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| Fishers Peak, Colorado, covered by bad weather in the autumn of 2025. |
The plan was to walk the 14-mile trail (roundtrip) to the summit of Fishers Peak. Rain, cold, and wind said otherwise. The summit was engulfed in dark clouds when we reached the trailhead. Change of plans. We opted to visit the small city of Trinidad. A safer bet.
Where is Fishers Peak? - Map my location.
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| I took this picture of the old coke ovens of Cokedale, Colorado, from the road in the fall of 2025. |
Old coke ovens near Trinidad Lake. ~350 in total. All beehive-style. The former mining town of Cokedale is almost a ghost town now (population: 127 in 2020). It was born in 1899 with 100 souls and a decade later reached 1,500. Coal operations ended in 1947. Impressive lines of old ovens - the rows can be seen in the satellite layer of Google Maps).
Where are the coke ovens of Cokedale? - Map my location.
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| View of Trinidad Lake from a trail. Fishers Peak in the background - fall 2025. |
Two nights camping at this state park in southeast Colorado. Campsite at the Carpios Ridge Campground - the others were closed for winter. Good views of the lake and Fishers Peak. Nice trails surrounded by pinyon trees and cactus (including Colorado Cholla). Spiny hikes. Be careful.
Where is Trinidad Lake? - Map my location.
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| The orange tones of the latest lights of a day - fall 2025. |
A view from my campsite by Lake Como Road in BLM land. The image looks awesome. But don't be deceived by the beauty. Weather was ugly. Wind was wolfy cold. This place is not for everyone.
Where is the San Luis Valley? -
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| They look to us like wondering how do we dare to visit with this awful weather. Crazy humans! - Autumn 2025. |
Where are the Sand Dunes? - Map my location.
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| Entrance to BLM land at Lake Como Road with Blanca Peak in the background - Fall 2025. |
Rain followed us through the windy San Luis Valley. We camped free in BLM land under the fourth highest summit of Colorado: Blanca Peak (also the highest in the Sangre de Cristo Range with 14,351 feet - 4,374 meters). The peak was hidden by clouds most of these days. This mountain is sacred for the Navajo. They called it “Sisnaajiní” (means “Dawn” or “White Shell Mountain”).
Where is Blanca Peak? - Map my location.
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| Cold day of fall in the mighty dunes of Colorado (2025). |
Where are the Sand Dunes of Colorado? - Map my location.