Seeing Red
Crimson Knotweed, Cliff Lake, Lassen Volcanic NP (9/12/15) Shanda Ochs
One of the earliest fall colors to enjoy in California’s mountains is red.
Though if you seek it, look downward. As, the red of which I write is crawling along the ground.
In the Shasta Cascade, it is the Crimson Knotweed that carpets volcanic slopes above 7,000′ in the Northern Sierra and Southern Cascade.
Dwarf Bilberry, Cascade Lake, Hoover Wilderness (9/5/18) David Senesac
In the Sierra Nevada, Dwarf Huckleberry or Sierra Bilberry (Vaccinium nivictum) grows in subalpine fir forests and alpine fell fields usually between 8,000 and 12,000′, John Hunter Thomas and Dennis R. Parnell write in Native Shrubs of the Sierra Nevada.
Naturalist David Senesac hiked up into the 20 Lakes Basin of the Hoover Wilderness in early September to find ruby Dwarf Bilberry (Vaccinium caespitosum), “a turf height species of the blueberry family” blushing near timberline elevations in the weeks before autumn.
This plant is often red-purple in color, but ignites when backlit with light, adding vermillion vibrance and verve to its otherwise austere environs. 
Peak (75-100%) – Bilberry and Knotweed
360-Degrees of Summer
Here’s one last look at summer as it transitions through autumn toward winter at Mammoth Lakes.
Mammoth Autumn Events Planned
Aspen, Rock Creek Canyon (9/13/18) Josh Wray/Mammoth Lakes Tourism
The Town of Mammoth Lakes’ plans for fall festivals is absolutely Woolly! Here’s what’s ahead:
- September – Mammoth Lakes Bike Month
- September – November – Ambush At The Lake Fall Fishing Derby
- September 21-22: Mammoth Oktoberfest
- September 29: June Lake Autumn Beer Festival
- October 11-12: Mammoth Lakes Tourism Fall Color (INSTAMEET) photography meet up
For more about what’s happening in Mammoth Lakes, download a Mammoth Lakes Visitor Guide or view the online Eastern Sierra Fall Color Guide.
Indian Rhubarb’s Showy Start
Indian Rhubarb, Big Creek, Plumas County (9/16/18) Michael Beatley
Indian Rhubarb, Darmera peltata, is a showy plant that lives along streams in the Northern Sierra.
Plumas County color spotter Michael Beatley reports the plant has started to show its iridescent colors along Big Creek, between Meadow Valley and Bucks lake, in Plumas National Forest.
Michael says Indian Rhubarb leaves this year are “huge,” and should be gorgeous in two weeks.
To find it, take Big Creek Rd towards Bucks lake.
Just Starting (0-10%) – Indian Rhubarb, Plumas County (3,600′)
Hope Valley Still Just Starting
Aspen, Hope Valley (9/14/18) Phillip Reedy
West Carson River, Hope Valley (9/14/18) Phillip Reedy
Aspen, West Carson River, Hope Valley (9/14/18) Phillip Reedy
Aspen in the Hope Valley (CA-88) are beginning to show their autumn colors, though peak remains two weeks away.
Phillip Reedy made his first autumn drive to the Hope Valley yesterday, finding scattered gold among drying brush and late-blooming wildflowers beside the West Carson River.
Just Starting (0-10%) Hope Valley
Aspen, Hope Valley (9/14/18) Phillip Reedy
Aspen in distance on Hooker Lazy J Ranch, Hope Valley (9/14/18) Phillip Reedy
Good To Go
Thumbs Up for Autumn, Rock Creek (9/13/18) Josh Wray/Mammoth Lakes Tourism
Rock Creek Lake (9/13/18) Josh Wray/Mammoth Lakes Tourism
Rock Creek (9/13/18) Josh Wray/Mammoth Lakes Tourism
Reports from the Eastern Sierra indicate that autumn color is good to go up the canyons with peak color starting to appear near 10,000′.
It happens quickly in late September, as days shorten and temperatures drop. So, be prepared for possible Near Peak at high elevations there, by the first day of autumn.
Josh Wray, of Mammoth Lakes, drove south to Rock Creek (southern Mono County) to capture what was happening up the canyon, and though it was still Just Starting for most of the canyon, more than enough Near Peak color could be seen along the Hilton Lake Trail at 10,300′.
Aspen, Silver Lake (9/3/18) Cindy Hoover
Willow, Silver Lake (8/31/18) Cindy Hoover
Color spotter Cindy Hoover explored the June/Mono Lake region of Mono County earlier in the week, reporting that Silver Lake is where early color is visible with willows full of gold and singled-out aspen branches bright yellow, while the rest of the trees remain green, but noticeably lighter than a few weeks ago.
Near Mono Lake, Cindy was wowed by a spectacular display of rabbit brush, carpeting the high plains toward a pink-orange sunset.
Krisdina Karady of Parcher’s Resort on the South Fork of Bishop Creek reported that color is still Just Starting, with some aspen branches carrying golden color, but most of the trees remain dark green to lime. A complete report is expected this coming week.
Near Peak (50-75%) – Hilton Lakes Trail (10,300′)
Just Starting (0-10%) – Rock Creek (9,500′)
Just Starting (0-10%) – June Lake Loop (7,654′)
Just Starting (0-10%) – Mono Lake, South Tufa (6,378′)
Just Starting (0-10%) – Bishop Creek Canyon (Parcher’s Resort – 9,260′)
Rabbit Brush, Mono Lake S Tufa (9/6/18) Cindy Hoover
Why Don’t Evergreens Lose Their Leaves?
Coastal Redwood, El Dorado Hills (9/7/17) John Poimiroo
Actually, they do. It just doesn’t happen all at once.
Evergreen trees have both broad leafs and needles. Madrone, magnolia and photinia are examples of broadleaved evergreens, while pine, fir, cedar, spruce, and redwood have needled leaves.
Evergreen needles can last anywhere from a year to 20 years, but eventually they are replaced by new leaves. When that happens, the old needles turn color and drop, but not all together and not as dramatically as deciduous trees (e.g., maple, oak, dogwood, alder, birch).
The reason needles are green is that they are full of chlorophyll which photosynthesizes sunlight into food for the tree. It also reflects green light waves, making the needles look green.
Needles, just like deciduous leaves, contain carotenoid and anthocyanin pigments. You just don’t see them until the green chlorophyll stops being produced. Once that happens, hidden carotenoids (yellow, orange and brown) emerge, as is seen in the above photograph.
Additionally, red, blue and purple Anthocyanins – produced in autumn from the combination of bright light and and excess sugars in the leaf cells – also emerge once the chlorophyll subsides. Yes, even evergreen leaves change color… eventually.
In snowy regions, evergreen trees are able to carry snow because: the waxy coating on needles, along with their narrow shape, allows them to retain water better by keeping it from freezing inside (which would otherwise destroy the leaf), needles prevent snow from weighing down and breaking branches, and needles are able to sustain the production (though slowed) of chlorophyll through winter. Whereas, broadleaved deciduous trees would be damaged if they kept producing chlorophyll and didn’t drop their leaves.
Evergreen trees do lose their leaves and the leaves do change color. It just isn’t as spectacular.
Why Do Leaves Change Color?
Chlorophyll Molecule (Wikipedia)
Leaves on deciduous trees change color in autumn from green to various hues of lime, yellow, gold, orange, red and brown because of a combination of shorter days and colder temperatures.
Throughout spring and summer, green chlorophyll (which allows trees to absorb sunlight and produce nutrients) is made and replaced constantly. However, as days grow shorter, “cells near the juncture of the leaf and stem divide rapidly but do not expand,” reports Accuweather.com. “This action of the cells form a layer called the abscission layer. The abscission layer then blocks the transportation of materials from the leaf to the branch and from the roots to the leaves. As Chlorophyll is blocked from the leaves, it disappears completely from them.”
That’s when vivid yellow xanthophylls, orange carotenoids and red and purple anthocyanins emerge.
Orange is found in leaves with lots of beta-carotene, a compound that absorbs blue and green light and reflects yellow and red light, giving the leaves their orange color.
Yellow comes from Xanthophylls and Flavonols that reflect yellow light. Xanthophylls are compounds and Flavonols are proteins. They’re what give egg yolks their color.
Though always present in the leaves, Carotenoids and Xanthophylls are not visible until Chlorophyll production slows.
Red comes from the Anthocyanin compound. It protects the leaf in autumn, prolonging its life. Anthocyanins are pigments manufactured from the sugars trapped in the leaf, giving term to the expression that the leaves are sugaring up.
The best fall color occurs when days are warm and nights are clear and cold. California’s cloudless skies and extreme range of elevations (sea level to 14,000′) provide ideal conditions for the development of consistently vivid fall color, as seen in these reports.
Why Do Trees Lose Their Leaves?
Snowcreek (11/2/15) Alicia Vennos
It’s survival not just of the fittest, but of the wisest.
Deciduous trees drop their leaves in order to survive. As days grow shorter and colder, deciduous trees shut down veins and capillaries (that carry water and nutrients) with a barrier of cells that form at the leaf’s stem.
Called “abscission” cells, the barrier prevents the leaf from being nourished. Eventually, like scissors, the abscission cells close the connection between leaf and branch and the leaf falls.
Had the leaves remained on branches, the leaves would have continued to drink and, once temperatures drop to freezing, the water in the tree’s veins would freeze, killing the tree.
Further, with leaves fallen, bare branches are able to carry what little snow collects on them, protecting them from being broken under the weight of the snow. So, by cutting off their food supply (leaves), deciduous trees survive winter.
The fallen leaves continue to benefit the tree through winter, spring and summer by creating a humus on the forest floor that insulates roots from winter cold and summer heat, collects dew and rainfall, and decomposes to enrich the soil and nurture life.
It’s a cycle of survival, planned wisely.
How to Submit Reports and Photos
Bigleaf Maple, Spanish Creek (10/14/17) Michael Beatley
Over 100 volunteer “color spotters” (our term for contributors) submit photographs and reports to CaliforniaFallColor.com each autumn.
To be one of them is very easy. Email photos within a few days of when they were taken* to editor@californiafallcolor.com. Include the photographer’s name, date the photo was taken and the location where the photo was taken.
We are unable to compensate photographers for use of their images, but always credit the photographer for his/her work. Many contributors have had their photographs republished leading to broader recognition/exposure, enhanced resumes/reputation, paid compensation and/or retail sales, not to mention bragging rights.
Photos should be high resolution**, particularly if you’d like them considered as one of the best photos of the week. The week’s best photos are (with photographer’s permission) sent to major broadcast and print media; they won’t accept any photo less than 300 dpi in size.
Reports should include: % of color change for the location being reported (e.g., North Lake, Bishop Creek Canyon) – not for a specific tree or shrub (Just Starting, 0-10%; Patchy, 10-50%; Near Peak, 50-75%; Peak, 75-100%; or Past Peak), the name of the location, roads (e.g., take Rock Creek Rd. east from US 395), date visited and any helpful information (e.g., “The trail is steep for the first 500′. but then levels out for the two mile hike to the lake. A grove of peaking aspen is found at the western side the lake trail.”).
If you know the foliage seen in the photo (particularly if it is unusual or wouldn’t be evident to us), please describe it (e.g., bigleaf maple, black oak, silver willow, etc.).
We will make every effort to publish your report, particularly if it is from an unusual or lightly reported destination. When multiple photographs are received from heavily visited locations, we are able only to publish the first received, the best or the most unusual. Occasionally, we will post a portfolio of historic photos, but often only when fresh images have not been received. Photos may be cropped or adjusted for best presentation.
CaliforniaFallColor.com’s style is vivid and photojournalistic. Images that tell a story or that show human activity in relation to autumn are regaled.
Reports and photos can also be posted on CaliforniaFallColor’s Facebook, Twitter and Instagram pages. Though, emailing photos and reports is the best way to get them on this site, and the only way to get them considered as among the Best of the Week.
Thank you and happy wandering!
* Historic photos, like Michael Beatley’s shot of Spanish Creek (seen above), are published – on occasion – days or even years after they were taken, but only to illustrate an article that is not time-sensitive. Fall color reports only use photos taken during the previous week, in order to present what can be seen at that location.
**A high resolution photo is one that is 300 dpi (dots per inch). A photograph of 1 megabyte or larger is usually large enough to be considered to be high resolution. Please don’t hesitate sending a photograph just because it isn’t 300 dpi. Pictures taken with mobile devices often get included in our reports, when the device has been set to shoot a large picture. 72 dpi images (set for websites and devices) are too small for reproduction in print media.