Under Grey Skies or Blue, the Trees are Fabulous!

Beauty in My Father's World this week is all about one thing... the TREES!

Where I live, the first week in October is usually the peak time for fall coloration.  Our abundance of trees means we spectacular scenery in the fall.  My family traveled from our home in northern Pennsylvania to southern Pennsylvania for a family birthday party yesterday, and we decided after the drive that the prettiest trees were right here in our own little valley.  Of course, we might be a little bit biased!

Last Saturday morning I went on my usual birding walk, but I kept getting distracted by the trees!  Even though the sky was grey and rain threatened, the trees were gorgeous.

I usually walk down by the swamp first to look for ducks and such.  I did see 6 Wood Ducks, but I only got photos of trees!

Standing in one spot, looking north:

And from the same spot, looking south:

The grey sky probably made the colors look brighter.  The next patch of trees is exceptionally pretty every year.

A few of the trees were already loosing their leaves, but that just expands the view.

I did see quite a few birds, too, one of which was this Belted Kingfisher.

With the variety of colors, it would be hard to pick a favorite.  I love the yellows of this next patch...

but the maroon one in the next photo is a beauty, too!

One of my favorite trees is the maple at the south end of the beaver swamp (on the right in the next photo).  It has such a graceful shape that it looks pretty in all seasons, but it's at its finest in the fall.

My bird/tree walk continued up the hill, giving us an overview of the hillside behind the swamp.

Notice that even some of the White Pine needles turn yellow and fall this time of the year.  

That's it for my 'grey day' photos, now here are some from a day when we had blue skies overhead.

Here's a panoramic photo taken from along the road in front of our home.  By the way, the road is actually straight... the photo just makes it look like it curves.

And finally, the tree that wins the prize for the best variety of color on one tree:

I hope you enjoyed our trees and that you have some pretty ones in 'your neck of the woods' too!