Photo Journal & Trip Reports (San juan mountains)

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An Evening with Sneffels
An Evening with Sneffels
June 2013  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

On Saturday we ventured into the Sneffels Range in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado for a quick overnighter backpack trip. Taking advantage of a clear weather forecast, we camped all the way up at 12,900 feet on a high sub-peak of Sneffels...

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2012-13 Winter in Ouray
2012-13 Winter in Ouray
Winter 2012-2013  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

A selection of skiing, landscape, and town photos in and around Ouray in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado during the 2012-2013 winter season.

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Colorado Fall Colors
Colorado Fall Colors
September 2012  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

Photos of aspens and autumn color, mostly in the San Juan Mountains.  This fall was a very colorful one, with the aspens showing off much oranger and redder colors than usual.

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Autumn on Stony Pass
Autumn on Stony Pass
September 2012  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

Desiring a leisurely change of pace after our recent tiring backpacking treks, Claudia and I decided to go car camping this weekend up on Stony Pass in the San Juan Mountains east of Silverton, Colorado...

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The Lime Loop
The Lime Loop
September 2012  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

Over Labor Day weekend some friends joined us for a strenuous 3-day loop trek in the Weminuche Wilderness, south of the area we hiked through last week. Our route took us over a high ridgeline with spectacular views of the Needle Mountains on the other side of the valley...

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The Wild Heart of the San Juans
The Wild Heart of the San Juans
August 2012  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

Last week we went on another 7-day trek through the high peaks of the Weminuche Wilderness in the San Juan Mountains of southwest Colorado. During our backpacking trip we were treated not only to spectacular mountain vistas, but to some pretty cool wildlife encounters too!

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Supermoon on Sneffels
Supermoon on Sneffels
May 2012  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

I’ve been itching for an adventure lately, so early this morning I hiked up Mt. Sneffels in the moonlight again! I left Ouray at 1:30am (ouch!) and started hiking into Yankee Boy Basin at 2:30am. The “supermoon” – aka, the full moon at its closest orbit to Earth – was incredibly bright, and I had no troubles finding my way without headlamp...

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Weminuche High Loop
Weminuche High Loop
August 2011  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

In late August we did a 7-day loop trek in and around the Needle Mountains, the rugged heart of the Weminuche Wilderness in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. This was the fourth time I've done a week-long backpack trip in these mountains, and as usual we had some crazy weather during our trip, including lots of lightning, thunder, and several stunning sunrises and sunsets...

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Wetterhorn / Uncompahgre Loop Trek
Wetterhorn / Uncompahgre Loop Trek
July 2011  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

Last week Claudia and I went on a 5-day backpacking loop in the Uncompahgre Wilderness in the San Juan Mountains east of Ouray. Our route circumnavigated the fourteeners Wetterhorn and Uncompahgre Peaks and took us through a paradise of expansive green tundra, wildflowers, and peaks...

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Epic Spring Ski Season in Western Colorado
Epic Spring Ski Season in Western Colorado
May/June 2011  |  Colorado

With record-breaking snowfalls in April, continuing well in May, the spring ski season in the San Juans was a memorable one. May surprised us with several long snow storms that brought mid-winter-esque powder days and smiles all around! Here is a collection of my favorite ski photos from May and June...

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Colorado Fall Colors
Colorado Fall Colors
September/October 2010  |  Colorado

Photos of colorful aspens in the San Juans and Elk Mountains of Colorado, during the autumn of 2010.

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Ouray/Uncompahgre Loop
Ouray/Uncompahgre Loop
August 2010  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

This last weekend we repeated one of my favorite backpacking loop routes in the San Juan Mountains - a big circle starting from near the town of Ouray, Colorado, hiking up 5,000 vertical feet to the expansive high rolling tundra of the Uncompahgre Wilderness, then back down into the town of Ouray via the Bridge of Heaven...

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Sunset Atop Mount Sneffels
Sunset Atop Mount Sneffels
August 2010  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

After climbing the southwest ridge route of Mt. Sneffels on an afternoon when the clouds weren't too threatening, we stayed up on the summit to watch and photograph the sunset. We then descended the normal route in the dark with headlamps and walked back to my truck where cold beers awaited...

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Weminuche Wilderness Trek
Weminuche Wilderness Trek
August 2010  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

During the second of week of this August 2010, Claudia and I went backpacking for 7 days in the Weminuche Wilderness, duplicating the same route that I did solo back in September 2007.

We had all kinds of crazy weather during the trek, ranging from torrential monsoons to perfect bluebird days...

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Beautiful Blue Lakes
Beautiful Blue Lakes
August 2010  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

Photos from three days of summer camping at Blue Lakes, in the Sneffels Range of the San Juan Mountains, Colorado.

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Sunrise on Wetterhorn Peak
Sunrise on Wetterhorn Peak
July 2010  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

On Sunday I hiked into Wetterhorn Basin, in the Uncompahgre Wilderness east of Ridgway, Colorado. With all the stormy monsoon weather and fantastic sunsets we’ve been having in the San Juans lately, I had hopes of catching another great sunset in the mountains...

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Wandering in the Weminuche
Wandering in the Weminuche
July 2010  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

After another fun 4th of July in Ouray, I went on a 5-day backpacking loop in the Weminuche Wilderness in the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. I left from the Beartown trailhead, hiked south along the Continental Divide Trail for a couple days until reaching the area of Flint Lakes and Rock Lake...

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Icy Ice Lakes Basin
Icy Ice Lakes Basin
November 2009  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

The light snowfalls amounts in the San Juan Mountains this November provided a good opportunity for me to do a quick overnight backpacking trip to Ice Lakes Basin, near Silverton, Colorado. This spectacular basin is a popular location for summertime hiking, but not many people visit in the snow...

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Lightning Disco at Blue Lakes
Lightning Disco at Blue Lakes
September 2009  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

On Saturday I hiked up to Blue Lakes for a quick overnight backpacking trip in the Sneffels Range of southwest Colorado's San Juan Mountains. The alpine tundra has turned a beautiful array of autumn colors, and even a few aspens are starting to change...

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Bridge of Heaven Winter Camp
Bridge of Heaven Winter Camp
April 2009  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

Over the last few days, a late season storm has come through the San Juans in Colorado, dumping almost 2 feet of snow.  On Sunday, while still snowing hard outside the weather forecast called for a sunny clear Monday, so I headed out for a spur-of-the-moment winter backpacking trip, hoping to get a photo of the fresh snow smothering Ouray and the Uncompahgre Gorge...

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2009 Skiing & Snowboarding in the San Juans
2009 Skiing & Snowboarding in the San Juans
Winter 2009  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

My favorite shots from our backcountry skiing and snowboarding adventures during the 2009 winter and spring, in the San Juan Mountains, near Ouray, Colorado.

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Hideout Cabin
Hideout Cabin
January 2009  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

This weekend I joined some friends for a three day weekend up at their backcountry cabin in the San Juan Mountains south of Telluride, Colorado. The cabin’s a real gem, situated in a rugged San Juan setting surrounded by prime ski terrain...

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Weminuche Wilderness Loop
Weminuche Wilderness Loop
August 2008  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

For 7 days in August, I hiked a high loop route through the high and rugged Needle Mountains in the Weminuche Wilderness in the San Juans south of Silverton, Colorado. This trip had a couple unexpected events in store for me, but fortunately, Lady Luck was really by my side this time...

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Continental Divide Trail through the South San Juans
Continental Divide Trail through the South San Juans
August 2008  |  South San Juan Mountains, Colorado

This last week I hiked the Continental Divide Trail (CDT) through the South San Juan Wilderness with two of my friends. It’s a 60+ mile trek from Cumbres Pass near Chama, New Mexico to Wolf Creek Pass near Pagosa Springs, Colorado...

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Cow Creek Bushwhack
Cow Creek Bushwhack
July 2008  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

During the last three days, I bushwhacked through the Cow Creek valley, a rugged and remote mountain valley in the Uncompahgre Wilderness of the San Juan Mountains east of Ridgway. My original plan was to hike through the valley and continue up to the high alpine zone, where I would hike a high loop route around to Wetterhorn Basin and then take a trail back to my truck...

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2 Sunrises on Mount Sneffels
2 Sunrises on Mount Sneffels
June 2008  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

This June I made two early morning hikes high up in Yankee Boy Basin, a high mountain valley above Ouray, Colorado.

On Monday I woke up at 2am, drove up to Yankee Boy Basin, and hiked in the dark via headlamp up to the ridgeline of Cirque Mountain, a 13-thousand footer with a nice view of neighboring Mount Sneffels...

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2008 Skiing & Snowboarding in Colorado
2008 Skiing & Snowboarding in Colorado
Winter/Spring 2008  |  Colorado

The 2007-2008 snow season has been an epic one, with record breaking snowfalls in western Colorado. The town of Ouray (where I live) got over 21 feet of snow, more than twice the average, and the most in 60 years of records! The high mountains probably got twice that, if not more...

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Winter Camping in the West Needle Mountains
Winter Camping in the West Needle Mountains
March 2008  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

Lured by a full moon and a forecast of clear skies, in late March I went backpacking for two nights in the West Needle Mountains in the San Juans near Silverton, Colorado. This area is incredibly photogenic; from my campsite on a 12,200 ft ridgeline, I enjoyed broad vistas of the Needle Mountains, the West Needles, and all the peaks of the Molas Pass area...

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Colorado Fall Colors
Colorado Fall Colors
September/October 2007  |  Colorado

Autumn is probably the most spectacular season in the Colorado Rockies, as the vast fields of aspens turn bright yellow and orange under snowcapped mountain peaks. For the last several weeks, I've been searching for grand aspen vistas to photograph, mainly in the West Elk Mountains near Crested Butte, and San Juan Mountains around Telluride and Ouray...

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Weminuche Wilderness Trek
Weminuche Wilderness Trek
September 2007  |  San Juan Mountains, Colorado

Over a span of 7 days in late August/early September, I hiked alone through a high route in the Weminuche Wilderness of the San Juans. The mountains here are perhaps the most rugged and remote in all of Colorado...

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