Solitary

 

A lone spruce tree stands tall amongst a sea of young aspen in Grand Portage State Forest, Minnesota. 

October Sunset over Chicago Bay

 

Pretty sweet sunset this past Saturday over Chicago Bay in Hovland, Minnesota.  We had been hiking that afternoon and as we were driving back down the Arrowhead Trail the sky started to light up with some awesome colors.  We made a quick detour down to the Hovland dock to catch the sunset.  The colors really hung on for quite a while.  It was an amazing view!

October Forest

 

There's nothing quite like the peacefulness of a foggy October day with a soft rain falling in the north woods of Minnesota. 

The Fallen

 

The "falling" part of fall is almost over, with the majority of our leaves now on the ground.  There are still some birch and aspen leaves hanging on but all of the maples up on the ridges of the sugar bush have shed their leaves. A walk in the forest now means walking on a bed of leaves!

Autumn Beaver Pond

 

A large beaver lodge sits on a small pond in Grand Portage State Forest in northeast Minnesota. Such a quiet and calm day, no ripples at all on the surface of the water. The reflections in the water were so cool. I have yet to actually see the beavers on this pond but you can tell they are very active here. Work on the lodge looked very recent and there was freshly packed mud on the dam as well. I'm hoping that one of these times when I pass by this pond I'll have the privilege of seeing the beavers hard at work. 

A peaceful autumn day

 

It was a super windy day along the Lake Superior shoreline today. The wind is making me think back to a day this past week where the conditions were the opposite.  It was so still in the forest that the only sounds were from the gently falling rain.  I do enjoy the stormy days but the calm and peaceful days are my favorite. 

Autumn Fog

 

The fog this past week has been incredible.  Almost every day a dense blanket of moisture has been draped over our northern forests, turning the environment into a mythic landscape.  

Wet Leaf and Mossy Rock

 

My favorite find from today.  A maple leaf covered with water droplets and the mossy rock upon which I found it. It was a very wet day in the north woods of Minnesota and I saw countless leaves covered in water droplets but none so perfect as this one. 

Maple Splendor

 

There are few things as beautiful as the maple forest in the fall.  An explosion of color that can overload the senses! I only wish the season lasted a bit longer...

Backlit Maple Leaves

 

Sometimes lying down on the forest floor gives you the best views of the fall colors. I made this photo while doing just that... lying flat on my back and looking straight up into the trees. 

Intertwined Maples

 

I don't know how it happened as I have driven and biked past these trees more times than I can count but I never noticed their uniqueness until last weekend. Now that I know they're there I won't be able to pass by this spot anymore without seeing them. 

Colorful Canopy

 

The maples were looking amazingly good this past week despite the extreme drought we were in for most of the summer. Everyone seemed to think that the fall colors were going to be a bust but I guess we received enough moisture in September to still make the forest incredibly beautiful once the leaves started changing color.