Sure enough. Fall is here. It officially started just a
week or so ago. But the summer's drought meant that the foliage got
the message early, and the colors in the mountains were at their peak a
week or two ahead of schedule. Well, ahead of the human schedule. Right on
time for the trees, I guess.
I set aside a day to go leaf peeping (as they call it in New
England) with a friend. The day was on-and-off rainy, and Kenosha Pass, our
designated leaf walk venue, was foggy—and also remarkably short on
leaves. It's usually awash in aspen gold at the end of September, but this
year, grey was the color of choice. In fact, as we drove up there, I
noticed that lots of trees seem to have turned brown before they reached gold,
probably because of the drought. So instead of hiking on Kenosha, we
opted for a drive down a side road out of South Park (the real South Park, not the
comedy version) and treated ourselves to some lovely fall sights. The colors
were pretty muted, since there was virtually no sun (instead, we had occasional
sprinkles), but it was wonderful anyhow.
If you've never spent fall in Colorado, I should probably tell you: we don't have the
brilliant reds and oranges of the maples and oaks of New England, or even much
of the scarlet scrub oak of Utah. Our color comes mostly from native aspen, with some cottonwood and lots of willow along the creeks, all turning various shades of gold. I've seen New England and Utah in the
fall, and both are gorgeous. And I know that for some folks, this
pales (literally) in comparison. But I love it.
So here's a glimpse of the day: pictures from along meandering Tarryall Creek just outside South Park.
Pretty nice colors for a rainy day in the mountains,
eh?
For
those who didn't have a chance to visit the high country before the
recent snow (which probably took out most of the remaining leaves), there's
plenty of color down here in the lowlands too. A few shots from the bike path, over neighbors' fences, and by the road side as I've gone about my daily routines:
Ah, golden fall!
And now, ready or not, I guess
the next installment will have a lot of white ...
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