Hardcore Leaf Peeping: Peak To Peak Highway & Brainard Lake

Fall is an amazing time in Colorado. Mid-August to early October, the trees are putting on their fall colors, the weather is (usually) getting a little cooler, and the sky is amazingly clear.

If you’ve got the notion to go “leaf peeping” (looking for fall colors), then the Peak to Peak Highway is the right way to go. It’s a quick drive from Denver (or Brighton, in our case) and has the unlimited beauty that only the aspen-covered mountainsides of Colorado can provide.

Consequently, if you’re up for a nice, moderately easy hike in Roosevelt National Forest, Brainard Lake Recreation Area is an awesome place to go. I mean, just look at the photos.

You can end your trip wherever you choose, and we chose to stop our journey in Nederland. We had a flight of beer at Very Nice Brewing, ate a little bit of food at the Train Cars Coffee & Yogurt Company, and made the (still scenic) journey back through Boulder and on to Brighton. A good day, for sure.