I love this time of year. The changes from fall to winter, winter to spring, and spring to summer are not always abrupt. They transition slowly. But early fall is a different story. The shift is magical and sometimes comes with a surprise. I normally try to shoot at least once a week so I can keep the blog alive and well. This week I ventured into the nearby mountains three times. I say I ventured, but really I was drawn up. The lure was almost irresistible. We’ve had a long hot dry summer. I can’t remember the last rain that fell. This week a series of storms swept over the state and drenched us. They started out as warm storms, but later in the week turned much colder. The convergence of fall colors at peak and a cold mountain storm with snow is guaranteed to bring gorgeous landscapes into focus.

The image above was taken on Wednesday evening at sunset after the first wave of storms swept through Utah. I hoped to witness a beautiful sunset over Mount Timpanogos, so Virginia and I drove up into the mountains after work, hiked a 1/4 mile into the woods to a meadow, and patiently waited for the sun to set. The sky never lit up magically like I hoped. I feared that the next set of storms would strip the trees bare of leaves and this might be my only opportunity to photograph the rich golden aspen against the mountain peak.

But the leaves held on. The next storm was much colder and much wetter. When I looked out the window Friday morning, there were two cloud decks; high billowy clouds overhead and wispy clouds hanging on the lower flanks of the mountain. I was tempted to start my daily chores, but the mountain was calling to me with a forceful plea. I gave in, grabbed my camera gear, and ran for the hills. I only had a few hours because of other commitments waiting at home. I found a pullout on the Alpine Loop Road that overlooks an area I call “my million-dollar view”. The problem with shooting from the edge of the road however was the foreground shrubs and low trees blocked part of my shot. I climbed atop my 4Runner and shot from my roof. That helped some. The real million-dollar view is from a trail on the other side of the road. I hiked there on Saturday morning, but the light wasn’t quite as good. The image at the top of this post was made Saturday morning from the higher vantage point that I hiked to.

The light I had Friday morning was hard to beat. I had beautiful fall color, a mountain tipped with the first snow of the year, and dappled light across the aspen forest. It’s hard to beat a week like this.