Autumn Leaves

 I was surprised this year by the autumn leaves. I think I was expecting the color in mid to late October, which is what I thought I remembered from last year. The appearance of fall color actually depends on the amount of light in a day, not on weather conditions, so the color should start around the same time every year in a given location. The weather conditions do make a difference to the vividness of the color; drought during the summer can keep the leaves from developing the colorful pigments. Severe autumn storms or early frost can cause leaves to drop before the color really shows.  When I didn't see fall color a few weeks ago I just thought this just wouldn't be a good year. Perhaps I just remembered it wrong, because all of a sudden last weekend there it was, gorgeous reds and oranges and yellows against a backdrop of evergreens and a bright blue sky.

I spent most of the weekend taking pictures to try to capture the beauty. The top picture is outside our local library, I love the few light brown leaves against the darker orange red of the rest of the tree. The middle pictures are from the zoo, where we spent a highly enjoyable and not too crowded Sunday afternoon. The animals were dozing and the new baby panda wasn't accepting visitors but we did get to see some elephants and lions, and I had a great time admiring the trees. The final picture is taken from the seventh floor window at work; the glass mutes some of the color but it's a wonderful view to stop and take in every time I need to go up and down the elevator (which is multiple times a day). I hope you enjoy these too!