Hiker's Heaven

Enjoyed a beautiful hike this morning along the Superior Hiking Trail near Lutsen, MN. The colors along the ridge between Lake Agnes and the Poplar River Overlook were AMAZING! This is my favorite time of year to be out walking in the woods :-)

Above image: Poplar River Overlook

Last week I hiked the Superior Hiking Trail past Lake Agnes and was intending to hike as far as the overlook of the Poplar River. Unfortunately, there was an error in the communication about how far it was to the overlook, and I didn't make it (I thought I had missed it, so ended up backtracking then ran out of time). This week I went back and hiked to the overlook. As it turns out last week I was very, very close to the overlook (that's the way it goes!). It definitely is an overlook that you can't miss! The view of the Poplar River is incredible. I was hoping there would be a bit more fall color in the view, but even without many colors the view is one you have to see to believe.

Misty Morning, Autumn Forest

This morning was amazing. I brought a couple of friends up into the woods to shoot the fall colors and we were treated to some pretty incredible conditions! Thanks to the cold overnight temperatures and lack of wind, the forest was filled with fog and frost. To top it off, the leaf colors were magnificent. It all made for a little slice of photographic heaven.

Above image: Morning Fog, North Lake

Morning light, fog, trees, reflections... what more could I have possibly wanted? The only thing that would have made this scene better would be a moose standing out in the water :-)

Autumn Afternoon, Lake Agnes

Along the Superior Hiking Trail near Lutsen, MN. This is from yesterday morning's hike, which was literally a PERFECT day! Sunny, calm and beautiful fall colors. A stark contrast to today's rainy, windy weather.

Maple Heaven

WOW.... the Maples are looking nice this year! They have really changed a lot in the past week. A week ago there was barely any color on these ridges, this morning they were blazing with color as the rising sun washed over the forest.

Autumn Eagle riding the thermals over Mt. Sophie

My friend Paul and I were fortunate enough to watch this eagle from eye-level on a fire tower earlier today. We were photographing the fall colors when I looked off to the West and saw this eagle coming towards us. I had my wide-angle lens on at the time, so I was quickly digging in my bag to get my telephoto and managed to change lenses and grab a few shots before the Eagle flew away. Usually when I see Eagles flying around I find myself looking up and squinting because of the sunlight. It was awesome looking straight out from the fire tower and watching this eagle bank left and right as the morning sun hit him while he rode the thermals that were rising off the surrounding hills. A great start to a wonderful day!

Fire in the Sky

While driving down an old logging road off the Arrowhead Trail one evening, I came across this opening that had a grouping of trees that stood out nicely against the sky. I was passing by right after the sun had gone down and the sky behind the trees was filled with this beautiful orange glow.