solo

A single red maple leaf is caught by the slivers of a decaying stump.

late day light

The sky cleared this afternoon. It felt like a good time to do the "critter walk", a favorite 3-mile loop on quiet roads in Topsfield.

The trees were wearing bright autumn color.

sneezeweed

Isn't sneezeweed a great name for a flower?

wet

During a dry spell this afternoon I headed to Jenkins Arboretum with my camera. It turned out to be a bit of a crazy thing to do since by the time I arrived the rain had started again. In spite of the wet I took a short walk, testing my raincoat and camera for water resistance. Both passed the test!

It was raining hard enough that I only stayed for a very short time.

autumn crocus

As I wandered through Chanticleer Garden this morning I found a hill full of autumn crocus.

While autumn crocus resembles true crocus it is a member of a different plant family, Colchicaceae

backlit

Light shines through the petals of a dahlia.

oak leaves

Even the leaves of oak trees are showing the deepening autumn season.

listen...

...can you hear the waves?

Warm air drew to the Parker River National Wildlife Refuge this afternoon as the tide was flowing out. My walk was accompanied by the sound of the ocean.

fading

The petals of zinnias are fading, a sign of the cooling temperatures.

painted red

Some of the maple trees are wearing leaves that have been painted bright red.