THE OLD CAMPGROUND

There is nothing like the appeal of a walk in the forest, and it is even more enticing when it is "asleep", so-to-speak, settling down for the winter.  Fir needles have softened to a plush, aromatic carpet, squirrels and chipmunks grab pinecones with urgency, rivers run fuller from autumn rains, and the air seems more still all around.

We pulled into a campground  to get close to the river.  Sturdy picnic tables had cloths of fallen leaves in tapestries of gold and red; fire pits were filled with cold ashes.  It was all ours!

Just a little bit of orange-red remained at river's edge:

 We kept an eye out for bears that might have a hankering for a berry and a cool drink.

(but what would we have done if one came?)

The view upriver:

 

The literal end of the road is at Salmon LaSac, which is just a wilderness area with many trailheads.

Walking a bit, we came across these old vacant cabins.  It was river-rock chimney that caught our attention.

I wonder how many generations have kept the homefires burning here, come summertime?

 The view from the front porch:

POSTING THE COLORS

Here is another chapter in the Over the Pass Ramble.

The higher we went on the mountain road and the later it got in the day, the more fickle the sun became.

Or rather, the clouds with the breeze became more unpredictable.

We spotted bright statements of color across CleElum Lake and would quickly pull off the road

only to be frustrated because clouds suddenly covered the spotlighting source.

What we wanted to "shoot" would look dark and plain.

The bright exclamation points of gold punctuated first the near side, then the far side of the lake, and we couldn't capture either one in time!

Our side of the lake:

The far side:

Then our side:

 Then a little bit of both, but not as stunning as we had seen it to be seconds before:

In the northwest we do not have Spanish moss, but "Goat's beard":

We pulled into a remote campground and set up our cameras on the banks of the river,

with the enthusiasm of fishermen.  Only we hoped our "catch" would be a moment of sun on the trees:

WEATHERED WOODS

I could lose all track of time in the back streets of a little old town, if I have my camera.

Pat and I were so alone in Roslyn, we could hardly find a place for a cup of

hot chocolate.

But it was easy to stroll a block or two off of main street to find these treasures.

I love not only the geometry here, but how each board has aged to a different shade:

The same structure:

This is someone's back porch.  Hmmmm....

Aged doors never disappoint: 

But in all my rambles, I have never seen anything like this, just left outside!

I thought of naming it "Dirty Drawers", but I have too much respect for this charming piece.

I can imagine its use, perhaps behind the counter of an old wood-floored store.

I can also imagine putting it to use in our own home, had I been here when it was first tossed out back; before it got warped and ruined!

A lone window, as actually reflected in aonther window across the street,

so this is taken through glass:

Shades of New England:

This looks like a Hollywood set, but it is just a side street of Roslyn:

After visiting Roslyn, we headed up the mountain road, so there is more to come.

A GOLDEN STAIRCASE

Just leaving town, Pat and I shrieked at the same time.  Oh! This house, or rather these leaves made us stop in our tracks.  I parked hurriedly in a bus zone. ( I mean, how busy could the route be, when we had so far seen no one?) The house was on a corner or we never would have been lucky enough to spot it.

We were all over this place like bees on honey, taking our shots while trying not to disturb any leaves.

Now, that was hard, being as they were so crunch-tempting!

And this is the one tree that caused such a scene. 

So many more leaves to go!

(On the way back through town a couple of hours later, we saw these leaves

had been raked into piles.  Made us wish we had crunched and kicked through them!)

More to come on this ramble.

COLORFUL! HISTORY AND EXTERIORS

This is the 2nd post for the Autumn Day Ramble with Pat.

Here in Roslyn, we were completely alone as we walked main street.

The buildings are historically original.  We loved this one-block-long huge building, but there was no indication of its purpose.

These windows were on the street level:

And these were bordering the length of the building, up under the eves.

I took many different angles of them.

This place looks quite well-suited for a Halloween party:

Yes, Roslyn has a colorful past, including reknown robbers successfully

getting the bank funds and numerous payrolls at gunpoint.

But nature was colorful that day too.

I really like the weathered wood and brick as the background to these leaves:

From happy experiences, I know that walking the alleys and back streets of a little old town can be rewarding.

Who needs curtains?

There was no explanation for this building either, but the door was certainly rich:

A secret entrance?

 

This was the reddest barn we have ever seen. 

It wasn't so garrish when reflected in a mud puddle:

The day was only just beginning.  Other posts will follow soon.

OVER THE RIVER AND THROUGH THE WOODS!

The forecast for this last week was not good, except for Monday, and that was iffy, at least on "our side" of the mountains.

I had to take the chance, feeling there just might be new snow on top, and some bright leaves left, and the possibility of sunshine on the "other" side.

Photo buddy Pat is ever-ready, so she helped me follow my whim.

Our day was perfect in every way imaginable, and some ways we couldn't have imagined!

This stop, below, was on a wide shoulder of the Pass freeway, first looking to  the south side:

 The sun came and went with the wind in the clouds, highlighting trees here and there.

 Then, toward the north side:

Then, we were off the freeway, and on our own to ramble!

We felt like, and so we did: shout "whee!"

Leaves were wheeling all around; the woods had a musky-sweet aroma, and we were in solitude!

One of our destinations was to the little town (population less than 900) of Roslyn.

It is authentically-seasoned, having come to existence as a coal-mining town in the mid-1800s.

It was popularized for awhile in the early 1990s as the location for filming the TV series, "Northern Exposure".  It's stage name was Cicely.

Poor Pat was not prepared for the first of my many fast-breaking turn-arounds for the photo op.  But she survived, and caught on fast!  She pointed to many of her own!

Well, this barn was the first brake-n-turn stop on the outskirts of town.

(Does a town that is 5 blocks long actually have "outskirts"?)

It is hard to tell whether the ancient apple tree was holding up the barn, or visa/versa:

The fun thing about stopping in remote places is to look around for other photo ops in the near vacinity.

These were right across the lane:

I love the wild effect of monotone.

 Here came that peek-a-boo sun:

FRUSTRATED PEEPER

This time every year, D and I take an extended trip to someplace in North America to enjoy our favorite season and see how its glory is manifest in different locales.

We choose to drive back roads; the fewer road markings, the better to "Discover America!"

We stayed home this Autumn, and I got pneumonia.

Today was my 1st day to break free from being a "shut in", and I fled out!

Well, I only went to our post office box - big deal.  I decided to take my camera and

pretend that my own little town is backroads "somewhere", as if it were new to me.

So, I rambled and yes, lost track of time practically in my own front yard.

I wonder where this gate originally led; now, it stands alone barely visible in the overgrown forest:

Is this tree "changing" by halves?  I will have to check it again later:

  Local school administrative center; originally the first school:

It has been raining and windy, so this is what happens to already-changed leaves. 

The trees don't get to enjoy showing off their Autumn Fest ball gowns;
scraps of "fabric" are everywhere:

Looking straight up, doing a little peeping: 

A charming porch,

 And a charming window.  Just like what I look for in someone else's village:

Closer to home:

 Railroad tressle through the not-yet-changed leaves:

This is un-enhanced green of the underbelly of the RR tressle.

It looks phony!

Natural greens show in the ground cover:

And so does the moss on the bridge and trees, but this is not digitally saturated; it is natural:

I am definitely coming back here to keep tabs on these trees in the background.

If they turn orange, such a better picture this will be!

Here is an alternate route to walking the tracks: