Autumn Roundup

As the colors fade and snow is in the forecast, I thought I'd assemble a few shots from this autumn season.
I worked overtime the last couple of months (loving every second of it),

 and tried not to let a single opportunity slip by.

Last year's colors were miserable in North Idaho, due to an early freeze, so I was eager to make the most of this fall,
my favorite season.
Taken on the first Day of Autumn.

Moonrise over North Idaho from Mt. Spokane

 

I was fortunate to make a quick trip to Southeastern Idaho and the Tetons in Late September.
I hope to do it again next year.

Winter Wheat and the Tetons





Aspen Sun






Oxbow Bend



In the Centennial Valley of Southwestern Montana I found vibrant aspens in peak color.

In mid October I traveled to Northwest Washington, Bellingham and the Mt. Baker Area.

Mt. Shuksan

Sunset on Puget Sound

To the North were the Purcells decked out in gold.

Bull River

South to Moscow...

U of I Arboretum

On a wet day in the Silver Valley...

Little North Fork of the Coeur d'Alene

In Eastern Washington...

And right here at home.

Beauty Creek

City Park

St. Thomas

It's been a wonderful season,
one I think I would never tire of.

Up next... fog and snow.



Pilings or No Pilings?

~A Photographers Perspective~
As controversy and litigation surround the removal of pilings on Cougar Bay, of Lake Coeur d'Alene; fighting over Osprey habitat and motorboats, of which I thought I had no opinion....my thoughts turn to all the photographs I have taken over the years in our piling filled bays.



Silver Solitude (Cougar Bay)



Wolf Lodge Sunset



Cougar Bay Shallows



How those same pilings have acted as interest elements in my compositions, artistic silhouettes,
leading lines and abstract patterns.



Dusk on Cougar Bay

These are just a few photos of the "soon to be gone" pilings.

Cougar Bay Abstract









Spokane River Twilight




On occasion I've found them annoying too, but not for the same reasons of current controversy.

  

Spokane River Sunset

Ice on Cougar Bay

Yesterday I returned to a favorite photo haunt to discover the absence of my favorite weathered pilings that jutted from the bay.

Remnants of a Bygone Era-Cougar Bay

I'm sure it seems odd that anyone would have favorite pieces of ragged,
protruding wood in a lake, but I did.
They were the ones in the photo below.



Tugboat in the mist hangs as 6 ft. Canvas
in the Kootenai Cancer Center (Post Falls)
and a 3 ft. print in the Federal Building, Cd'A



On a nearby dock stood the CDA press photographer waiting for a ride on a tugboat, to shoot for todays

CDA Press story on the issue.



Twin Silhouettes



As the boat transported him out to the working equipment,
I photographed the tug passing that very spot again and realized in an instant that the whole scene had lost something vital from a photographic standpoint.


 I watched from a distance with a bit of sadness,
the removal process, as equipment pushed over one piling at a time,
and then plucked it from the depths.

Without me even realizing it, these pilings have been a reminder of the history of our region and a
connection to the past.


Silver Dawn- Cougar Bay



They've added character, and intrigue.
Just my little tribute to something I think I am actually going to miss.

Spokane River Pilings