Michael Sweeney Photography

Photos Of The Aspen Acres Wildfire

A mountainside erupts into smoke and flame as the Aspen Acres wildfire burns July 2, 2026 near Colorado City, Colo. The 102,000-acre fire, the seventh-largest in Colorado’s history, has destroyed over 775 structures and forced 11,000 people to evacuate towns along the entirety of the eastern flank of the Wet Mountains. Photo by Mike Sweeney/©2026

Colorado is well acquainted with wildfire. The top seven fires in the state in terms of size have all exceeded 100,000 acres and six of those fires have burned in the past eight years. On June 29, 2026, the Aspen Acres fire in southern Colorado ignited, fueled by 100-mph wind gusts. It burned 23,000 acres on its first day and destroyed over 190 homes in the town of Beulah. By July Fourth, the fire had burned 85,000 acres. It forced the evacuation 11,000 residents in Pueblo and Custer Counties. As July drew to a close, the numbers for the Aspen Acres fire had come into sharper focus: nearly 102,000 acres burned, over 775 structures destroyed, and the forced evacuations of 3,800 homes.

The Aspen Acres fires bears down on Beulah, Colo. as residents stream out of town along Highway 78 after a mandatory evacuation order June 29, 2026. Photo by Mike Sweeney/2026
People gather along Highway 78 after having been forced to evacuate Beulah as the Aspen Acres fire raced toward town the morning of June 29, 2026. Smoke from the fire turned a cloudless blue sky into a sickly yellow backdrop. Photo by Mike Sweeney/2026
Exhausted by events in the previous 24 hours, Bill Peyton, left, and his daughter Daisy Weeks pause as they recounted the choices they made when the Aspen Acres fire tore through Beulah, Colo. on June 29. Daisy evacuated by mid-afternoon. Despite his daughter’s pleas, Bill tried to ride out the fire but fled at midnight. They reunited at the Red Cross shelter in Pueblo the morning of June 30. Photo by Mike Sweeney/2026

A timelapse of the Aspen Acres fire buring out of control July 1, 2026 near Wetmore, Colo. Video by Mike Sweeney/©2026

A Super Scooper draws water from Lake Pueblo Reservoir July 3, 2026. A pair of the planes are being used to combat the Aspen Acres fire which as of Friday had grown to over 73,000 acres. Photo by Mike Sweeney/©2026
Flames from the Aspen Acres fire light up the night sky July 3, 2026 near Rye, Colo. Fire officials said increased fire fighting resources are being deployed to battle the fire which as of Saturday morning had scorched more than 85,000 acres in the Wet Mountain regions of Pueblo and Custer counties. Photo by Mike Sweeney/©2026
The Aspen Acres fire smolders in the Wet Mountains near the Custer and Pueblo County line July 8, 2026 as a thunderstorm passes through the area. Photo by Mike Sweeney/©2026
A stone entry way and chimney are all that remain of a home along South Pine Drive in Beulah July 10, 2026 after the Aspen Acres wildfire tore through the small town 12 days earlier. The fire is estimated to have destroyed about 193 residences in the Beulah Valley where 950 people live. The Aspen Acres Fire is the seventh-largest wildfire in the state’s history, having consumed nearly 102,000 acres. Photo by Mike Sweeney/©2026
MICHAEL SWEENEY PHOTOGRAPHY
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