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Lower Beaver Creek Campground

My campsite in Lower Beaver Creek, Colorado, in the fall of 2025.

Late arrival. Rain and plenty of low clouds in the mountains. This camp of Rio Grande National Forest near South Fork was mostly empty. No trash and no water service meant a discounted price - $10 per night, $5 with interagency pass. A sign warning of a visitor bear. Rain all night. The bear stayed dry in its cave. Slept in the truck.

Where is the Lower Beaver Creek Campground? - Map my location.

Silverton Under Fog and Rain

The visitor center of the city of Silverton, Colorado, under low clouds and bad weather in the fall of 2025.

Bad weather over the Silverton Visitor Center in the fall of 2025.

Rain, low clouds, dense fog. This was my fall experience in the popular town of Colorado. Visitor center closed. A drive through Main Street revealed the old jewels; relics of western times. No way to dry camp here. All is coldness and water. Winter waiting by a corner.

Where is Silverton? - Map my location.

Bear Creek Falls Near the City of Ouray

Bear Creek Falls and the Million Dollar Highway over it near Ouray, Colorado, in the fall of 2025.

Bear Creek Falls in Colorado with the famous road as roof - Fall of 2025.

The creek runs under the famous road: the Million Dollar Highway. Big jump with a turquoise splash. Impressive spot of the Uncompahgre National Forest in the San Juan Mountains. Across the valley, the 450-foot-tall Ralston Creek Falls sliding over the rocks. Amazing place. Amazing nature.

Where is Bear Creek? - Map my location.

A tale of Ouray: “The Switzerland of America”

The charming town of Ouray of Colorado seen from a higher point in the canyon in the autumn of 2025.

Charming and colorful touristic town of Colorado in the fall of 2025.

Picturesque spot. The American Alps. It brough back memories of my time in Switzerland (Ouray is called “the Switzerland of America”). This place was named in the 1800s after a Ute Indian Chief (“Ouray” means “arrow”). The Native American name for this area was “Uncompahgre”, which means “hot water springs”. Silver and gold prospectors came in 1875. Now is all about tourism.

Where is Ouray? - Map my location.

The South Park of Colorado

My pickup truck facing the big expanses of South Park in Colorado in the fall of 2025.

Entering South Park from the east a day of the fall of 2025.

The valley that inspired the TV show - the creators are from Colorado. Here is Fairplay, the model for the cartoon town. This use of “park” comes from the French. It was brought by old fur trappers. “Parc” in Europe was a cleared, enclosed, or semi-enclosed land area. South Park was the Valle Salado (Salt Valley) of the Spaniards. Early French trappers made it the “Bayou Salade” (Salt Marshes). Big expanse of flat land surrounded by high mountains. I didn't find Eric Cartman around here.

Where is South Park? - Map my location.

Camping in BLM land by the Black Canyon of the Gunnison

My campsite at a dispersed campsite in BLM land near the Black Canyon of the Gunnison under bad weather in late fall.

Dispersed campsite in BLM land of Colorado in the fall of 2025.

Free dispersed camping in a forest of pinyon around a mile from the national park entrance. Not many people in this cold season. Rain and bad weather are rampant. The yin and yang of nature. Surviving the season.

Where is this primitive campsite? - Map my location.

Visiting the Black Canyon of the Gunnison

Dramatic view of bad weather over the Black Canyon of the Gunnison in my visit in the fall of 2025.

The Black Canyon of the Gunnison before a late afternoon storm in the fall of 2025.

Speechless. What a deep canyon of dark rocks. Towering walls with the Gunnison River slicing the ground down in the darkness. Insignificant us facing millions of years of work. Visitor center closed thanks to the political fight in Washington. Pit toilets... just imagine with your nose. Stupid power struggles.

Where is the Black Canyon of the Gunnison? - Map my location.