Telluride Colorado is without a doubt one of my favorite locations to shoot colorful fall images. Located in the rugged San Juan Mountains of Southwest Colorado, the town of Telluride sits at the end of a dramatic box canyon at an elevation of approximately 8,750 feet. This former old west mining town, which is now a popular festival and skiing destination, is surrounded by forested mountains and peaks with some soaring above 13,000 feet.

The high-altitude geography of the Telluride area makes it ideal for supporting vast forests and stands of Aspen trees that thrive in elevations from 7,000 feet to 11,500 feet. When fall arrives in late September in the high country of Southwest Colorado that is when the Aspens tree’s leaves start their magical transition from green to vibrant hues of yellow and gold. In my 25 years plus experience in visiting the Telluride area the fall colors of the Aspens generally reach their peak around the second week of October.

As far as easy (on paved roads) fall color viewing drives I would recommend in the Telluride area I would suggest taking highway 145 just outside of town and head south down to the Mountain town of Rico. There are many scenic vistas and pullouts along this route which provide plenty of dramatic photography opportunities for fall colors. Situated before Lizard head pass on the East side of Highway 145 is also the very scenic Trout Lake recreation area. This stunning high elevation lake is surrounded colorful peaks over 13,000 feet with some nearly reaching 14,000 feet in elevation. There are also many colorful stands of Aspens in the lower reaches of the peaks and a well-maintained gavel road that nearly encircles the lake give you access to multiple perspectives of the immediate environment.

Further south on Highway 145 as you near the town of Rico there are many other opportunities to see large stands of Aspens displaying autumn colors. As you enter Rico Its not uncommon (if your timing is right) to see whole mountain sides ablaze with shimmering golden Aspen leaves. There are also a number of historic buildings to see in Rico including the famous Enterprise Bar & Grill which was established over a 130 years ago and was frequented by some notorious outlaws back in the day including Butch Cassidy & The Sundance Kid. The Enterprise also has great food and is fun stop to enjoy a local beer brewed up the road at Telluride Brewing company.

As you continue on past Rico there are also a few forest roads that head in and up into the mountains off highway 145 that provide great views and photography opportunities. However, I would not recommend driving on most of them unless you have a 4WD truck with very good clearance.

You can also find good fall colors along some of the major rivers in the area. The San Miguel river in its lower elevation sections is lined with deciduous trees like Cottonwoods, Alders, and Willows that also display brilliant fall colors well into late October.

As far as Photography tips or preferences , I definitely prefer shooting fall images in Telluride on cloudy or partly cloudy days. The colors just seem to pop more and I prefer landscape images with some type of cloud structure in the background. Im my opinion early to mid morning and late afternoon are the best times of the day to shoot. Its also nice to have snow on the higher peaks which provides a cool contrast.

Below are a few images and a video link with some additional info about the images. Please click on the images to see full size high resolution versions that are available for sale. You can see all of my Colorado images for sale here. Please contact me if you have any questions ..

Video: You can also view a short video of fall scenery from Telluride here including some dramatic drone footage.