Weekend Trip Report- Capulin Volcano, Pikes Peak and Garden of the Gods
While we all look forward to the grand road trip that spans a week or more, there is much to be said for simple weekend getaways- particularly when you live in New Mexico and so many amazing places are easily drivable.
This trip report summarizes our weekend journey to Capulin Volcano, then Colorado Springs to explore Pikes Peak and the Garden of the Gods, then back to Capulin to hike the crater rim trail during the day, and then back home via Taos and the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge.
This past weekend the wife and I did a quick getaway that started with heading out of town on Friday after work. Our first destination was the Capulin Volcano ( a place with Bortle 2 skies) for some Astrophotography. The drive was only 3.5 hours and we stayed in Raton, NM at the MicroTel Inn and Suites and I highly recommend it. The rooms are spacious and clean. The bed was super comfy, and the shower was plenty hot. A free continental breakfast is offered starting at 6 AM.
It is a 30 minute drive to the Capulin Volcano National Monument, and while the site is open at all hours- the paved road that can take you to the top has fairly short hours- 9 to 5 when we were there. Hikers can use the road after hours.
My goal for the evening was to shoot the Milky Way with the Capulin Volcano in the foreground. This meant shooting from the Northern side of the Volcano. I found a small dirt road pullout and started shooting at 1 AM and kept shooting until 330 AM. I shot star trails on my Nikon Z8 and Stacked single frames on my Nikon Z6 iii with a 20mm 1.8 lens. The skies were amazing at 1 AM. I had used the app Clear Outside to have a good idea of when cloud conditions would be favorable. I used PhotoPills to plan out what side of the volcano to shoot from. The visitor center is located on the opposite side of the Volcano.
Nikon Z6iii, 20mm 1.8 Lens, 13 seconds, ISO 3200, f/1.8. 8 image stack for noise reduction via Starry Landscape Stacker on Mac
Star Trails over the Capulin Volcano. Nikon z8 at 21 mm. 180 frames shot at 30 sec, f/4, ISO 3200. Blended in StarStax
Saturday- Fun in Colorado Springs
After getting back to the hotel and napping for a couple of hours, we were then off to Pikes Peak to do the beautiful drive to the top of the peak at 14,115 feet. I was able to nap during the drive thanks to my wife driving this leg of the trip- (only 3 hours). Pikes Peak is NOT a National Park. It is operated by the City of Colorado Springs. Please note- there are specific times for when you are allowed to begin the drive up mountain. Also- inclement weather can make it impossible to drive to the peak at times. Details can be found at https://coloradosprings.gov/pikes-peak-americas-mountain/page/pikes-peak-hours-and-rates
The views you enjoy as you ascend the mountain are simply amazing. The actual experience is more impressive than most images can hope to be. Early on you will reach the Crystal Reservoir. This offers a stunning view of this lake, with Pikes Peak as a backdrop. There are also restrooms and a gift shop at this location.
As you continue to ascend you will have a chance to pull over at an overlook that looks down on the historic UTE Pass.
Multiple Pull offs allow for capturing views of the mountain and surrounding landscape.
If you just race to the top- you will be there in around 40 minutes. But I highly recommend taking your time. Some of the best views are before you ever reach the summit. Once at the top- a new visitor center will greet you. It opened in 2021 after a three year build, and replaced a much older facility that had been there since 1964.
It should be noted- if you would rather not drive yourself up the mountain- there is also a cog railway that can take you all the way to the summit (about 70 dollars per person). It is a neat way to experience the mountain but obviously not as flexible as when you drive yourself.
After our several hours at Pikes Peak we checked into our hotel and recharged with a couple hour nap. We stayed at Best Western Plus Fillmore Inn & Suites in Colorado Springs. It was a short 10 minute drive to Garden of the Gods from the Hotel. We highly recommend this as a place to stay- rates were reasonable, super clean, again a big room with a great bed. They have a free breakfast but we skipped that in favor of a delicious restaurant by the name of “The Black Bear Diner”. They have large portions of very tasty food -whether for breakfast, lunch or dinner.
Around 6 PM we headed to Garden of the Gods. Be warned- on the weekends this is a very very crowded venue. Your best bet is an early morning shoot to catch the best light and avoid the parking madness. It took a half hour to find a reasonably close parking spot and the light was rapidly approaching the peaks west of the park. No worthy shots were captured but it was still nice to walk off our dinner (Chicken Marsala at Carrabas). Here are a few images from my last visit.
Sunday- Back to Capulin, and then Taos and the Rio Grande Gorge
After a delicious final breakfast at the Black Bear Diner we hopped in the car for the roughly three hour drive back to Capulin Volcano. We were wanting to drive to the top and hike the one mile volcano rim trail. It is completely paved but has around 350 feet of elevation change as you hike it. The views and the clouds were amazing.
A ten panel pano of a noon time view of the Raton-Clayton Volcanic field as seen from atop the volcanic rim trail at the Capulin Volcano.
After finishing the Rim hike we hopped back in the car and chose a different route home- passing through Taos since it would give me a chance to photograph the Rio Grande Gorge Bridge. As luck would have it weather and wind made this a bit dicey of a proposition. Fortunately the weather broke for long enough for a short walk to the gorge rim to capture the following moody image of the landscape.
Rio Grande Gorge Bridge on a stormy afternoon. This was an eight frame pano.
Wrapping up
We finally got back home at around 630 PM Sunday night- so overall 50 hours of adventure from doorstep to doorstep. We squeezed a lot in, but really never felt very rushed. If you have any questions feel free to ask.
