Colorado Blue Spruce are majestic trees!
There are great stretches of dead Lodgepole Pine killed by a pine beetle infestation. These stands of dead trees are a tinderbox waiting for an errant campfire or bolt of lightning to start a wildfire that would be impossible to control. They also are a threat to campers or drivers as their shallow root system has died and even a small wind can bring them crashing down with deadly results. Some campgrounds in the Rockies have been closed because of the threat.
Camping in TOW-Wanda on the banks of the San Juan River in Pagosa Springs, Colorado.