Maxwell Falls Trail, Denver, CO, 10/27/13

We hiked this trail with our friends Katy and Marlin.  I managed to forget, not my camera, but the battery in my camera, and Katy kindly took pictures with her iPhone.

This hike is a very short, level 20-minute walk to the falls overlook.  We heard the falls but did not see them.  Viewing the falls requires rock scrambling down an intermittent side trail.

Guest at lunch. I discarded my apple core and within minutes a chipmunk joint us in the meal. 

Marlin at right, Jim in back.

After lunch, we joined the Cliff Loop to for better views of the Maxwell Falls drainage area.

Back to the main trail meandering through lodegepine forest. All in all a short, sweet hike with fall colors still at their best at this altitude in late October.

Chimney Rock, Ghost Ranch, 10/13/13

We spent a w.e. in Abiquiu with our friends Katy and Marlin and decised on hiking Chimney Rock on Sunday morning. We found striking fall colors in addition to the suble beautiful southwest palette that must have seduced Georgia O'Keefe when she settled in this region.

The hike starts out behind the visitor center and stables and gradually climbs up the ridge.  Elevation 6,500 to 7,100 feet and 3 miles round-trip. 

The Piedra Lumbre basin at our feet and Mount Pedernal visible at the horizon on the far left.

Lake Abiquiu, formed when a dam was built on the Chama River.