Late Fall

Late fall fills my heart with an aching. I think, perhaps, it's the intense and transient beauty.

The slant of the November sunlight.

The brilliant and subtle hues of the season's final show.

The red berries and translucent seedpods and earthy acorns.

I want to bottle it all up, so I can pull forth the colors when it's February and we're sloshing around in various shades of grey.

The blazing yellow maple (ABOVE) is the last tree to lose it's leaves in my back yard.

Up in Rock Canyon,
most of the leaves have fallen
and they provide colorful and fragrant carpeting along the trail.

The seed pods on this tree catch the late afternoon light.

There's lots of vibrant green moss in the canyon. Not just in the river bed, but also on fallen timber and along some of the north-facing cliffs. The colors are brighter after a spell of rain or snow. I love feeling the warmth of the moss in the depths of winter.

These mountains will be dressed in white after the first dump of snow. This shot was taken after crossing the five bridges which take you into the pine forests in the upper range of the canyon.

This last shot was taken at the trail head
. . . just a hop, skip and a jump from my home.