Darrell Sano Scores Several Firsts
Color spotter Darrell Sano (dksfoto.smugmug.com) began his search for fall color “a bit early this year,” by hiking into the Sunol Regional Wilderness and along Alameda Creek this past Sunday, where he saw the first reported “hints of fall color.”
Darrell said the display wasn’t obvious. He had to search for it and hiked “off the trail to really see it.” Nevertheless, despite that temperatures were pushing 90 degrees, Darrell said he “still could sense the change of light,” and that autumn was approaching.
Should you visit this preserve in San Francisco’s east bay, you’ll find alder, willow and sycamore, though mostly evergreen coastal live oak and gray pine, plus blue oak, elderberry, madrone and … rattlesnakes.
The well-fed snake seen in this photograph (far left) crossed a shaded trail toward Darrell.
Solar Eclipse – Leaves As Pinhole Lenses
Today’s solar eclipse was seen by millions across America. Most looked up while wearing protective solar eclipse glasses, though many others created pinhole cameras to watch the moon block out all or part of the sun.
Another way to see the eclipse was to stand beneath trees and look down. Light passing through small openings between leaves similarly cast a crescent reflection of the sun on the ground, as seen in these photos.
Same Website: New Look & Functionality
If you’re a regular to CaliforniaFallColor.com, it probably took a little longer for this website to upload today. That’s because we’ve been making some changes to it.
The colors are the same. We wouldn’t change that, considering how many of you have complimented its orange and black theme. Though, behind what you see there’s a lot that’s new.
The site has a better search tool (the magnifying glass atop the page). As you type, suggested stories will drop down, making it faster to find articles about particular places or plants.
We’ve kept our archive of past reports, though it is now located to the right side. Use it to research where and when to go to see peak color (Peak color is so dependable here that you can reliably visit the same week, year to year).
Also retained are the Fall Color Map and weather forecast. Right now, the map is showing dark green leaves, but as soon as reports arrive, lime, yellow, orange, red and brown leaves will appear. As for the forecast, we’ve chosen to report what’s happening at Mammoth Lakes in the Eastern Sierra, as that station is nearest to where fall color will appear first.
Links to blogs, articles and sites with fall color reports are also found on the right side of the page. As we find more current links, they’re updated. And, for ease of knowing what’s inside any article, keywords are now shown above headlines.
The most obvious change is the new slider atop the page. For years, California Fall Color displayed Greg Newbry’s great shot of June Lake. Over the years, it attracted a lot of interest in California’s autumn. However, we wanted to say more about what makes California Fall Color different.
So, the six photos selected for the slider were picked for what they represent about California Fall Color, not just because they’re great photos from great photographers, which they are.
The slider begins with a spectacular photograph of sunset at North Lake by Elliot McGucken, taken on the last day of September in 2016. Elliot is the only photographer with two images in the slider (a coincidence, really).
His photograph embodies what sets California Fall Color apart… the combination of fall color and grand landscapes. Other areas in North America have beautiful fall foliage and scenery, but few compare to California’s landscape. Elsewhere, autumn color descends by latitude across the continent, whereas in California it drops by elevation, at a rate of about 500′ a week. Because California’s terrain varies from over 14,000′ in elevation to below sea level, the show lasts from September to December.
This downward progression is clearly evident in Elliot McGucken’s shot where aspen are nearly past peak at tree line (10,000′) and near to full peak at lake level (9,255′). That’s 745 ft. of color in one image.
The second slider photo was taken in Lundy Canyon (Mono County) by Curtis Kautzer. It shows a couple enjoying the scene, during a break from hiking.
In choosing this photo, we encourage everyone to venture into the woods for the best California Fall Color experience. We say this even though most of California’s autumn show can be seen without ever getting out of your car.
The third slider shows a sunset at Lake Gregory (Crestline, San Bernardino Mountains) by Alena Nicholas. This photo expresses that beautiful fall color is not limited to any given area of California. It’s nearby, everywhere. You just have to know where it’s peaking.
Lots of autumn color can be seen in Southern California’s mountains. Because they do not have the extreme elevation change, like the Eastern Sierra where eight weeks of peak color can be seen, Southern California’s mountain ranges peak over a shorter period. However, their aspen, bigleaf maple, black oak, willows and spectacular sunsets are glorious.
Great fall color is also found in the Southern Sierra, Central Sierra, at Lake Tahoe, the Northern Sierra, Salinas Valley, Redwood Highway and the Shasta Cascade.
“Chicken of the Woods,” a mushroom, is one of a number of colorful and interesting plants found in the Shasta Cascade (the vast northeast corner of California). Others include fiery orange-red Indian rhubarb, which decorates the banks of streams in Plumas County.
Gabriel Leete’s photo was selected for the slider because it teaches us to look down not just up, when searching for fall color. Some of the most remarkable autumn discoveries are seen on or near the ground.
Our fifth slider is Elliot McGucken’s shot of the cabin in the woods in the Hope Valley (Carson Pass – Hwy 88). We chose it to illustrate the variety of character to be seen in our woods, from settler’s cabins, to Spanish adobe homes, to white gothic steeples set against orange, gold and red.
Open your mind to California Fall Color and you’ll find orderly rows of burgundy, orange and yellow vines flanked by golden boulevards leading to tasting rooms.
California’s Mediterranean climate allows for the cultivation of colorful species not seen anywhere else on the continent and fills our cities with color-laden urban forests. Our unusual climate is why we claim California has the most diverse show of fall color on the continent.
The last of the photos we chose for the slider is Josh Wray’s image of paddle boarders on Parker Lake near Mammoth Lakes. It illustrates that Californians like to do things differently.
These ladies were out for an adventure and carried their boards on an exhilarating hike up to this High Sierra lake then paddled upon it, surrounded by sawtooth peaks and brilliant gold reflections. It took a bit of effort, but boy was the experience worth it!
We hope you enjoy using our “new and improved” site. As always, if you’d like to comment, click on the headline to open the comment section.
See you in autumn, dude.
Sierra Primed For Fall
Summer has just begun, but all indications are that the Sierra Nevada are now primed for a spectacular autumn.
Alena Nicholas spent the past week touring the east and west sides of the central Sierra, returning with these beautiful images. She said all the lakes were “pretty much full to capacity” with locals reporting the lakes are as high as they can remember them ever being. Even Grant Lake (in Mono County near June Lake) is full. Alena says the last time she saw it, it was not much more than a stream of water.
Creeks have become mini rivers in places where Alena waded, previously. Now, they’re so full its too unsafe to enter them.
The aspen I’ve seen on springtime trips into the Sierra, and those which Alena captured, are healthy and green with no indication of black spot fungus. Though she also noted several aspen whose branches have been bent or snapped branches from heavy snows. This is particularly evident “along Silver Lake, and up below Sabrina Lake” where “a few of the Aspens seemed to have lost their leaves,” perhaps from broken branches.
Alena reports meadows as being lush green and full of wildflowers and wildlife. At higher elevations, like Virginia Lakes, there’s still a good amount of snow melting with waterfalls everywhere. I returned from the east coast this past week, flying over the snowcapped Sierra which looked more like they do in March, than June.
What does this all mean for fall color spotters, leaf peepers and photographers? In past years when there’s been a lot of water, the autumn show seems to start slightly later (a few days to a week) and last longer. That’s because the leaves are healthier and less likely to dry out and drop sooner.
As for the intensity of the color, that all depends on autumn weather. As, once days begin to shorten and trees stop producing chlorophyll, as long as the days remain warm and the nights cold (clear skies), autumn color should be intense and vibrant.
Until then, let’s enjoy California’s 8-month spring (wildflowers began appearing in the Deserts in February and continue to bloom at increasingly higher elevations through September).
Spring Aspen Report
With only a week of springtime left in 2017, a quick trip to Lake Tahoe found some quaking aspen bent by this past winter’s heavy snowfall, but few signs of black leaf spot fungus.
The two aspen, seen above, were bent to more than a 90-degree angle from snow drifts that piled as high as the house. Prior to this past winter’s snow, the aspen were as straight and as tall as those to their left.
Such phenomena are often seen in aspen groves and I’ve often wondered how the trees got so distorted. Now I know. It’s the snow.
Fortunately, most aspen leaves are deeply green and healthy. Black leaf spot develops when it rains a lot in late spring and early summer, followed by a week of warm temperatures.
A day after the photo was taken, a light dusting of snow fell down to 4,500′ in elevation. This week, temperatures have risen. So, the conditions are such that black leaf spot could develop. Let’s hope not.
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New Year Surprise
My New Year resolution has been fulfilled and color spotter Clayton Peoples made it possible.
I’d resolved to post in January and accomplish the resolution today with Clayton’s report from the Alabama Hills in the Eastern Sierra, west of Lone Pine, where (just before Christmas) he was surprised to find one of his favorite cottonwoods, “still hanging on to its fall-hued, honey/gold leaves.”
Clayton had only seen the tree in summer, previously. So, he was delighted to see it in its fall coat of golden glory.
If you’re driving north on US 395 to Mammoth Mountain to carve S-turns in its powder, you’ll find it by taking a detour onto the Whitney Portal Rd.
It’s visible behind the “face” (painted rock along the Whitney Portal Rd) which locals dubbed “Brenda” before it received a KISS-themed makeover (C’mon folks, there’s no way we mortals can improve upon nature). Mt. Whitney is seen in the background.
Now, if only losing 20 pounds were as easy.
Whitney Portal – Past Peak – YOU MISSED IT!
Heading Toward A New Year as Fall Color Fades
The last autumn leaves in California are now carpeting gardens, as seen at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Gardens in Arcadia.
Frank McDonough reports that fall is fading with class and style, there.
In the distance, winter weather embraces the San Gabriel and San Bernardino mountains, dusting high elevations with snow.
Alena Nicholas reported photographing a white Christmas on Christmas Day in the San Bernardino Mountains.
That’s a rarity for Southern California, though televised images from Pasadena will provide typical and compelling Chamber of Commerce images of palm trees contrasted against the snow-capped peaks of the San Gabriel range, as the Tournament of Roses and Rose Bowl occur on New Year’s Day.
To all our color spotters, photographers and viewers, Happy New Year!
Southern California – Past Peak – YOU MISSED IT!
Pointillistic Impressionism at Autumn’s End
On this final day of autumn, we share these artistic images of late fall color seen at the Los Angeles County Arboretum and Botanic Gardens, which scores autumn’s last Peak of the Week.
Frank McDonough’s photographs of the scene remind us of the pointillistic impressionist paintings of Georges Seurat or Paul Signac, as points of bright fall color compose each scene.
This is likely the last post of what has been a beautiful fall. Autumn color will continue to peak this month at California’s lowest elevations, with the best variety of color to be seen in the state’s arboretums and botanic gardens.
Though, in the event we don’t report again this year, “See you next autumn, dude.”
LA County Arboretum and Botanic Garden, Arcadia – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!
LA’s Descanso Gardens Becomes an Enchanted Forest
Christmas trees come in all shapes and sizes at Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge.
That’s because several of the most beloved areas within the 150-acre garden become the “Enchanted Forest of Light” at night, through Jan. 8.
Unlike other festivals of lights that cover trees with twinkly lights, Descanso Gardens bathes its urban forest with intensely colored flood lights.
However, this is more than a light show. Descanso Gardens’ Enchanted Forest of Light is an interactive, nighttime experience unlike anything else in Los Angeles with a one-mile walk through eight distinct lighting displays.
As visitors walk through the enchanted forest, they trigger light displays and are awed by the beauty of the illuminated forest.
Highlights include “The Pool,” an interactive light sculpture by artist Jen Lewin in which people manipulate colors by walking over lighted pads.
In the Symphony of Oaks, visitors manipulate sounds and lights that fill the Oak Grove.
Descanso’s famous Japanese Garden is the last attraction along the walk before stopping for hot cocoa or a snack.
Because of the show’s popularity, tickets are timed and must be purchased in advance.
During daytime, the gardens provide a continuing show of nature’s color with native and exotic trees at full peak fall color.
Enchanted: Forest of Lights, Descanso Gardens,La Cañada Flintridge – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!
LA County Arboretum Puts On Its Holiday Best
Fall color is nearing peak at Southern California’s arboretums and botanic gardens, with some species peaking while others are near peak.
Frank McDonough of the LA County Arboretum and Botanic Garden reports the color is “still kicking” in Arcadia, where Eastern white oak, liquidambar, red maple, daimyo oak, American sycamore and crepe myrtle continue to show deep crimson, orange and red.
Gingko biloba are still patchy, though rapidly approaching peak. Their canopies fan-shaped leaves hang heavy from twisted branches with a drape of lime to yellow color.
Frank captured a “winner, winner, chicken dinner” shot, only this one was a slice of peacock pie taken at the Peacock Cafe stairs. His comment?… “Photo ready – just add peacock.”
This week, we retweeted a photograph of fall color seen at Descanso Gardens in La Cañada Flintridge and plan a followup report on natural and nighttime illuminated color to be seen at these gardens, during the holidays.
LA County Arboretum and Botanic Gardens – Peak (75-100%) GO NOW!