Fall colors in Metro Denver?

[NickMan7]

I don't really get the "there is no fall color here". Naturally, we don't have the tree coverage like the states east of the Mississippi do, but for what we've got, the colors this year are great. Surprisingly enough, Denver metro has not had its first hard freeze (although it's coming next week) of the year yet, which is nice, since early freezes tend to negate a good color fest.

I don't really get the comment(s) about trees being non-native. Who cares? It's a discussion about color, not native species. Let's not get on YET ANOTHER discussion about how Denver would have no trees if they weren't planted. Uggh, that's such a tired conversation.

I don't know where everyone else is living, but in my area, the trees are spectacular. There are blazing maples everywhere (the main street through our neighborhood is lined on both sides with about 30 of them) and the reds and deep oranges are incredible, especially with the high snow-capped peaks in the background. Unfortunately, the high winds late this afternoon stripped some trees of many of their leaves, so I have a feeling it'll be too short-lived. I take the color here for what it is. Some years it's great, some years it sucks. It (Denver proper) will never compare to the east coast, so there's no real reason to even have that discussion.

Re the mountains - gold is not the only color and only naive people would even say that. The San Juans, in particular, are breathtakingly beautiful during the fall. With the classic rugged terrain and alpine snowfields, there's something the east coast could never boast about.