Mild November Lets Fall Colors Linger
Brilliant Colors Make A Final Show
After my drive in late October I was anticipating much cooler weather and according to the weatherman some freezing, but the weather fooled me again. November was quite mild with no below freezing temperatures until late in the month. I decided in mid-November to take another drive and see how much of the color had faded and fallen with the leaves. I was quite surprised to find that, although there was plenty of bare limbs there was also some very nice color still out there.
I decided on following a dirt road to the north then west of Harrison. My plan was go travel along a few ridges then drop down and follow a creek that paralleled the dirt road. As I drove up the dirt road I could see that there were still plenty of trees with color. I think that was because the sun was still reaching them. If you looked into the valleys it seemed the trees had fewer leaves and quite a bit less color.
I decided on following a dirt road to the north then west of Harrison. My plan was go travel along a few ridges then drop down and follow a creek that paralleled the dirt road. As I drove up the dirt road I could see that there were still plenty of trees with color. I think that was because the sun was still reaching them. If you looked into the valleys it seemed the trees had fewer leaves and quite a bit less color.
I took my time, driving slowly along. Sometimes I just parked and walked along the road looking for advantageous spots to take pictures from. I happened to stumble across a new cabin rental with it's own lake. It was very cool. I walked back to the jeep and continued on my way. A bit later I saw a man calling in his cows for the evening feed. I asked and got his permission to take his picture. We visited for a short while and discovered we had a few acquaintances in common. The dirt road I was on started a gentle decent to the creek in the hollow below.
The creek itself was quite low but still, to my mind, picturesque. I noticed that the trees down here were much farther along in their leaf loss with many sporting bare limbs. I found a little spot where I could park the jeep off the road and out of the way. I then just wandered up and down the creek. It was a very nice day and I was enjoying my time out, without the distraction or inconvenience of any other people wanting to share my little slice of nature. I realized that this was probably the last time I would see any fall colors this year. It was a very good year for color and I hope that each of you had the opportunity to get out and enjoy fall.
As the health crisis raises it's ugly head once again, I encourage folks to be smart when going out. Try not to go where others are, especially if they are anti-maskers. I have seen many people without masks congregating and hiking in crowds with little or no distancing and no masks. Not very smart. In my opinion the safest way to enjoy the natural beauty of the Ozarks at this time is driving down a dirt road till all you see are cows, fields, hay bales, trees and creeks. Then you will probably be safe.
As the health crisis raises it's ugly head once again, I encourage folks to be smart when going out. Try not to go where others are, especially if they are anti-maskers. I have seen many people without masks congregating and hiking in crowds with little or no distancing and no masks. Not very smart. In my opinion the safest way to enjoy the natural beauty of the Ozarks at this time is driving down a dirt road till all you see are cows, fields, hay bales, trees and creeks. Then you will probably be safe.