Not Quite

When I walked down to fetch the newspaper this morning I noticed how bare the trees have become, seemingly overnight, across our small valley. They should be flaunting their fall wardrobes now, mingling with dark evergreens to create colorful designs across the hillsides. But no—a jumble of dull browns and duller greens faced me. Only the visual heat from a lone maple countered the drabness.

The scene was similar in town yesterday. Reds were flashy (if infrequent) while the yellow and orange hues were listless, or already on the ground.

When I was in southeastern Oregon last week only the larches lent any Pop! to the landscape. Over several mountain passes the story was the same—I saw but a single stand of aspens deserving of closer inspection. If I summed up my impression of autumn it would be: Not Quite. (And now: too late.)

Summer was cooler than normal this year (the high temperature topping out at 94F) and tardy. Gardens were late, their gardeners frustrated. Butterflies? Scarce compared to past years. Perhaps the most telling fact for us: we didn't use The Big Fan once. I'm wondering what impact this is having on autumn, if any.

Forecasters predict another cold, wet La Niña winter for the Pacific Northwest, so perhaps we're in a cycle that won't be fully apparent for several years. Like the drought in Texas.

But whether it's aspen leaves or bluebonnet flowers, when the weather changes dramatically we begin to appreciate how it can affect the photography we take for granted.