Maroon Bells is a location that you are sure to see on Colorado postcards or travel advertisements. It's for a good reason because the place is epic and for sure one of the coolest views I have seen in Colorado. It's a very popular place supposedly. So popular that in the 80s they decided to put a limit on how many people could visit it in a day because Maroon Bells was overrun and nature was a victim.
Maroon Bells is about a 20-minute drive from Aspen and we decided to go there in the evening. You also need to buy a ticket to go there and these sell out. You can choose between a morning ticket or an evening ticket. If you drive yourself then you can't go there during the day, you need to book a bus drive. We had booked an evening ticket and we were able to drive there after 5 PM. It cost 10 dollars.
When we arrived at the Maroon Bells Road checkpoint around 8 PM, no one was there so we just drove inside. Might have as well not bought the ticket but eh it was only 10 dollars.
When we arrived there and walked a bit to the Maroon Lake, the view was jaw-dropping. The reflecting lake surrounded by 14k-foot-high mountains was an extremely spectacular sight to see.
Popular location my ass. There was not a single soul there that I saw. One car was in the parking lot but I don't know where that person was. I guess there are a lot of people in the morning hours and during the daytime that come with buses but I expected to see people in the evening too. Well, I don't mind. The lack of people created a great mysterious atmosphere.
Red sharp hills in the other direction.
Many( professionals ) have tried to climb these mountains but unfortunately several fatalities among these people. A word of caution stands there as follows...
There was a trail that we decided to follow a bit that led us to the other side of the Maroon Lake.
A view to the north of the lake.
There is also another lake named Crater Lake that would have taken another Kilometre of walk it was pretty late and we did not want to get left there in the dark. Moreover, this place has A LOT of black bears roaming the area so we didn't feel particularly safe there totally alone. Bear Warning signs were everywhere and notes on how to manage your food because they will come to the smell of food.
A couple of more shots as we were walking back to the car.
We didn't see any bears but there were many deer in the area. Didnt seem to be afraid of us much either.
If you are traveling in Colorado then this has to be one of your must-visit locations, the views are truly worth it. If you don't want to catch a sunset there then go in the evening to avoid any crowds.