Oktoberfest in Breckenridge lasts through the weekend, but a
single day of streetfesting and beer drinking is enough (maybe not if at the
real thing in Munich) . So Tim and Toby and decided to go for a drive over
Boreas Pass to take in the fall scenery and changing aspens. Boreas is the Greek
god of the north wind, so the pass has a cool name in my book.

I’ve driven over many of the high passes in Colorado over
the years, at least most of those that aren’t true Jeep trails that I’d be
reluctant to tackle even in my Cherokee. The Boreas Pass road from Breckenridge
southeast to Como in the South Park Valley is one I somehow missed. The road is
unpaved but graded and possible for even low-clearance sedans to cross. Breckenridge
is at an especially high elevation of 9,600 feet and the pass significantly
higher, so the aspens in the area begin to change color in mid-September, about
a week or two earlier than at more moderate elevations like around Vail and
Aspen. The road climbs steeply from the south side of Breckenridge town and
then levels out with spectacular views of the Ten Mile Range to the west and
Buffalo Peak directly south .

The road ascends above timberline to Boreas Pass at 11,482
feet where there’s a mountain hut that’s open for cross country skiers on the
road in winter when it’s not plowed and closed to vehicles. The route then
drops gradually into the broad South Park Valley, a mix of wooded land and open
grazing land most of which is between 9,000 and 10,000 feet. Yes, South Park
Valley is the setting for the famous adult cartoon South Park, in which it’s
always winter.

We stopped at a railroad roundhouse in Como and then again
in Fairplay, the metropolis of the South Park Valley before returning back over
Hoosier Pass to Breckenridge. What a great autumn day for a Sunday drive!