Follow the Fall Color Change in Pagosa Country on The Journal

Come to Pagosa for “America Most Beautiful’

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These two photos taken just south of Pagosa on Light Plant Rd.

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Fall Color Up-date, The colors are just beginning to change here in Pagosa Country. Watch for updates and the best roads and trails to see the beauty of Pagosa Country in autumn.

Photos shown here are from past seasons.

Primetime Prediction

The duration of primetime is anybody’s guess as there are so many factors involved. Generally the last of September and October are good for color lovers, with opportunities fading toward the end of the month. We will cover the color change here and make our best prediction for “primetime.”

These photos display how aspen grow in clones

See article: http://pagosa.com/adventure/summer/s_aspen.htm

Aspen grow in clones with an interconnected root system. When the colors change these clones often turn color at the same time and different from other clones. These photos show one such clone in the mountains north of town. The already yellow clone is surrounded by another clone that is still green. The second photo isolates the clone in the red dots.

The “Panorama of the San Juan” can be used as a guide to the Pagosa Country mountain ranges. To see the view shown here, you must travel south of town on HWY 84 about five miles and turn on Eight Mile Mesa Forest Access Road. This road climbs to an old forest service lookout tower for a stunning vista. A print-out of the Panorama of the San Juan can be helpful in identifying the main valleys and access roads.

A wonderful drive for cottonwood, oak and lower elevation brush is Trujillo Road. Start in town at Eighth Street (at Sisson Library) and drive south out of town along the San Juan River. This long and pleasant drive meanders with the river, passes the northeastern tip of Navajo Lake and connects with HWY 151. Return north on 151 to Chimney Rock and HWY 160. Don’t miss one particularly nice view of the San Juan Valley with the old train bridge still crossing the river. There is a pull-out on the road giving a nice view north of this scene.

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NOTE: This map is NOT TO SCALE and is meant for illustration purposes only. Do not use this map for navigation purposes.