andri nyc's video: Exploring the Majestic Maroon Bells Aspen Colorado

Maroon Bells is widely regarded as one of Colorado’s most photographed wilderness scenes, and for good reason. The view of the twin peaks is like something you might find in a Bob Ross painting, an alpine lake lapping the steep slopes of a happy little alder-spackled mountain valley, framing the 14,000-foot domes several miles away. The peaks earn their name from the unusual composition of their rock, which is not so much rock but compressed mudstone known as hematite, an iron-rich, friable and extremely dangerous stone that has claimed enough lives over the years to earn the more foreboding nickname, the Deadly Bells. But as the centerpiece of the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness, one of Colorado’s most heavily visited wilderness preserves, the peaks can do no wrong. Considered alone, the Maroon Bells-Snowmass Wilderness is a small parcel of rugged alpine terrain south of Aspen, Colorado, but, nonetheless, it claims some fantastic backcountry adventures. Most of the wilderness hikes begin at or above 8,300 feet and ascend rapidly from there. With quick access to the resort amenities in Aspen, adventurers can visit Maroon Bells year round. The best time to visit, however, is between April and November, between the spring wildflower bloom and the fall colors of Aspen’s foliage. Fun fact: groves of aspen are considered a single organism, genetically identical clones of one another that propagate from a common root system to colonize environments recovering from avalanche or wildfire.