Aerial Views of the USA's Rocky Mountain Region

Top contributor and DVOW nominee HAYDEN KAST used a DJI Mavic Air 2 drone to create this stunning aerial look at the Rocky Mountains of Colorado.  The great chain, which runs from Canada's British Columbia to New Mexico in the Southwestern USA, covers the western half of Colorado.  Colorado is in many respects the heart of the Rockies; it is home to its 30 highest peaks and 78 of its hundred highest.  The highest peak of the Rockies, Mt. Elbert (elevation: 4.4k meters above sea level or 14/4k ft.) is near the center of the state.

Multiple Drone Video of the Week Finalist RobSkyHigh brings us this excellent 2023 drone reel from the USA's Rocky Mountains.  The video was filmed in the area around Salt Lake City, Utah.  The city lies in a valley of the Wasatch Mountains, a sub-chain of the Rockies which lie on the western edge of the main chain.  The Wasatch peaks reach altitudes of up to just under 12k ft. above sea level (3.6k m), about 7k ft. (2.1k m) above Salt Lake City's altitude.  The video features some spectacular timelapse sequences.  

New contributor montesinosdroneworld earned a DVOW Finalist spot with this wintertime video from the USA state of Utah.  Shot with a DJI Mavic Pro 3, the video opens with a great shot looking toward Salt Lake City, the state's capital and most populous city.  Starting at the :18 mark, you'll fly past the Utah State Capitol, which overlooks the city; there are some more great shots of this historic structure starting at the 1:23 mark.  Other shots will take you over railways, refineries, and other landmarks in and around the city.  

Former Drone Video of the Week Winner Hayden Kast combined footage from a first person view (FPV) drone, a DJI Air 2 drone, and a ground camera to create this fantastic piece from the San Juan Mountains in Colorado.  The video was filmed during the course of a seven day hike into this remote alpine region, which covers parts of southwestern Colorado and northwestern New Mexico.   Part of the Rocky Mountains system, the San Juan's are home to some of the highest altitude towns in the USA.  

Ride along with top AirVuz contributor Hayden Kast and his three dogs on an epic adventure through the Rocky Mountains in Colorado.  The former Drone Video of the Week Winner brought along his DJI Mavic 3 to capture the action as they backpack  through some of the most beautiful alpine scenery to be found on the North American continent.  The extremely well-edited piece also includes some ground camera footage of the traveling pups as well as some mountain goats; and at the 1:40 spot there's an amazing rainbow shot.  

Former Drone Video of the Week Finalist montesinosdroneworld created this amazing drone video of the world's largest open pit copper mine.  The Bingham Canyon Mine, better known as the Kennecott Copper Mine, is located in northern Utah, southwest of Salt Lake City.  Opened in 1905, it's produced an incredible 19 million tons of the red metal, worth over $100 billion based on current prices.  Its excavation area covers about 1900 acres and is visible from the moon.  It's currently owned by international mining giant Rio Tinto.  

Situated in the heart of the Rocky Mountains in western Colorado, Gunnison (which is both a county and a town) was important in the state's early mining and railroad booms .  Nowadays, like many of Colorado's old mining districts, Gunnison is much more about adventure sports enthusiasts and travelers seeking the spectacular rock formations that abound.  Top contributor MikeyG flew his drone over this rocky wonder land and produced this amazing aerial video of Gunnison, which produced gold until the 1950's.  

Former DVOW Winner Hayden Kast brings us this marvelous drone video filmed during a backcountry ski trip in the USA's Rocky Mountains.  The video was filmed near Telluride, in southwestern Colorado.  The peaks here are the San Juan Mountains, a subchain of the Rockies which covers parts of southwestern Colorado and extends into northern New Mexico.  The video includes some outstanding shots of Mt. Sneffels, which has a summit altitude of just under 14.2k ft. above sea level (4.3k m) and is the third-highest peak of the San Juans.  

American Fork Canyon lies in the Wasatch Mountains of northern Utah in the western United States, a range which constitutes the western edge of the greater Rocky Mountain range.  The canyon was created by the American Fork River, which runs through the bottom of the great gorge before discharging in Utah Lake.  Contributor and pilot Dewey Drone created this amazing aerial video of the canyon, which is home to the Timpanogos Cave National Monument.  It's also known as a very popular hiking spot.

Montana is one of the largest states in the USA in terms of its land area, and one of its least populous.  While the eastern part of the state lies on the Great Plains and resembles the Dakota's, the western part is pure Rocky Mountain Highs.  AirVuz contributor and drone pilot Benlewis 406 treats us to a beautiful aerial tour of his home state.  The video features shots of the animal wildlife and natural scenery that make that make the Treasure State a favorite of avid outdoorspeople from around the country and the world.

The Rocky Mountains in the western United States are actually a collection of ranges; most of the mountains thought of as the "Rockies" are actually part of various sub-ranges throughout the region.  One of these is the Wind River Range, which runs through a portion of western Wyoming, north of Colorado.  In this video, AirVuz contributor and drone pilot Mikeyg733 treats us to a stunning bird's eye view to these magnificent western mountains of one of America's largest but least populated states.

The state of Idaho in the western United States has a landscape which varies dramatically.  While the western part of this odd-shaped territory is a mixture of flat farmland and desert, the eastern part of the Gem State lies in the heart of the great Rocky Mountain range.  This drone video by contributor and pilot 60 Seconds is shot in a place that sits right at the border of the "Two Idaho's"; note the dramatic difference in appearance between the (flat) foreground and (mountainous) background.

The Snake River Canyon is one of the most famous gorges in North America.  Carved by the Snake River, the canyon reaches a maximum depth of 150 meters (400 ft.) and is as wide as 400 meters (about 1.3k ft.) over its roughly 80 km (5 mi.) length.  Famously, the canyon was the site of one of the 20th century's greatest stunt attempts: Evil Kneivel tried to jump the gorge with his Skycycle X-2 rocket powered "motorcycle" in 1974; the jump failed (and the rider nearly killed) when the parachute inadvertently deployed.  

Top AirVuz contributor and pilot Bbloss created one of his trademark "Bloss Out" dronie shots from a famouns pass in the Rocky Mountains of the western United States. Engineers' Pass is located between Ouray and Silverton, Colorado, in the southwestern part of the state.  The pass has an elevation of about 3.9k meters above sea level (around 12.8k ft.), making it one of the highest mountain passes in the United States.  If you watch this all the way through, you will realize how small humans are! 

Contributor and FPV pilot Airblastr created this incredibly cinematic FPV video of a dive down one of the great landmarks of the USA's rich mining history.   The Anaconda Smelter Stack, better known as the Big Stack, istands at a height of 180 meters (about 585 ft.).  The tallest surviving masonry structure in the world, it was a critical process component for the smelter at the great Anaconda copper mine in Great Falls, Montana.  Built in the early 20th century, this was once the world's largest copper mine.   

Contributor AdventurousDrone created this drone video of Utah Olympic Park, one of the primary venues for the 2002 Winter Olympics which were held in Salt Lake City.  The Olympic Park is located near Park City, a half hour drive east of Salt Lake City.  Officially the XIX Winter Games, the great international winter sports competition was held in February of 2002.  These were the first Winter Olympics games held in the US Rocky Mountains; Denver had been awarded the 1976 games but withdrew and the games were held in Innsbruck, Austria.  

Check out this amazing drone video of the legendary ski town of Aspen, Colorado, compliments of contributor and pilot Thatdroneview.  Founded during Colorado's great silver mining boom of the 19th century, Aspen is now known as one of the premiere ski resort areas in the rockies.  Situated at the base of Mt. Aspen, the town is now home to many celebrities as well as semi-anonymous ultra-wealthy.   Aspen is also increasingly popular in the warmer months; as you'll see in the video it's a place of stunning alpine beauty.  

Former Drone Video of the Week Finalist RobSkyHigh brings us this excellent drone video from Utah's Big Cottonwood Canyon.  Big Cottonwood Canyon is a gorge in the Wasatch Range, a sub-chain of the broader Rocky Mountain chain.  The 15 mile (25 km) long canyon is a popular ski, hike, and bike area, easily reachable from Salt Lake City, which lies about 10 mi. (a bit over 15 km) to its northwest.  Filmed with a DJI Mavic Pro 2 drone, the video was shot in observance of Earth Day in April of 2022.  

Contributor armando_martinez created this beautiful drone video of Denver, Colorado on a typically bright and sunny morning.  Nicknamed the Mile High City because of its altitude, Denver now has a metropolitan population of around 3 million, making it (by a considerable margin) the largest city in the entire Rocky Mountain region.  It is situated near the base of the range in northeastern Colorado, where the Great Plains transition to the alpine environment of America's largest mountain range.  

Former Drone Video of the Week Finalist chrisneibauer brings us this stunning drone video from the USA's Rocky Mountains.  The video was filmed over the northwestern part of Montana, the fourth-largest state by land area.  The majority of the roughly rectangular-shaped state is covered by the Rockies, which extend furthern north into the western provinces of Canada.  While the USA state of Colorado is home to roughly 80% of the 100 highest peaks of the Rockies, Montana is home to about a quarter of the chain's 50 most prominent peaks.

Former Drone Video of the Week Finalist RobSkyHigh brings us this excellent drone video from  Mt. Timpanogos, which is part of the Wasatch Mountains chain in Utah.  Timpanogos has a peak altitude of 11.75k ft. above sea level (a little under 3.6k m), making it the second-tallest mountain in the Wasatch chain, a sub-range of the Rocky Mountains which runs from the Utah-Idaho border south into the central part of the state.  The video was filmed on a beautiful October morning with a DJI Mavic Pro 3 drone.   

Mountains make humans realize how small we are compared to the forces of nature which produce towering peaks.  Drones can be used to drive home this point, as they allow pilots to film themselves in a manner which shows the difference between human scale and mountain scale.  This excellent drone video by top AirVuz contributor Hayden Kast is a case in point.  The multi-time Drone Video of the Week Finalist filmed himself atop of one the dozens of 14k+ ft. peaks (about 4.25k meters) of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado.  

Prepare to be amazed by this aerial tour of the USA state of Utah, compliments of top content creator and drone pilot RobSkyHigh.  The video was shot with a combination of the DJI Mavic Pro and Mavic Pro 2 drones, and contains some excellent timelapse footage.  Most of the video was shot in the portion of the state covered by the Rocky Mountains, with some footage of its desert portions as well.   This magnificent piece was chosen as a Finalist for the Drone Video of the Week contest in April, 2019.

Check out the famed Colorado town of Vail in the summer, compliments of contributor PilotViking.  Vail is best known as home of the Vail Ski Resort, the largest ski area in the Rockies and one of the most well known in the world.  The once-obscure town was vaulted into prominence by a developer who had fought in mountain division in World War II and came to Colorado after the war with the idea of developing a ski resort.  Just a few decades later, it's a haunting ground for movie stars and billionaires.  

Top content creator and pilot MikeyG created this stunning drone video of the Snowy Range in the western USA state of Wyoming.  The range is part of the Medicine Bow Mountains, themselves a sub-range of the mighty Rocky Mountains.  The highest mountain in the Snowy range is Medicine Bow Peak, which has an altitude of almost 3.7k meters (just over 12k ft.) above sea level.  While the Snowy Range lies in southern Wyoming, the greater Medicine Bow range extends southwards into northern Colorado.  

Montana has some of the most varied terrain of any state in the USA.  While its eastern portion is part of the Great Plains, its western half is very much in and of the Rocky Mountains.  In this beautiful aerial video by contributor and drone pilot mrinab, you'll see the mountainous beauty of western Montana.   The video was put together in connection with marketing a mountain house here.  It's testament to the power of drones to help market real estate by putting properties into the proper context of their surroundings.  

Top contributor Drone One Media created this spectacular drone video of Caribou National Forest in the USA's Rocky Mountains.  Technically called Caribou-Targhee National Forest, it straddles the border between the states of Wyoming and Idaho, with a small portion in Utah.  It lies just the west of the better-known Yellowstone National Park and Grand Teton National Park.  The forest covers over 10,000 square km (around 3.8k square mi.), making it one of the largest National Forests in the Rockies.  

The San Juan Mountains are a high and rugged range within the Rocky Mountains of the western United States. Located in southwestern Colorado and northwestern New Mexico, the San Juans played a huge role in the gold and silver mining booms that were critical to the history of Colorado and indeed of the entire American West. Now known more for their fresh powder and fantastic ski conditions, you can see the range in this dynamic drone video by talented AirVuz contributor and drone pilot HAYDEN KAST.

Former Drone Video of the Week Finalist RobSkyHigh brings us this stunning drone video from Utah's Wasatch Mountains.  The video was shot during the Winter Solstice, the shortest day of the year.  Accompanying the magnificent footage is an inspiring message regarding the fragility of the Earth and humanity's collective responsibility to maintain.  The Wasatch Range runs on a north-south for a length of about 160 mi. (around 260 km), with its northern end near the Utah/Idaho border.  It's part of the Rocky Mountains system.  

Top contributor Hayden Kast, recently featured on the Drone Dish, created this stunning drone video of a spot on the North American Continental Divide.  It was shot in Summit County, Colorado, which is in the north-central part of the state.  The great divide forms the border between the eastern and western watersheds of North America; everything to the east flows towards the Atlantic and Gulf of Mexico, everything to the west flows into the Pacific Ocean. This video was a DVOW nominee in May 2019. 

Check out this stunning drone video from the mountains of northern Utah, compliments of contributor guyinutah.  The area featured in the video is along Utah State Route 150, aka Mirror Lake Highway in reference to the alpine lake near which it passes.  The area is in the Uinta Mountains, a sub-range of the Rocky Mountains which runs through northern Utah and a portion of southern Wyoming on a generally east-west axis.  The lake is situated about 150 km (around 90 mi.) east of Salt Lake City.  

Former Drone Video of the Week Finalist montesinosdroneworld brings us this stunning drone video from the USA's Rocky Mountains in the area surrounding Salt Lake City, Utah.  The video opens with shots of Lake Blanche located in the Big Cottonwood Canyon, a short drive southeast from SLC.  Other featured locations include Ogden Canyon (a bit to the north of SLC), the nearby Beus Canyon, Rock Canyon (in Provo, a bit south of SLC), and Lone Peak Mountain (in Draper, which is located between SLC and Provo).  

Compared to the neighboring state of Colorado, Utah's skiing areas are located quite close to its major city (in the case of Utah, Salt Lake City).  The closest of the ski resorts is Alta, which lies just a half hour or so drive to the southeast of SLC.  The resort is situated in the Wasatch Mountains, a sub-range of the greater Rocky Mountain chain which covers much of the USA's west.  In this drone video by Weatherman, you'll get a bird's eye view of the mountains around Alta as the winter transitions to spring.  

Check out this beautiful 4k drone video of northern Utah compliments of contributor robinsaville.  The video was shot in the spring of 2019, following a near-record snowfall winter in which an astounding 700 inches of snow fell in the Wasatch Mountains which partially surround the city.  The video opens with a brilliant shot of the skyline of Salt Lake City, the second largest city in the Rockies region.  In the remainder of the video, you'll get a sense of the massive amounts of water draining from the mountains.  

The dronies in this video by HAYDEN KAST are from a VERY remote corner of the United States; the San Juan Mountains of Colorado. Part of the Rocky Mountain chain, the San Juans run across the southwestern part of the state and into southeastern Utah and northwestern New Mexico.This is some of the least densely populated territory in the US Lower 48. The San Juan range is home to 18 peaks over 4k meters (about 13.3k ft.), two of which were duly scaled by this duo to create the dronies you'll see here. 

The University of Colorado's flagship campus is in Boulder, an outer suburb Denver.  Founded in 1876, the school currently has about 33k students enrolled, of which about 80% are undergraduate.  The school's athletic teams play as the Colorado Buffalos, which competes in the PAC-10 league of the NCAA.  UC's beautiful campus south of the Pearl Street Mall has turned Boulder into one of the USA's most idyllic college towns.  Check out the UC-Boulder campus from above in this drone video by Blaze.  

Take in these marvelous first person view (FPV) drone views from the USA's Rocky Mountains, compliments of top AirVuz contributor and FPV pilot carterfilmz.  The video was filmed over the course of a trip to film a music video in the Colorado Rocky Mountains, home to the highest peaks of the entire Rocky Mountain Range.  The mountains cover most of the western two-thirds of the state, with the eastern third covered by the Great Plains.  This highly cinematic piece was selected for the FPV Pilots to Watch list in mid-April of 2022.  

Give this drone video a watch and be inspired by the first person view (FPV) views of the mountains in Big Sky, Montana, United States of America. FPV pilot PattyFPV is giving us a dramatic look at the incredibly popular ski and snowboard village with wide shots of the sun as it his the snow-covered mountains, time-lapses of the clouds rolling over the peaks, and plenty of frighteningly close shots of skiers and snowboarders risking life and limb down the massive ski hills and freestyle spot. 

Check out this incredible drone video from the USA state of Colorado by pilot dronevideodenver. The western state has an incredible, diverse landscape of arid deserts, river canyons, and of course the snowy Rocky Mountains that make the state such a popular destination. Some of our favorite moments in this DVOW-Nominated video include a time-lapse of Aspen’s Maroon Bells near the 2:00 and 2:30 marks, Red Cliff Bridge at 1:20, and Telluride’s Bridal Veil Falls at the 2:20 minute mark. 

See the mountains that surround Aspen, Colorado in this winter-time drone video by pilot Tamas_Supertramp. Aspen is located on the Western Slope of Colorado’s Rocky Mountains, about 200 km (around 120 mi.) west of Denver. The popular ski resort town out-prices many who would like to travel there with its high-end restaurants, hotels, and boutiques. The area is also popular in summer because of the gorgeous landscape it sits in, seen here in this drone video, which was filmed with a DJI Mavic Air drone.

Multiple Drone Video of the Week Finalst Hayden Kast used a DJI Mavic Air 2 drone to create this fantastic aerial video from the Rocky Mountains in Colorado.  Taking his new drone to the peaks of the La Plata Mountains (part of the San Juan Mountains in the southwestern part of the state), he nearly lost his "bird" when the entire peak became enshrouded in clouds.  Fortunately, he was able to get his drone to land safely.  The video features some spectacular alpine footage as the drone drifts in and out of the cloud-cover. 

Contributor Derek Schmidt brought along his DJI Mavic Pro 2 drone on a fly-fishing trip to the western USA state of Wyoming.  Post-trip, he put together this excellent video record of the adventure, which was around the area of Encampment in the south-central part of the state.  Situated just north of the Colorado border, it's in the foothills of the Rocky Mountains, which cover roughly the western half of Wyoming.  The video features great footage of the Encampment and North Platte Rivers, two of the area's main waterways. 

Take an aerial tour of northern Utah in the USA's Rocky Mountains region in this excellent drone video by AirVuz contributor and pilot JD Drone.  The video opens with shots of the snow-covered Wasatch Mountains, a sub-range of the Rocky Mountain range.  Then you'll head to Salt Lake City, Utah's capital and largest city.  Here you'll see shots of the downtown skyline, the State Capitol building, and the University of Utah Football Stadium.  Then you'll head to the Bonneville Salt Flats, a large salt pan just west of the Great Salt Lake.

Arguably one of the most beautiful states in America, Colorado is filled with incredible opportunities for drone pilots. Its western half is covered with some of the highest mountains in the mainland USA, along with more than its share of beautiful alpine valleys and lakes, yawning canyons, and roaring waterfalls.  Top contributor HAYDEN KAST took his drone and ground camera out to the beautiful mountain wilderness to create this excellent piece from the Centennial State, filmed during the high summer months.   

Check out this fantastic drone video of a high mountain pass in the USA's Rocky Mountains, compliments of AirVuz contributor Peak Productions.  It's called the Beartooth Highway, the name for a stretch of US Route 212 that runs through the Beartooth Mountains in southern Wyoming.  The pass has an altitude of 3.3k meters above sea level or around 10.9k ft.  Usually accessible less than half the year (generally May through October), the road was called the Most Beautiful Drive in America by the late CBS correspondent Charles Kuralt.  

Like everything else in the world of first-person view (FPV) video, FPV mountain surfing has evolved.  It was originally about pilot courage and long-range transmission: in short, getting the quad out and back with useable video footage.  As pilot skills have improved and long-range equipment has become more reliable, the emphasis has shifted to maximizing the cinematic quality of the resulting video footage.   To see what we mean, check out this fantastic piece from the Rocky Mountains in Montana, compliments of contributor VerJan FPV.  

Top contributor RobSkyHigh, who was a DVOW Finalist in April of 2019, does it again with this stunning dronelapse from his home state of Utah.  The excellent hyperlapse sequences cover all four seasons in the state, home to some of the most beautiful natural scenery in the USA.  The footage was captured in the Salt Lake Valley, which covers about 1.3k square km (around 500 square mi.) in the northeastern part of the state.  It's almost entirely surrounded by the Rocky Mountains.  The video was filmed with a DJI Mavic Pro 2.

Salt Lake City is the second-largest city in the USA's Rocky Mountain region, after Denver.  In this excellent drone video, you can take an aerial tour of the city, which is the home to the headquarters of the Church of Latter Day Saints aka the Mormon Church.  The "stars" of the video are the city's two best-known landmarks.  The first is the Utah state capitol building, which is listed in the National Register of Historic Places.  The second is the Salt Lake Temple, the most important within the Mormon Church.  It was consecrated in 1893.      

AirVuz contributor and pilot RobSkyHigh used a DJI Mavic Pro 2 to create this stunning aerial tour of Little Cottonwood Canyon in the Wasatch Mountains of Utah.  It's part of the Wasatch–Cache National Forest, which extends into southeastern Idaho and southwestern Wyoming.  The canyon was carved by glaciation during the last Ice Age.  Quartz and Granite mined from the canyon walls were used to construct the LDS Church's Salt Lake Temple in Salt Lake City, which is located a bit to the northwest of the canyon.  

A "fourteener" is a term used in the USA's Rocky Mountain region to denote a peak which rises to at least 14k ft. (just under 4.3k meters).  While definitions vary a bit as to what constitutes a unique "peak", Colorado is thought to have just over 50 fourteeners.  In this amazing piece by top AirVuz contributor HAYDEN KAST, you'll get to see a climb up one of the lesser known of these mountains: Ellingwood Point.  Part of the Sangre de Cristo sub-range, it has a peak elevation of just under 4.3k meters or a 14,048 ft.

Check out these insanely cool drone views of a very skilled snowmobiler tackling the slopes of the rocky mountains, compliments of AirVuz contributor Matt Baker.  The footage was filmed in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.  Located in the northwestern corner of Wyoming, Jackson Hole is situated between the Teton Mountains and the Gros Ventre Mountains of Idaho, both of which are part of the broader rockies chain.  Once fairly obscure, in recent decades the valley has emerged as one of the USA's top winter sports destinations.  

Multiple Drone Video of the Week Finalist Hayden Kast has created some of the best drone videos of the US Rocky Mountains to be found on AirVuz or anywhere else.  In this short but stunning piece, he brings us to the mountains of Southern Colorado on a foggy day. Shot with his DJI Mavic Air 2 drone, the mountainscape is evocative of the peaks of Scotland or Iceland.  However, these peaks are far higher than anything to be found in the highlands of either country; the peaks here are nearly 4k meters or about 13k ft. above sea level.  

Former DVOW Finalist chrisneibauer returns to AirVuz after a three year hiatus with this marvelous drone video of Kootenai Falls in the USA's Rocky Mountains.  The falls are located on their namesake river in Lincoln County, Montana, in the state's northwestern corner.  The falls has a modest drop of about 56 ft. (around 17 m) but is extremely wide - about 850 ft. on average (around 260 m).  Due to its width, its average flow rate of over 25k cubic ft. of water (730 cubic m) makes it amongst the country's largest waterfalls by volume.  

The Salt Lake Temple is one of the great cultural sites of the US Rocky Mountain Region.  It's the largest church in the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS), commonly known as the Mormon Church.  It's located in Salt Lake City, the capital and largest city in the state of Utah.  The church covers a massive area of 23.5k square meters (around 253k square ft.).  It was dedicated in 1893, following a 40 year construction period; the site itself was marked by none other than LDS prophet Brigham Young.  

The western USA state of Wyoming has always been known for its abundant natural resources.  Wyoming was the country's largest oil producing state in the 1920's, and its Powder River Basin currently provides about 40% of America's coal.  Recently, Wyoming has become a top wind power producer, and giant windmills now punctuate its landscape.  Here, John Stinnett uses a drone to create a beautiful look at a wind farm in western Wyoming, the spinning turbines capturing another state resource.  

The National Bison Range is one of the natural treasures of the USA's Rocky Mountain region.  It's located just to the east of Glacier National park in northwestern Montana.  Established in 1908, the park was created as a refuge for the buffalo species known as bison.  Administered by the US Fish and Wildlife Service, it's one of the USA's oldest animal sanctuaries.  Covering about 18.8k acres (around 7.5k hectares), you can check out the reserve from above in this drone video by Silvadesignco.  

As "social distancing" became the watchword with the spread of the Covid-19 coronavirus epidemic in the late winter of 2020, many ski resorts around the USA were forced to close early for the season.  Back-country skiing, which involves much less close contact, became one of the few ways in which avid skiers could safely enjoy the wide-open spaces of the Rocky Mountain region.  Case in point is this marvelous drone video by top contributor HAYDEN KAST, who filmed himself in the San Juan Mountains of southwestern Colorado.  

Take in these late winter drone views of American Fork Canyon in the USA's Rocky Mountains, compliments of AirVuz contributor ZachAnderson97.  American Fork Canyon is located in the Wasatch Mountains (a sub-chain of the Rockies), a short drive southeast of Salt Lake City, Utah via State Route 92.  The video was filmed towards the end of a winter which saw record snowfalls across much of the Rockies, leading to concerns about possible spring flooding.   The video was filmed with a DJI Mavic Pro drone.  

Former Drone Video of the Week Finalist montesinosdroneworld brings us this excellent drone video from several temples of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints, aka the Mormon Church, around Salt Lake City, Utah.   The five featured churches are as follows: the Provo City Center Temple; the Draper, Utah Temple;  the Jordan River, Utah Temple; the Oquirrh Mountain, Utah Temple; and the Provo, Utah Temple.  Founded by Joseph Smith in the 19th century, the Mormon Church is the fourth-largest Christian denomination in the USA.  

Check out this stunning first person view (FPV) drone mountain surfing piece from the Rocky Mountains by top AirVuz contributor and FPV pilot Flylifeco.  The video was fimed with a GoPro Hero 10, with the footage stabilized in post-production using the ReelSteady video stabilization package.  It was shot in Colorado, home to the tallest peaks of the great North American mountain chain.  Features some epic dives and ridge-skimming, this video was picked for the AirVuz FPV Pilots to Watch list in mid-February of 2022.  

See the western USA state of Colorado as spring rolls through in this beautiful drone video by top AirVuz contributor and pilot HAYDEN KAST.  The Centennial State is blessed with a very diverse landscape of snow-covered Rocky Mountains, river canyons and arid deserts. You can see those Rocky Mountains, covered in a mix of powdery snow (that snowboarders are happy to indulge in) and vibrant green Aspen trees, in this fantastic aerial piece, which was filmed in a typically glorious Colorado May. 

Lyons is a Statutory Town in Boulder County, Colorado, U.S.A. with just over 2,000 citizens as of 2010. Located near the St Vrain Creek and Rocky Mountain National Park, it is sometimes referred to as “The Double Gateway to the Rockies.” In this piece, AirVuz contributor and first person view (FPV) pilot Stealth takes us mountain surfing over the awe-inspiring Rocky Mountains, taking in the colors, views, and foliage unique to the area with his mini-quad.  His efforts earned him a spot on the FPV Pilots to Watch list in May of 2019.

In this drone video by AirVuz contributor montesinosdroneworld, you'll get an aerial tour of snow-covered Rock Canyon near Provo Utah.  It's just a few mi./km east of the main campus of Brigham Young University (one of the principal institutions of higher learning in the Rocky Mountains region), and less than an hour's drive south-southeast of Salt Lake City.  Set within the Wasatch Mountains (part of the broader Rockies chain), Rock Canyon is one of the more popular outdoor destinations in the Greater Salt Lake City region.  

Snowbiking combines some of the most exciting elements of skiing, motorcycle riding, and motocross.  And what better place to ride than amongst the snow-capped peaks of the Rocky Mountains in the western USA.  Former Drone Video of the Week Finalist chrisneibauer brings us this stunning drone video of some skillful (not to mention brave) snowbikers riding the white powder on their CMX snowbikes.  These high-end snowbikes are manufactured by Crazy Mountain Motorports Inc. in Clyde Park, Montana.  

Prepare to be amazed by this drone video from AirVuz contributor and pilot Ricker Life FPV.  Created primarily with first person view (FPV) drone shots supplemented by "establishing" sequences captured with a DJI Mavic 3, the video follows a group of smoke bomb-carrying skiers making their way down the slopes of the Rocky Mountains in Colorado.  The specific areas featured in the video include Silverthorne, Lake Dillon and Loveland Pass.  This video was picked for the FPV Pilots to Watch list in April of 2023.  

See Big Cottonwood Canyon in its fall splendour via this incredible drone video by contributor and pilot RobSkyHigh. Not to be confused with Cottonwood Canyon State Park in Oregon, Big Cottonwood Canyon is a gorge in the Wasatch Range, just over 10 miles (a bit over 15 km) southeast of Sale Lake City, Utah. The 15 mile (25 km) long canyon is a popular ski, hike, and bike area, plus has magnificent views even for those just driving through the area. This video showcases the area during one of the most beautiful seasons: fall. 

Somewhat unusually amongst US states, Colorado's capital is also its largest city: Denver.  The epicenter of the state government is the Colorado State Capitol, which houses the state's General Assembly as well as the offices of Governor and Lieutenant Governor.  The distinctive white stone, gold-domed building is situated in the Capital Hill district, southeast of the downtown core.  Contributor Blaze created this excellent drone video of the historic building, which was constructed in 1894.  

You will get an entirely new perspective on some legendary mountains of Colorado, compliments of AirVuz contributor and first person view (FPV) pilot Ver Jan FPV.  He go WAY out there to make this highly cinematic gem, which was shot near the famed ski resort of Telluride.  He hit it just right in terms of Fall colors, and shows some outstanding piloting skills skimming over the brightly colored treetops.  Part of what makes it so mesmerizing is that the scenery doesn't repeat he just keeps going....

Glacier National Park is located in the northwestern corner of Montana. The destination park offers over seven hundred miles of hiking trails, breathtaking views of its lush alpine forests, rugged mountain landscape, and stunning clear lakes. Top AirVūz contributor thatdroneview created this stunning video of the nation's tenth national park.  The video features a well-edited mix of GoPro ground camera footage of Glacier National Park and aerial drone footage of the area outside of the park's boundaries.  

AirVuz contributor RobSkyHigh brings us this excellent drone video from the Wasatch Mountains in the USA state of Utah.  The video was filmed over Mount Timpanogos, which is the second-tallest in the Wasatch chain, a sub-range of the Rocky Mountains which runs from the Utah-Idaho border south into the central part of the state.  Timpanogos has a peak altitude of 11.75k ft. above sea level (just under 3.6k m) and has high prominence due to the manner in which it rises off the floor of the Utah Valley.  

On this episode of Droning America, host Angie Avestruz heads to the Mile High City of Denver, Colorado, the gateway to the Rocky Mountains.  She's joined by local comedian Matt Need, to see some of the highlights of the city and the surrounding area from an aerial point of view.  The segment includes footage of the downtown area's most notable spots, including Union Station, the 16th Street Mall, Confluence Park, Red Rocks, Coors Field, Pepsi Center, and Sports Authority Field (formerly Mile High Stadium).

In this episode of Droning America, host Angie Avestruz heads to Salt Lake City, Utah.  The city sits on the far (western) side of the Rocky Mountains and is the region's second largest urban area after Denver.  The show's "local expert" is George Matus, founder of a local drone company that is achieving worldwide recognition.  Join them as they take in the sights and sounds of this city and its surrounding areas by drone.  It includes footage of areas used for the 2002 Winter Olympics which were held here.