Aspens will turn gold at elevations ranging from 8,000 to 10,000 feet above sea level beginning in mid-September. Later in the season, from October to mid-November, the foothills are ablaze with color.

If you’re looking for a place to see the aspens change colors, Boulder County has plenty of options. Among all of Boulder County’s prime leaf-viewing spots, Caribou Ranch stands out as the best.

Directions: 

Caribou Ranch Trailhead is located a few miles north of Nederland on CR 126. (take a sharp left after reaching the bottom of a steep hill to find the road). Follow the DeLonde Trail through a pine forest for approximately 0.75 miles from the trailhead to the first meadow.

History:

Caribou Ranch was a recording studio built in 1972 in a converted barn on ranch property in the Rocky Mountains near Nederland, Colorado, on the road that leads to the ghost town of Caribou by producer James William Guercio. The studio was open until it was destroyed by fire in March 1985.  The ranch was home to some of the most famous acts of the 1970s and 1980s, including the band Chicago, who recorded five consecutive albums there between 1973 and 1977.

photo credit: Lizzie Etzel

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