Colorado in the fall

Aspen grove, originally uploaded by cabanagirl.

The leaves are just beginning to turn down here in Denver even though the daytime temps are in the 80s but I had heard that up in the mountains the Aspen trees were putting on a show. I started out early Sunday in pursuit of color and color I got.
My destination: The Maroon Bells trail in Aspen---200 miles from Denver. This trail was ranked the #1 trail for fall color by Sunset magazine so I knew I couldn't go wrong. OMG--such beauty. The area is named for the mountains that look like bells and are deep rosy red in color. There are 2 bells (on the right) and the third mountain is Pyramid MT. They make up 3 of Colorado's 54 14,000 ft peaks. But what is at the base is pure heaven.
Ten minutes before I left the house I received an e-mail from my friend Kathy Jones telling me of her week's vacation in Aspen starting today. I haven't seen my dear friend in nine years. It was serendipitous that we were both due to arrive in this lovely place within an hour of each other. We had a good chat and shared a fun meal at Little Annie's in Aspen with her cousin, Joan.
It was a glorious day in the Rockies!