A narrow paved road winding through yellowing trees toward a wooded mountain, with one orange tree near the ridge under a clear blue sky

Yesterday I took a short walk, hoping to see the mountains in full fall color.

Not yet.

The trees along the road are starting to turn yellow, but most of the hillsides are still green. One orange tree near the top of the ridge got an early start on everyone else.

The sky was clear and blue, and the sun made the yellow leaves glow gold.

I also stopped to look at the little things: big boulders next to yucca plants, a mossy lump by the creek that looked like a sleeping animal, and a little wooden footbridge over the ditch.

Two large boulders in the grass beside yucca plants at the foot of a wooded hillside A wooded mountain under a clear blue sky, mostly green with one orange tree near the ridge, framed by yellowing trees
A paved lane curving under golden autumn trees toward a white house with a teal metal roof, mountain behind A thick mossy lump beside a pebbly creek bed in the woods
Sun lighting up the leaves of a tree beside a country road and a small trickling ditch A small wooden footbridge over a grassy ditch, with a gravel path running up the hollow

No peak colors yet, but it was still a good walk. I'll head back out in a week or two and check again.

AI disclosure: Started from my short draft, AI (Claude) helped write this, and I edited and approved the final version.