As part of the quest to get the local fall color (or what little existed of it), I decided to go down the Star Valley one evening to see what I could find. My wife had commented on the visuals from the ground, and I had seen as much driving down there myself.
The ground view shows a tree or two that is pretty; the aerial view showed bleakness. I was very, very annoyed, though I had a destination in mind: the western slope of a small range in SE Idaho. I flew by there on the way to Bear Lake and then Vernal, UT last summer, and recalled thick stands of aspens. “It must be good in the fall; I should come back here.”
As I crested the Caribou Range, I came across a cornucopia of color. It was quite pleasant to enjoy and fly around as I meandered to within 30 miles of the Utah border. Coming upon the range I suspected would be glorious, I was disappointed to find that the aspen stands there had succumbed to the affliction of crappy color this year.
Oh well, the colors were good elsewhere, and the terrain was pretty down that way. It’s a bit dry, though there is something inviting about the terrain visual. All in all, it was perfectly still air and a wonderful evening flight.
The Star Valley is pretty. The “fall color” at the bottom of the image is not.
While these drunken aspens are neat (compare to the sober ones in the upper left of the image), I am just not “feeling the Jesus” about the color.
Ok, this is an improvement. Afton WY in the distant left.
Feeling the Jesus now….
Aspen stand devoid of leaves.
The aspen stands below were the ones I was seeking. Oh well, the others were better. This is pleasant terrain to putz around exploring.
Sunset approaching. Believe it or not, strong evening color is not usually that good for aerial photography. In the fall, the yellow light cancels out the yellow aspens.
