Well it appears we’ve arrived. Where have we arrived you may be asking?. The end of the fall color season in Rocky Mountain National Park is what I’m alluding to this morning. The last tiny vestiges of autumn color has nearly passed and the brown season in RMNP is about to enter stage right.

As of this morning, a weak mountain system is sweeping over Rocky bringing in rain and snow showers, higher winds and some of the coolest temperatures we have seen since the spring. I expect these next days to put the coup de grâce on what remains of the remnants of both the whispers of whats left of the summer season as the whimpers of the remains of what was a spectacular autumn.

While Trail Ridge Road is closed at both the Colorado River Trailhead on the west side of Rocky Mountain National Park and Many Parks Curve on the east side with what I would guess to be a zero chance of reopening for the season, Many of the mid level lakes and trails along the Bear Lake Corridor remain mostly snow and ice free. Thats going to change over the next couple of days and I would expect any of the lakes above 9000 ft. to be frozen over with a thin layer of ice moving forward. Its going to be difficult to capture your ‘summer’ like reflection images once the higher lakes freeze.

Moving waterways while gain some ice along the edges, but with temperatures moderating over the back end of the week I would expect them to continue to remain mostly free of ice for the near future. Are long dark nights now and long daytime shadows will make it difficult for the smaller and higher lakes to thaw and break free from ice even if the temperatures moderate at the back end of the week.

As for fall color, the few aspen trees and willows here and there that have a few patches of fall color and leaves will likely be stripped of what remains with the higher winds excpeted the next two days. With a little bit of luck, you may be able to find some smaller ground cover that has some remaining color on it or some leaves of the ground that may be able to be used to compose some small scale macro scenes but I would expect those to become difficult to find by the end of the week.

While we are about to enter the brown season, there will still be some opportunities going forward. For one, the brown season does have some of the most dramatic sunrise and sunsets when conditions allow. The low angle of the sun can really set the sky ablaze. I would expect most of the lakes to start to freeze over now but some of the larger and deeper ones may have some open water if temps remain moderate. Of course somewhere in here we should see our first significant snow of the season in Rocky which always lends itself to some amazing opportunities for landscape photography.

Autumn in 2025 was an amazing season in Rocky Mountain National Park. I started capturing some of my first fall color season shots in mid to late August of this year and have continued to do so almost until November. With a little bit of luck, I may be able to capture a few more images of the lingering fall color over the next week if conditions allow. So while I expect the transition over to the shoulder and or brown season in the next few days, I still expect there to be some good opportunities to document and capture the end of fall season in Rocky.

The fall color season in Rocky is quickly wrapping up and losing steam. Each day that passes, more and more of our beautiful autumn palette falls to the ground, turns brown and is blown away. As I’ve repeated a numerous times over the past two months, its been a banner fall for color in Rocky Mountain National Park but as always, its somber to see it come and go so quickly.

The positive so far is that its been very mild in Rocky. We’ve had snow above 10,000 ft. a couple of times this fall, but we have not had a really hard freeze as of yet. This has kept some color in the grasses and caused the pace of the color change to occur slowly and evenly. The color that remains in the park at this point is isolated and located in the lower elevations of the park, below 8500 ft and it could be found in small patches.

Winds, which have mostly behaved themselves over the course of this years fall color season, have also begun to pickup with each new weather system that passes over RMNP. Obviously, as this late a stage in the fall season, high winds will quickly strip the remaining trees and ground cover of their leaves. If I had to take a guess, I would be most if not all of the fall color will be wrapped up by the middle of next with a possibility of some small intimate type scenes of leaves of the ground or an individual tree here or there.

While the wind is likely to finish up most of the color in the coming week, we have had a very mild fall with very moderate temperatures. This looks like this is going to continue through the next week which bodes well for keeping the lakes and streams of Rocky unfrozen and flowing. If that occurs, we should have a nice transition from autumn to the ‘Shoulder Season’, aka the ‘Brown Season’. That means hiking should remain relatively snow and ice free for a little while longer while also keeping water and streams open for reflection images during a time when we can get some dramatic morning and afternoon light.

So while I never like to say goodbye to fall, it’s always a bit of a relief when it wraps up. The intensity to not miss a day out in the field, the busy nature of the park this time of year, and the ability to shoot what nature is giving you instead of focusing on autumn themed images is freeing. While I’m looking forward towards changing seasons, winter and snow, I’m sure I’ll find a pocket or two of fall here and there in Rocky where autumn still lives on for yet another day.

Autumn in Rocky Mountain National Park is now it in waining stages. What was a spectacular crescendo of color is slowly slipping to back to browns and grays as the length of days continue to shorten, nights get colder, and those showers instead of producing rain, now often produce snow flakes. The best of the fall color in RMNP is now behind us, but with that said there are still many opportunities for photographers in the park.

Trail Ridge Road had reopened last week but was closed again this weekend as snow was predicted to fall. While little snow actually fell, we will have to see if the NPS reopens Trail Ridge Road for a few more days or decides to call it good for the season.

Lakes and streams are still free from ice and offer good opportunities on those windless mornings. Trails are mostly still free of snow except for those in shade at or near timberline. Access overall to Rocky and its trails are still very good so we still have a little time before snowpack starts to build and covers the trails and the lakes and ponds ice over.

As far as the remaining fall color goes, there are some good patches, especially in the lower elevations of Rocky Mountain National Park and some locations in and around Lumpy Ridge and the town of Estes Park. Higher elevations such as the Bierstadt Moraine are for the most part now bare or only have a few random aspen trees here and there with leaves remaining.

Park still has some color as does Beaver Meadow and Horseshoe Park. Willows, wind sheltered trees and those in and around streams such as the area near the Alluvial Fan still have some potential. Intimate landscape scenes will tend to work better if one is just looking for fall color. Think of aspens leaves on the forest floor and covering the shores of a river or stream.

The weather looks like its going to be seasonal for the rest of the week in Rocky with it trending towards cold and unsettled by next weekend. While there is still much to photograph, straight up fall color photography in Rocky Mountain National Park is quickly becoming more challenging and will required some creativity moving forward.

While Autumn in Colorado is such an amazing time of year, it comes and goes way too quickly but its still worth searching for those hidden gems that may only remain for an even shorter time before the brown season moves on in.

Just a quick update on both the fall colors in Rocky Mountain National Park as well as the ability to currently access RMNP with the government shut down in place. While much of the current National Park service staff is either furloughed, or unpaid, Rocky Mountain National Park is open. Many of the services are limited in the park, but access to Rocky is possible at the time of this writing. At this time, it appears the National Park Service will keep RMNP open with limited services. Of course this is all subject to change at anytime. If you decide to visit the park, please be courteous, plan on packing out any garbage and to use leave no trace principles as you should assume responsibility for any impact you have.

As to the status of the fall colors, there is still plenty of good fall color to be found and photographed in RMNP at this time. With that said, most areas above 9000 ft are now past peak. The winds are quickly stripping the leaves in these area though patches of good color can be found. Bear Lake and the Bierstadt Moraine are past peak but there are pockets of good color. The area above Cub Lake is also past peak. Moraine Park is nearing peak as is Horseshoe Park. Most of the west side of Rocky is well past peak. The elk rut while slowing, still quite active with the best areas to view being Moraine Park and downtown Estes Park near the golf course.

while there is a lot of uncertainty right now with much of the federal government shut down or impacted by the funding impasse, Rocky Mountain National Park remains open with lots of great opportunities for fall color and wildlife photography. We probably have another week to ten days before we can put a bow on the fall color season but that of course is always dependent on future weather. Have fun out there!