Fall Colors

I managed to find a few pictures of the fall colors to post for this blog. Middle Tennessee is not known for our spectacular fall colors, although some years are better than others. Part of the reason is that fall is a long season here, as is spring. The trees don't all turn and peak at the same time. Last year we actually had some decent fall colors but this year has been, at best, lackluster. The colors finally started to pick up some momentum in the last week but then we had some heavy rain Friday evening which washed a lot of the leaves off the trees.

We are supposed to be sunny all week this week (no rain - yay!) with daytime temperatures in the mid to upper 60's. Hopefully as the leaves finish their lazy progression through their color change we'll have another opportunity to try and enjoy some fall colors.

One of my most memorable rides was in the fall several years ago when Jason and I were living in Vermont. My (long since retired) mare Bridget and I were hacking down our road underneath a gorgeous canopy of fall colors, it felt like we were riding beneath an artist's palette of colors. It was the first week of October. The leaves were all at their peak and our road was narrow and heavily lined with trees on both sides. I was riding Bridget bareback and just soaking in the beauty that surrounded us. Bridget is one of those once in a lifetime horses that could win at the biggest shows in the hunters but was just as happy to take a quiet bareback trail ride. I literally had the reins on the buckle and it was one of those times when you truly feel like everything is perfect in the universe. Bridget seemed to be enjoying the scenery as much as I was.

Before I knew what was happening we were spinning around and Bridget was starting to bolt back down the road. I wound up mostly on her neck and managed to hang on somehow. I stopped her, rearranged myself on her back and out of the sideways, hanging off her neck position that I had wound up in. Then I turned around to see what had interrupted our peaceful, communing with nature ride. A huge moose was crossing the road!! I guess he had been in the woods and decided that Bridget and I looked non-threatening and it would be a good time to cross.

When we moved back to Tennessee Jason bought a moose crossing sign and hung it on Bridget's stall door so she could always remember her time in Vermont. The sign is still on her door and every time I see it I think of that ride.

Traveller grazing with two pear trees behind him. The pear tree on the left always changes colors and loses its leaves well ahead of the pear tree on the right.

Not much fall color in this picture! I took this picture on October 19th.

The next few pictures were all taken on November 1st. I managed to find a patch of color in the big boys' pasture.

There is some color mixed in with the green

Clay, Lucky and Chili grazing in front of some fall foliage (yes, I realize it isn't much!)

Lily looks nice in front of this tree

MyLight in front of the same tree

I took this picture of the tree in front of the old farm house on October 19th

Same tree on October 25th

And the same tree again on November 1st