during the strongest geomagnetic storm in two decades, in May 2024. To the naked eye only a faint reddish glow was visible in the sky, but the camera's sensor revealed a bright magenta aurora casting its glow on the snowy mountains.
A very rare Aurora Borealis over Mount Sneffels in southwest Colorado during the strongest geomagnetic storm in two decades, in May 2024. To the naked eye only a faint reddish glow was visible in the sky, but the camera's sensor revealed a bright magenta aurora casting its glow on the snowy mountains.
A very rare Aurora Borealis over the town of Ridgway and the Sneffels Range in southwest Colorado during the strongest geomagnetic storm in two decades, in May 2024. To the naked eye only a faint reddish glow was visible in the sky, but the camera's sensor revealed a bright magenta aurora casting its glow on the snowy mountains.
Last night was an aurora for the masses, as the strongest geomagnetic storm in two decades filled the night skies with auroras far more south than normal (or north in the southern hemisphere). Here in southern Colorado we could only see a very faint reddish hue in the sky with our naked eyes, but the camera's more sensitive sensor revealed a bright magenta aurora over Ridgway and the Sneffels Range, casting a magenta glow over the snowy mountains! Since it's been rainy and snowy here lately, we were very lucky to have a window of clear skies during the strongest period of northern lights. This was quite a rare sight to see here in the San Juan Mountains!
May Ride
Drew hikes up a ridge in the Sneffels Range.
Jason carves down a high slope in the Sneffels Range.
Spring corn season is upon us in southwest Colorado as the high jeep roads are getting plowed out allowing easier access to higher peaks and steeper lines. On Friday some friends and I got windblasted as we rock-hopped our way up this fun little peak, but were rewarded with a nice soft descent back to the truck.
Playing in the Snow
Drew in his element.
Jason drops in.
Christina enjoys some late spring powder turns.
Tom's turn.
Kirby ran out of snow.
Vijay skis some steeps.
So nice to get outside and play in the snow with my friends again the last couple days!
Winter Clouds over Mount Sneffels
One of my favorite "moods" of Mount Sneffels is when a winter snowstorm is clearing and clouds lift off and swirl past its snow-caked ramparts.
When I come home after spending time in other mountain ranges, my perception of Mount Sneffels and the Sneffels Range always shifts a bit depending on where I've just been. For a random example, after time spent in the Wasatch Range of Utah, the San Juans always look so high and burly to me when I first come back here. On the other hand, we recently returned from three months in the Alps of Tyrol, Austria and my initial impression was that the Sneffels Range looked kinda short and stubby!
That said, spending time in other mountain ranges also makes me appreciate the unique qualities of my home mountains. Mount Sneffels isn't a particularly big peak compared to many of the behemoths in the Alps, but yet it has a certain rugged charm to it, with its symmetrical profile and its many rocky ramparts and spires leading up to the summit. Yesterday morning as Sneffels emerged from a clearing snowstorm with clouds blowing over the face of the mountain, its ruggedness was accentuated and then it looked to me like a pretty big peak indeed!