I live on the Wasatch Front in Utah. We are finishing our fall season and quickly heading into winter. We had a cold blast of arctic air this week that served to help terminate fall and remind us of winter’s approach. We’ve already experienced single digits in parts of the state. Sadly, when the temperature drops that low, the leaves freeze, and the pretty fall colors quickly fade to brown and fall to the ground. Over the last few weeks, I’ve made several trips into the nearby hills and photographed many beautiful scenes. Many of the aspen forests near our home have been susceptible to a fungal disease that spots the leaves and also inhibits the color transition. Nonetheless, the forest is still striking. Sometimes I find beauty in the slender white trunks of the aspens edged with fields of golden grasses. In these images, there is still a flush of yellow, but not like we experienced while in Colorado in the San Juan Mountains.

On the other hand, Utah is also blessed with great forests of Bigtooth Maple. These magnificent trees turn brilliant shades of red and orange in late September and into October. The lower flanks of Mount Timpanogos are thick with maple and oak trees. A drive over the Alpine Loop Road allows one to view all these various palettes of fall color. In a good year, when the hard freeze is slow to come, the different groves transition one after the other in a cascade of warm and beautiful colors. I love long slow autumns. This year, it wasn’t long or slow, but abruptly ended.