Hello folks and welcome several newcomers! It’s been a few weeks and yes I am still in the middle of telling my story from out West back in August! I assure you that will be completed soon! I’m just getting back from an Autumn adventure up in New England the past few weeks and will have another story to tell🍁😁 But, for right now, I didn’t want this image highlight to wait any longer, as scenes like this are fully consuming my mind of late…
I have been blessed to gaze upon and revel in such Autumnal beauty throughout my life so far. One of my inspirations in life, Rodney Lough, Jr., once said “to view a leaf turned color at the height of Autumn is purely divine.” The more I think about this quote over the years, the more I couldn’t agree more. It just fills me with such pure joy!
From my journal on October 6th, 2016 from where I made camp off of the Long Trail hiking up Mt. Mansfield in Vermont. I came upon these beckoning Sugar Maples late in the day and made camp right here to catch the dawn’s light setting them on fire -
“Earlier today I smelled Fall distinctly for the first time this season. Halfway up this mountain, on the Long Trail, the delicious smell of Autumn leaves in the crisp air! Mixed with the strong scent of pine and fir and the Earthy aroma of damp soil in the coolness of shade towards sunset, the smell evoked the spirit of the season!
Within this forest of Maple, Birch, and Evergreen, I sit with my eyes and thoughts fixed upon the stars and the silhouetted giant trees. Leaves tumble down upon me in the breeze as I drift amongst the stars.
I await the morning light to cast it’s glow upon these mountains, ablaze with Autumn fire like I have only ever imagined…
I awoke this morning to a magnificent pre-dawn glow, accentuating the orange glow of the maples with it’s pinkish-purple hue. The first rays of light to touch these beauties were purely divine. Highlighted Birch bark and fiery Sugar Maple leaves contrast against the shadow of the Green Mountains. What a majestic scene in this golden light!
The heavy smell of fir mingles with the unmistakable scent of Autumn. The leaves, the cool air, the dampness in this refreshing light. It is so peaceful as birds softly chatter and it lulls me back to a dreamy state…
Autumn’s glory, so fleeting and so precious.”
“Autumn’s Divine Glory” - Brandon Kline