Hey all, I have been a closet member of the RMNP group for a few years now and the wife and I decided to quit our jobs, sell our house and move to Colorado!
The wife's brother has been here for 30 years and her parents needed to choose 5 years ago between the frozen tundra of Minnesota where we were or the lovely state of Colorado, guess which state won??
We had planned to move here in another 10-15 years anyways but were worried a little bit about getting just too long in years to start over, so, here we are.
So enough blabbin', we are in our temporary housing until we buy our new house(and I guess get new jobs) and I took all of the rest of July(and maybe a little more) off and was wondering what now? where to go and visit this time of year? who might be available for a hike and some picture takin'.
fYI, we have been vacationing here for about 10 years now so I know my way around pretty good and the wife told me to come out of the closet and go meet some fellow photographers, I think what she was really saying was "get the h*ll out of my hair"!
so, there is my story and I am sticking to it!
Hope to see some of you soon.
Posted by Doug Andrews on July 20, 2007 at 12:53 AM
Welcome to Colorado Doug. My wife and I made the move here ourselves four years ago. July is wildflower season in Colorado. Get thee to the high country. Just about anywhere is awful nice, although a few places are particularly spectacular with wildflowers. Read up on the Colorado Wildflower sticky thread at the top of the forum listing for whats hot and whats not right now. I'll be off work all next week, so I'm working on several places to visit myself.
Douglas - Welcome to Colorado! Glad to have another photog to join the local group.
You'll definitely want to start watching the light at sunrise and sunset over the different times of year; you'll start to see places everywhere that are best in that kind of light. And storms! Bad weather often means great photos. Have your camera ready at all times...
Places? Depends on where you live, but you can get to great stuff within about 30-45 minutes of anywhere. On the Front Range, the highway access is great, which leads to easy dirt roads where you can find mountains, streams, waterfalls and wildlife. I'm a big fan of the Guanella Pass road between Georgetown (on I-70) and Grant (on US 285); lots of stuff to photograph there.
Get a Gazetteer and stay tuned to the forums... all kinds of great info here!
Posted by John De Bord on July 20, 2007 at 7:13 AM
Well, also, if you want to stay close to home and don't want to drive up in the mountains cuz of gas cost, traffic, whatever, this is the one thing I LOVE about Denver. Don't forget photo-opps locally!
Roxborough State Park http://parks.state.co.us/Parks/roxborough is fantastic, and also while on that subject, go into the subdivision as well. Just keep following the road to where you come to a guard house. Now I wonder who else has done this besides me?? Once at the guard house, tell the people there you are a photographer, show em yer gear, and explain you are there to shoot landscapes and won't get in anyone's way. That private area is REMARKABLE! It is a photographers paradise as far as landscapes go, with much to offer which can't been seen anywhere else, unless you are in that subdivision.
Rock Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge http://rockymountainarsenal.fws.gov/ is just north of I-70
Many of the state parks and reservoir areas are great to shot at as well, Chatfield, Cherry Creek, Aurora, especially if you are into Birding.
Of course there is also Red Rocks http://www.redrocksonline.com/index.asp which is quite small but offers some great landscape shots. While there, be sure to explore the town of Morrison for photo-opps as well. Very small town look and feel, kinda Main Street USA-out west style. With many old restored buildings and such.
Check the surrounding county websites for parks also, Bel Mar Lakes in Lakewood (Jefferson County) is one I recently got directions to from a member on here, and what a place that ever is! Don't overlook the Denver Zoo, The Butterfly Pavillions, and the Botanic Gardens either.
You picked a great city to live in, now get a shootin'! :)
Welcome! Like (the other) Doug said, it's wildflower season and you can find some great stuff just about anywhere in the high country.
Looking forward to seeing some pic posts!!
Posted by Mel Ladewig on July 20, 2007 at 10:42 AM
For a quick trip if you have an SUV check out Fall River Reservoir or drive up to Loch Lomond. Easy roads that are just bumpy enough to require high clearance. The snow drift blocking the road 1/4 mile from Loch Lomond was just broken recently. There are several additional lakes in each valley and the area is very nice and not terribly crowded considering it proximity to Denver. In fact Holy Cross/Homestake Road (despite the 2+ hour drive) was much more crowded in my experience than I've ever seen these areas which are only 30 minutes from town. They are both off the St Mary's Glacier exit on I-70. Guanella Pass, Mt Evans and Loveland Pass all offer nearby photo opportunities as well.
If you're getting out into the high country, it sounds like Ice Lake, American Basin and some of the other San Juans spots are doing OK this year and would be worth the visit.
Welcome to Colorado, Douglas! It sounds like your wife wouldn't mind if you took off for a little while, so if it were me, I'd be heading for the San Juans right about now. If I hadn't just returned from a vacation elsewhere, I actually would be heading there. You stand a good chance of running into some fellow RMNPers down there, too.
A little closer to home, Chautauaqua, Roxborough, Red Rocks… all can be very nice with interesting views. And then for something in between, Rocky Mountain National Park, Indian Peaks Wilderness, Shrine Pass (near Vail) are great spots. If you do any backpacking or more strenuous dayhikes, then the options are practically limitless.
Welcome! My wife and I quit our jobs and moved to Colorado in 1984 (unfortunately, we also had to get jobs). We have never regretted the move. If you are looking to purchase a home outside of a city, check on the water supply carefully....it isn't always as good as it is made to look. Some areas of Douglas and Arapahoe counties will have problems in the near future.
I live in the foothills in Douglas County (SW of Denver) and can stay occupied with wildlife, wildflower, and landscape photography without leaving my property.
Hey all,
I want to thank you all for a great starter list for me and will certainly start exploring them all and thanks for the real warm welcome and hope to see you in the field!
Discussion
8 repliesThe wife's brother has been here for 30 years and her parents needed to choose 5 years ago between the frozen tundra of Minnesota where we were or the lovely state of Colorado, guess which state won??
We had planned to move here in another 10-15 years anyways but were worried a little bit about getting just too long in years to start over, so, here we are.
So enough blabbin', we are in our temporary housing until we buy our new house(and I guess get new jobs)
fYI, we have been vacationing here for about 10 years now so I know my way around pretty good and the wife told me to come out of the closet and go meet some fellow photographers, I think what she was really saying was "get the h*ll out of my hair"!
so, there is my story and I am sticking to it!
Hope to see some of you soon.
You'll definitely want to start watching the light at sunrise and sunset over the different times of year; you'll start to see places everywhere that are best in that kind of light. And storms! Bad weather often means great photos. Have your camera ready at all times...
Places? Depends on where you live, but you can get to great stuff within about 30-45 minutes of anywhere. On the Front Range, the highway access is great, which leads to easy dirt roads where you can find mountains, streams, waterfalls and wildlife. I'm a big fan of the Guanella Pass road between Georgetown (on I-70) and Grant (on US 285); lots of stuff to photograph there.
Get a Gazetteer and stay tuned to the forums... all kinds of great info here!
Roxborough State Park http://parks.state.co.us/Parks/roxborough is fantastic, and also while on that subject, go into the subdivision as well. Just keep following the road to where you come to a guard house. Now I wonder who else has done this besides me?? Once at the guard house, tell the people there you are a photographer, show em yer gear, and explain you are there to shoot landscapes and won't get in anyone's way. That private area is REMARKABLE! It is a photographers paradise as far as landscapes go, with much to offer which can't been seen anywhere else, unless you are in that subdivision.
Rock Mountain Arsenal Wildlife Refuge http://rockymountainarsenal.fws.gov/ is just north of I-70
Many of the state parks and reservoir areas are great to shot at as well, Chatfield, Cherry Creek, Aurora, especially if you are into Birding.
Of course there is also Red Rocks http://www.redrocksonline.com/index.asp which is quite small but offers some great landscape shots. While there, be sure to explore the town of Morrison for photo-opps as well. Very small town look and feel, kinda Main Street USA-out west style. With many old restored buildings and such.
Check the surrounding county websites for parks also, Bel Mar Lakes in Lakewood (Jefferson County) is one I recently got directions to from a member on here, and what a place that ever is! Don't overlook the Denver Zoo, The Butterfly Pavillions, and the Botanic Gardens either.
You picked a great city to live in, now get a shootin'! :)
Looking forward to seeing some pic posts!!
If you're getting out into the high country, it sounds like Ice Lake, American Basin and some of the other San Juans spots are doing OK this year and would be worth the visit.
Mel-
A little closer to home, Chautauaqua, Roxborough, Red Rocks… all can be very nice with interesting views. And then for something in between, Rocky Mountain National Park, Indian Peaks Wilderness, Shrine Pass (near Vail) are great spots. If you do any backpacking or more strenuous dayhikes, then the options are practically limitless.
I live in the foothills in Douglas County (SW of Denver) and can stay occupied with wildlife, wildflower, and landscape photography without leaving my property.
I want to thank you all for a great starter list for me and will certainly start exploring them all and thanks for the real warm welcome and hope to see you in the field!