It was a dark & stormy night. Ok, not so stormy, not really all that dark, and night - well we started hiking at 10 am so kinda not really that either. Autumn finally hit the northwest with full force. Heavy rains brought out the water proof shoes and the gortex. We had been expecting rain on our annual Halloween hike, but instead of rain - low hanging clouds. A nice cool foggy hike worth the anticipation.
Our northwest autumns don't hold a colorful candle to the northeast colors, or so I'm told. I love our autumns here - the Vine Maples turning wonderful hues of red beneath the yellow of the Big Leaf Maple. Red Osier Dogwoods and wild blueberries join in to add their warm tones to the symphony of color and I have in front of me a grand chorale of visual harmony. Add a little fog and I squee like a pika.
I immediately started to lag behind the other hikers. While they laughed and chatted, I stared into the leaves, transfixed on the colors and shapes. While they shared the trail with each other, I started taking pictures to share with others. I finally caught up with them at lunch and we dined on delicacies to make our hike a special one.
But I had already been experiencing a special hike in the colors and weather of a northwest autumn.
