As we left the Leadville area, heading south to Independance Pass, I marvelled that we were able to do this so late in October.

snow-capped mountains outside of Leadville, Colorado

Usually by this time of year, this area has had quite a bit of snow, and the pass is generally closed after Labor Day. But due to such a dry summer and fall, we lucked out.

Leadville, Colorado

Leadville, Colorado

you never have an old-school goalie mask when you really need one....

yes, i really loved this old house...

heading up to Independance Pass, Colorado

Sara and I stopped whenever we saw something we wanted to take pictures of. Luckily, very few cars were on the road behind us, so we managed not to annoy anyone with our stopping.

surprisingly, there was still some color on the trees on the eastern side of the pass

sometimes it takes a view like this to remind me that I love Colorado

the clouds were beginning to build

heading up to Independance Pass, Colorado

the last switchback up to the summit

from the summit of Independance Pass - above treeline, the air is so quiet and sounds carries much farther than at lower elevations

we made it! we reached the summit! 12,095 feet above sea level! (Sara the Conquerer)

proof that Colorado attracts the obsessive cyclists - he rode the western side of the pass up from Aspen

Independance Pass, Colorado

making our way down the western side of the pass, we came across a grove of aspen, still golden and gleaming in the sunshine

Independance Pass, Colorado

Independance Pass, Colorado

no polarizing filter - the sky really was this rich deep blue

Independance Pass, Colorado

the grove just kept going, up and up the slope

Independance Pass, Colorado

We continued on down the western side of the pass, the road narrowing down to one lane a little too often for our taste - luckily on the western slope, they have guardrails, but when the road narrows down to next to nothing, and the shoulder markers are sideways on the rocks instead of the on the ground, the guardrails don't seem to make one feel terribly secure...luckily we never got caught in a situation where we were heading down and someone else was coming up, having to negotiate who gets to drive in reverse for a while until the road widens.

once we hit Carbondale, we wanted to go to the Roadside Gallery (photos of old motel signs and such), but it was closed.  Good thing we hadn't checked before we left town - if we had known it was closed, we might not have gone on our adventure!

Carbondale, Colorado

After that, we called it a day, headed out to Glenwood Springs and hit the highway back to Denver.

Well, we called it a day after we visited the giant rooster.

Carbondale, Colorado

Idaho Springs, Colorado

We finally made it home, 11 hours and 450 miles after we left.  One tank of gas.  Sara's car rocks the gas mileage.