Gathering Storm

A three day, Labor Day trip to Crested Butte was supposed to net four, 12,000 foot summits, but the fickle Colorado weather had other plans for us.

With the first day entirely rained out, we drove to the top of Paradise Pass - a 4WD road northwest of the town. On our second day, we were able to climb two of those summits and then spend an evening at the top of the pass, enjoying the scenery from a campsite located near this reflective pond.

The weekend forecast had indicated good weather for the following day. Little did we know that the gathering clouds seen here would portend another day of rain. But "ignorance is bliss" as the saying goes and so we spent the evening at this high camp, taking photos of the still pond and the evening sun breaking through under the clouds to illumine the landscape. Was the rainy trip worth the effort? In our book, even five minutes in a paradise with a view such as this makes it all worthwhile.  HDR