Last Hurrah

The peak of our Autumn color season is here.

This doesn't mean endless expanses of orange-gold-red like you will find in other regions of the country. Rather, our ubiquitous verdant green becomes punctuated with a fireworks display of Autumn glory. Pockets of surprisingly brilliant color (enhanced by the shimmer of dew and rain) burst from an otherwise steady backdrop of conifer and grass (which has responded nicely to the early season rains by greening back up from the late Summer brown).

Fungus of all shapes and sizes spring happily up from every surface imaginable. I can't walk across any expanse without tripping over mini mushroom forests or large clustered communes.

The air smells of mist and damp and woodsmoke. If not careful, we slip and slide on the wet mossy and muddy ground. The clouds roll in and out, but mostly in, making the rare beams of sunshine feel like a hug from Heaven.

It is the last hurrah of this year's leaves, and they are doing their very best to make it a memorable end.