CO 133 by Lee Creek and Chair Creek, Gunnison County, CO, 9/24/2011
Here are the high desert foothills of Huntsman Ridge to the north (looking straight ahead) and Ragged Mountain to the west. Immediately to our right Gunnison National Forest begins and Lee Creek separates the foothills of these mountains from the foothills of Chair Mountain to the southeast. These peaks are at the western edge of the Elk Mountains, a high, rugged mountain range within the Rocky Mountains of west-central Colorado. Our elevation is 7,280 feet above sea level, and we're just west of where Chair Creek spills into Lee Creek. While driving through these foothills on a beautiful early autumn afternoon, I spotted this golden willow tree (Salix geyeriana) among the sagebrush and other high desert shrubs. Here, as in the eastern Sierra of California, I love how the deciduous trees in autumn contrast strongly with their desolate and rugged high desert surroundings, making perfect scenes to be photographed!
