Monday miscellany: fall in the mountains & more
Just a note: I rarely comment on current events, as most of you are here for Style, Travel, and Lifestyle content. But I believe many of us have heavy hearts these last few days, due to the horrible events in Israel and Gaza. I am praying for peace, and an end to the killing of innocent people.
I find it helps to periodically take a break from the constant stream of news, so will continue to post here on my usual topics. It’s not my intention to be insensitive, or disregard the impact of these events on many of us. Thanks for your understanding.
Out & about in the Eastern Sierras (in search of fall foliage)
Last week my sister and I hit the road for the Eastern Sierras to check out some of fall foliage. Sis has been monitoring websites that track when the colors are expected to peak. So this time we hit it just right for some fantastic fall color. 🍁
These photos were taken in the Eastern Sierras, between Conway Pass to the north, and Bishop to the south. I took dozens, but these are some of my favorites…
You don’t need to strap on a backpack and hike for miles to enjoy this scenery. Most of these images were taken within a few feet of roads or parking areas. Be aware that you’ll be at some altitude though: 7000-9000+ feet above sea level.
It was cold at night (at or just below freezing) but quite mild and pleasant during the days. I didn’t bring much, just a couple pairs of jeans, a couple of sweaters and tees, a down vest and lightweight puffer jacket (similar). For footwear, I brought Birkenstocks (which I wore with socks) and an old pair of after-ski ankle boots. We rented a condo in the main village area of Mammoth Lakes, so were able to eat in or walk to dinner.
Hope you’ve enjoyed these photos! If you follow me on Instagram, I’ve shared more photos of this gorgeous scenery, and some videos too!
Next up…
In just a couple of weeks, I’ll be heading off to London and Paris! I’m really looking forward to this trip, and seeing my friends again on the “other side of the pond.” Yes, I’m already mulling my travel wardrobe, and starting to collect contenders on my rolling rack.
As always, I’ll be sharing my travel wardrobe before I go, and a recap upon my return.
Do you have beautiful fall colors where you live, or do you travel to “leaf peep” in the fall?
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You are an excellent photographer! Those photos would look great as art in someone’s home. Here in Maine the foliage is quite striking as well. We are a leaf-peeper destination for many. Love your posts!
Wow, beautiful scenery! I love the fall colors. We’re on the east coast, Virginia, and get beautiful foliage as well but a little later. Can’t wait to see your travel wardrobe and pictures from Europe!
Trish, I live in Virginia too. We are starting to see some hints of color.
Hi Susan- your photos are absolutely stunning! I’ve never been there so thank you for sharing those images. Glad you got away & were able to enjoy some fall scenery! Will send you some of my favorite London areas before you go. Enjoy the rest of your trip!
Beautiful pictures…
Your photos are absolutely stunning! Thanks for sharing.
Thank you for such a sensitive “prologue” to your post. We all need a break from the horrific events, but when people post about things like “three ways to style a trench coat” without some acknowledgment of the war, I find myself sort of angry. So thank you.
Gorgeous pictures and makes me want to go.
So beautiful. I love the mountains.
I find them calming and magnificent. They inspire strength that I hope to ‘absorb’ and carry with me going forward.
Enjoy your week.
Stunning photos! Thank you for sharing a gorgeous part of the USA with us. I am in eastern Canada and our fall foliage colour display is not as vibrant as some years but a gentle easing into the winter season anyway. This is my first comment, I enjoy your daily posts.
Thanks for sharing these gorgeous photos. (The first one was so stunning I gasped!) They really are a tonic for these heart-breaking times. I live in northern New England, so we’re all about the foliage here–but the color was disappointing this year in southern-mid NH and VT, apparently because we were so inundated with rain (and flooding) through June and July. We didn’t get many of the gorgeous scarlets and bright oranges that make fall so glorious. Your photos reminded me of how much I miss the west and how different it is, in so many ways, from the east coast. Glad you got a chance to get out into the mountains with your sister and enjoy autumn at its peak!
Gorgeous, thank you for sharing. Praying for Israel.
The fall foliage is so nice to see. I miss that the most living here in Florida. When I lived up North, we would travel to the White Mountains in New Hampshire to see the foliage. We too are going on a trip to Boston in November but i think the foliage will be past peak. Bummer
I’m fortunate enough to be able to do my leaf peeping in the Great Smokies. With Asheville and the Biltmore House it’s a beautiful setting and a great place to visit as well. I try to get my news from PBS or the BBC. The media in the US has become so driven by their ‘numbers’ that
stories are selected on the basis of ‘shock’ value. I hope your trip will revive good memories while you’re making new ones.
Beautiful!
Fall color in Colorado is something I always look forward to seeing. This year the color has been excellent that I believe is due to a very rainy spring. I love how the diminishing light helps flower colors become more muted and elegant. Deer and elk coats become darker, too, so they can absorb more heat. I’m glad you added some gorgeous photographs.
Your photos are amazing! So beautiful.
Greetje
Wow! Sue, those are some gorgeous photos of the Eastern sierras! Looking forward to more from you London/Paris trip!
Thank you for your comments. My heart breaks for recent events. Lovely photos! We split time between northern Michigan and northern SLO County. Recently left beautiful foliage in Leelanau County, MI to find fall just starting in CA. Best to you and enjoy your upcoming trip!
Beautiful. Thank you for sharing
enjoy your trip to Europe. I hope you will enjoy it almost as much without Le Monsieur. you appear to be coping well in your new life. I hope so.
Thanks for these beautiful photos. The glassy lakes with the incredible mountains and beautiful foliage reflected in them are amazing. Thanks for reminding me we have beautiful fall foliage here in California. Thank you for your comments on what is happening in the Middle East. My heart is breaking for the civilians who live on both sides of the borders. Enjoy your time away. I’m sure it will be hard to travel without your husband but time with friends and family is comforting.
Thanks for the gorgeous photos Susan! Lovely that you’ll be going abroad again. Will you be going with your sister? I’ve followed your fall travel wardrobe but don’t have a few items I wish I had for travel to colder climes! We’ll be visiting family and also headed to the Berkshires for fall colors and museums.
Your comment at the top of the post is spot on. I appreciate you keeping politics out of your comment. Most of the people involved are just trying to live their lives like all of us. You are a good photographer with a gorgeous subject!
Hi Susan,
Gorgeous photographs thank you l am thinking about going somewhere to see Fall and these are inspiring.
Thank you for all the lovely pictures.
Thank you for sharing these gorgeous photos with us. Thank you for your sensitivity to what is happening in the world. Have an amazing time “across the pond”!
Gorgeous photos, Susan, and thanks for the thoughtful introduction. Several years ago I went on a two-day tour of the California Aqueduct, which wound through much of the Eastern Sierra territory you visited. It was June, so we didn’t see those colors. We did, however, make a stop at the Manzanar National Historic Site, one of the camps where Japanese Americans were interned during World War II. It’s a devastatingly bleak place, and a vivid reminder of one of the more shameful episodes in 20th-century U.S. history.
Food for the soul, such beauty in nature, thanks for sharing!
Susan, your photos are all spectacular. I live in Bishop and go to all those areas often. I am happy you could enjoy our stunning scenery and mountains.
Wow Susan what beautiful scenery! Glad you could get time with your sis.
Peace to you as well.
Hi Susan,
Your photos are just beautiful. I can almost breathe the fresh mountain air! My favourite type of road trip, grabbing a few warm clothes and seeing where the road takes us. We’ll be heading south for autumnal colour next Easter. Currently enjoying seeing and smelling the last of the Spring blossoms here.
Hope you have a wonderful trip abroad. Thank you for taking us along for the ride.
Best wishes,
Julie x
We have such gorgeous fall colors in Lacey WA, the city of trees! Each neighborhood has a different variety of tree, so trees come into colors at different times. I have coral bark maples and a dwarf ginqo in my back yard that are so beautiful in the fall. Your trip pictures are so much fun to see. Thank you!
Beautiful Fall photographs! Thank you for sharing part of your trip to this attractive area . Enjoy your European vacation!
Beautiful pictures. I felt a moment of peace and respite from the world just looking at them, something we could all use. Thanks for sharing. Here in Boston the fall colors are starting to come in and I will have to make a (short) trip of my own to enjoy them.
Pictures are gorgeous! So glad you had a nice trip with your sister.
Just beautiful photos – thank you! We are so fortunate to be able to get away, get outside, and breathe. I join you in praying for peace and the cessation of suffering of innocent people. Colors in New England are not as vibrant this year but the cooler air and scent of fallen leaves leave no doubt that fall is here.
Thank you for sharing these beautiful photos, and starting out with an acknowledgement of what difficult days these are for Jews everywhere and especially in Israel, and for the people of Gaza. The pain and suffering are immense, and whole world is affected, in the end. The photos are a balm for the soul in these difficult times.
I recently completed my summer stay near my daughter’s family in Oregon, where the fall was getting underway when we left October 1st; and we enjoyed some beautiful golden aspens as we drove through Idaho and Utah on the way back to Arizona. It is still summer here in Tucson. Ugh.
The photos are magnificent. I thought you could only photograph outfits. I take it back these are such a treat. Just a delight to see.
Thank you, Susan, for the beautiful photos and the wise comment on the horrors going on in the world – much appreciated.
I’m not sure when this started, and I see on Instagram that there are many who feel it is their “job” to ensure that every single account makes some comment. I follow some knitters, food and style accounts, and the angry mob has come down hard on many of them for not quickly posting some comment. Then the account holders feel they have to apologize to these bullies for not commenting sooner.
I find it ridiculous and truly a form of coercion. And the resulting comments (and arguments) have about as much efficacy as saying “our hearts and prayers are with you” when there are mass shootings. As sentient beings, we are all affected by the violence and killing – and we can all decide to take actions in our private lives that can effect change. That doesn’t mean we have to get into useless arguments or pointless posturing on social media.
Thank you again for your words.
Beautiful scenery! Thanks for sharing.
So beautiful, Sue. Such a hidden gem part of the country!
Thank you for your sensitive post and for the great pictures. Fashion and pictures of nature are a wonderful respite from the troubles of the world. I am a transplant social worker, and even in the midst of near-daily sorrow, my office mate and I devote a good 5 minutes a day to outfit deconstruction. Planning my outfit, thinking about my style words (simple, elegant, quirky), and planning some time in nature allows me to go on with witnessing suffering at work and at home. We need to make a little space for joy if we can.
I hope you have some true moments of joy in your travels, and of course, we want to hear about your outfits.
Susan, how beautiful. It sounds like a lovely trip.
Thanks for a very sensitive and beautiful post. Fall in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida is a season of subtle changes: The rapid growth of the grass, plants, and trees of the very warm summer slows, and the vivid, tropical greens become muted and lighter in tone as the temperature gradually cools. Some of the Florida maples and cypresses begin to change color. My favorite is our golden rain tree that is green in the spring and summer (leaves are like miniature mimosa leaves), then is covered with bright yellow flowers in September, and becomes orange in October, as little Chinese lantern-shaped pods emerge. By November, those will turn cream colored and fill with black seeds that attract numerous species of birds. Our fall is not as dramatic as that in northern climes, but nevertheless, is a beautiful season of change.
Susan, thank you so much for sharing your pictures. They are so beautiful! We live in Vermont are experiencing peak foliage. It is beautiful here too, yet so different.
I very much enjoy your blog and look forward to reading about your London and Paris trip.
Safe travels!
Beautiful photos!
Your photos are fabulous, Susan! So glad you had a wonderful time with your sister. Leaves are just beginning to change here in the Upstate of South Carolina. Should be perfect next week or so. Thank you so much for sharing!
Beautiful pics!
Hi Susan,
Glad to know you had a beautiful trip and Europe is next!
I was just wondering if you had tried the Ruti navy pants yet! I’d be very interested to have your thoughts/ opinion.
Many thanks and be well, Helen
Hi Helen, thanks! Yes, I’ve tried them and am keeping. They’re at the tailor being shortened now, and I’ll show them once they’re done.
Your photos are gorgeous! Here in Alberta, Canada our leaves are mostly on the ground now and snow is in the forecast!