We feel it every year. Some of us love it, others loathe it, but it surprises us all, even though we know it's coming. It's as if we turn around and suddenly the sun is setting by 7 pm instead of almost 10. The grass is kissed by dew every morning, and it's harder to tell what time it is just by looking out the window. It's long sleeve, short sleeve, pants, and shorts weather, and it's even okay to wear a beanie. The mosquitoes are thankfully gone but unfortunately are replaced by spiders seeking to squat in a nice warm house. Fall. Leaves fall, temps fall, and for some, spirits fall. The transition between the all too brief but glorious summer to the long, dreary winter (and if we're lucky, snowy- depending on who you ask). I have an appreciation for all the seasons, though spring can try my patience at times, but fall is special to me. My birthday is in the fall, and I have so many fond memories of "weenie roasts" when I was growing up, shared birthday celebrations with my dad, whose birthday is a few days before mine, and chili and college football Saturdays- mostly a welcome relief from the summer heat of East Tennessee. Some of those things have changed- my parents are nearly 2,700 miles away- and I don't invest as much into football these days, but we still make chili, and I still welcome the change in weather. Summer is a flurry of activity. School is out, people are traveling for vacation, the outdoors are a crowded mess a lot of times. Everyone is entitled to enjoy the land, but during these times, I enjoy it less. I prefer fall. Cooler temps, fewer good weather days, and kids back in school- top it off with vibrant foliage, active wildlife, and the promise of impending snowfall, and you have my definition of perfection.
Over the past year, we have been fortunate to do a significant amount of traveling, and one of the greatest thrills was getting to experience fall in the Southern Hemisphere last April/May, when the weather in the PNW is predictably terrible. Subtract spring, add fall. We also got to take part in the Larch March in Alberta, Aspens in New Mexico and Wyoming, and the deciduous rainbow in the Smoky Mountains of Tennessee and North Carolina.
Please enjoy the photos and descriptions below. My apologies for the inconsistent formatting on some of these captions. Blogger was being a real pain, so I improvised. Photos best viewed full size, so click on each image for better quality and resolution.
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| Our first glimpse of fall came in Colorado at the Black Canyon of the Gunnison National Park |
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| Telluride sunset |
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| Then it was on to Wyoming, where the colors were starting to show but still far from peak |
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| It was a delightful September in the Tetons |
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| Horses, fall colors, dramatic sunset rays |
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| An early fall hike in the Tetons |
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Soon, these peaks will be covered in snow
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| Then we made a quick trip through Glacier, which never disappoints |
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| Fall is a great time to watch wildlife as they prepare for the tough winter ahead |
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| The colors were unbelievable |
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| Dramatic as always |
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| Shortly after this, some dude came and started fishing right in front of me... haha |
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| The Icefields Parkway |
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| And some turquoise |
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| At some point, you just ignore the rain and go for the colors anyway |
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| Just a regular creek crossing along the BC/Alberta border |
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| But gold is what we are here to see |
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| We were not expecting snow, but after having three straight days of terrible cloudy, rainy/snowy weather, nothing was keeping me from the larches |
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| We managed to find a lake that wasn't overrun with people. As a matter of fact, we only saw two backpackers until we were nearly back to the car. |
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| Such a beautiful combination of seasons |
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| The reflection was perfect |
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| Eventually the clouds returned, but we were thankful for our half hour of sun |
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| Fall, meet winter! |
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| A dusting along the upper peaks |
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| A rare photo of Emerald Lake not bustling with tourists |
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| From Banff, we made a long trek down to the McCloud River in California, just outside of Shasta |
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| Fall was just getting started here |
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| Hiking in the Sierras |
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| Just up over those mountains |
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| We visited the desert and found rain |
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And also some bighorn sheep sprinting across the canyon walls
Spent my actual birthday in Santa Fe and found all the colors, including white!
Finally home to Tennessee (well this is NC, but close enough)
Fall in the South has been rough the last few years- it's so hot, the leaves have been drab by our standards
The fishing was terrible, but at least it was pretty!
Meigs Falls in GSMNP
"Fall"
More "fall"
And again
It was a chilly morning along the Roaring Fork Motor Nature Trail
The sun didn't even help
More subpar fishing
The hiking, however, was excellent
View from the Mt Leconte Trail
Along the Mt Leconte Trail
Another day where we didn't catch any fish
For Shaun's birthday, we spent the day bushwhacking up the river, fighting rhododendron, and catching exactly one rainbow trout
We just tell ourselves we were there for the scenery
The reds and oranges were quite nice
At this point, all we could think about was beer
But first I had to sneak a few more shots
Our last day of hiking in the Smokies, and we caught a lot of fish here, too!
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