Autumn Colours
Across the Northern Hemisphere, the deciduous forests are changing. Leaves that have provided food and shelter since the spring are now shed. Great tracts of North America flush red as the season progresses. The effect is so spectacular and so extensive that it can be seen from space.
These are forests that have to cope with extremes — hot summers and freezing winters. To survive, trees withdraw nutrients from their leaves before letting them fall, sealing themselves off against the cold. For the animals that live here, this is a time of plenty — a final feast before the long months of scarcity.
As autumn deepens, the days shorten. Temperatures drop, and soon the first snows arrive. The forest falls silent. Many of its inhabitants will sleep through the winter, sustained by the stores they have gathered. Others must face the cold head-on, depending on the shelter of the forest to see them through.”
~ from the “Seasonal Forests” episode of Planet Earth
Most years peak fall foliage in Northern Michigan coincides with the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend. This year, likely due to the unseasonably warm temperatures we’ve been having, the peak colour change has been delayed. However, I was still able to find some pretty amazing landscapes with vibrant autumn colour. These are all from the Canadian Thanksgiving weekend in the Pigeon River Country State Forest. While in years past I’ve often searched for birch or aspen to accentuate the dramatic reds and oranges, this year I was pleased to stumble upon stands of red pine with broadleaf trees being illuminated by sharp sunlight peaking through breaks in the clouds.
