Before Winter Grey

The lovely paintings of brilliant colors are now memories.  These pictures were taken in November before the leaves have fallen. The roads are now closed to many of the mountain trails and winter grey has painted a new picture.

Approaching Winter Stillness

I love black and white photos of trees and forest.  The contrast in shadows and light creates a stillness in these photos.  You don't get a sense of how fast the water was flowing over the rocks without looking closer at the rocks.

Smoky Mountain "Kuwah'hi" Water Fall

 

 

 
 

 

 This is the first waterfall that you see when you first enter the Smoky Mountain Park.  It is visible from the road and the colors of the trees, leaves and rocks was picturesque.

The Land of Blue Smoke Treasury

These pictures were taken in early November a few days after the first snow fall in the Smoky Mountains. The leaves still sparkle like jewels of brilliant colors.  Fall foliage is nature's treasure and a gift to all of us. It only lasts for a few weeks and I have to wait another 12 months before I will behold such brilliance again.

Autumn Trees and a Swing Providence Canyon

These are a few of the trees near the Welcome Center at the park.  There is an old swing out front near the walkway.

Autumn Providence Canyon Floor

 

 

 

 

 

Surprisingly, Providence Canyon had more autumn foliage then the Pine Mountain valley further north.  On the canyon floor were brilliant red, yellow and orange trees among the southern pines.  The pine branches reflected a golden glow from the morning sun.

Salt Water Springs "Into Each Life Some Rain must Fall"

I took a quick trip to Salt Water Springs.  It was raining so there were very few people at the park.  It was lush with hanging moss, oak trees and flowing bluish green spring waters.  It has been a rainy week in Florida with many a thunder storm pounding the landscape.  The famous words "Into each life some rain must fall" is by poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.  It was too wet to do any hiking but the scenery was beautiful even with dreary grey clouds.

The Rainy Day

The day is cold, and dark, and dreary;
It rains, and the wind is never weary;
The vine still clings to the mouldering wall,
But at every gust the dead leaves fall,
And the day is dark and dreary.

My life is cold, and dark, and dreary;
It rains, and the wind is never weary;
My thoughts still cling to the mouldering Past,
But the hopes of youth fall thick in the blast,
And the days are dark and dreary.

Be still, sad heart! and cease repining;
Behind the clouds is the sun still shining;
Thy fate is the common fate of all,
Into each life some rain must fall,
Some days must be dark and dreary.

by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow

'A Boundless Moment' by Robert Frost

 

A Boundless Moment

He halted in the wind, and -- what was that
Far in the maples, pale, but not a ghost?
He stood there bringing March against his thought,
And yet too ready to believe the most.

"Oh, that's the Paradise-in-bloom," I said;
And truly it was fair enough for flowers
had we but in us to assume in march
Such white luxuriance of May for ours.

We stood a moment so in a strange world,
Myself as one his own pretense deceives;
And then I said the truth (and we moved on).
A young beech clinging to its last year's leaves

Robert Frost

Sun Kiss Orange Trees in Bad Axe

Sun Kiss Orange seems to be the predominate color for foliage in Bad Axe, Michigan.  Brilliant orange leaves surrounds the old Linton Memorial Chapel in the Pioneer Log Village.  The historical buildings were built between 1875 and 1900 and relocated to Bad Axe.

The Fields of Fall in Withee Village

Withee, Wisconsin is a village in Clark Co. Wisconsin.  The village population is 487 as of 2010.  There is some beautiful farms around the area.  The fall foliage is a beautiful backdrop for the farm fields.

Foilage of Splendor at Rib Mountain

Where are the changing leaves of brilliant color and fall foliage?  Certainly not in Florida!  Lucky people of Rib Mountain are enjoying a beautiful array of changing colorings this fall.  A little history of Rib Mountain:  Many of the first people that lived on Rib Mountain were German. When the first settlers came, Rib Mountain was isolated from Wausau by the Wisconsin and Rib Rivers. Cow paths, wagon trails, and logging roads were the first roads in the township. Logging, mining, and farming were common activities early in the township's history.  Why did they name the mountain "Rib"? 

SOME MYTHS

Some people think Rib Mountain is an extinct volcano. as one approaches from the west or east along Highway 29, the cross section of the "rib" does indeed make the mountain appear to have the conical shape of a volcano.  Then again, some people believe Rib Mountain to be volcanic. They see the semi-circle of  three hills and believe that altogether they represent the fragmented remains of the base of a large volcanic mountain.  the Rib section is why it is called "Rib" Mountain.