Autumn
Autumn is what we are: transitional creatures, always in the process of becoming something else. The static landscapes of summer and winter symbolize an existence of perpetual paradise or desolation. The dynamic landscapes of autumn and spring – when before our eyes leaves fall and wildflowers bloom – symbolize a creature in whom something is always dying; something else is always being born.
A trio of California buckeyes at sunset in Round Valley Regional Preserve.
Cattle graze on frosty grass in Round Valley’s Murphy Meadow.
California wild grape leaf in Mitchell Canyon, Mt. Diablo State Park.
A great blue heron patrols the orchards along Marsh Creek Trail, Oakley.
Sunrise viewed from Roger Epperson Ridge, Morgan Territory Regional Preserve.
Black-tailed deer, Round Valley.
Los Vaqueros Reservoir at sunrise, viewed from Miwok Trail.
A California buckeye prepares to shed its leaves in Round Valley.
Autumn clouds blanket the peaks of Mt. Diablo, viewed from Marsh Creek Reservoir.
Fruiting bodies of chaparral clematis on Black Point Trail, Mt. Diablo.
Blue oak, Round Valley.
The massive California buckeye Aesculus Rex at sunset, Round Valley.
Blue oak leaf, Round Valley.
Ladies’ tobacco on Black Point Trail, Mt. Diablo.
A male tarantula in mating season inspects a burrow in the hope of hitting on some long-legged, eight-legged brunette. Murphy Meadow, Round Valley.
The tarantula’s chief nemesis: the wasp known as the tarantula hawk. Los Vaqueros.
The residue of bigleaf maples in Mitchell Creek, Mt. Diablo.
Valley oak leaf, Round Valley.
California buckeye, Morgan Territory Regional Preserve.
Milk thistle, Round Valley.
California wild grape leaf in Mitchell Canyon, Mt. Diablo.
A revenant California buckeye in November, Round Valley.
Valley oak in Murphy Meadow, Round Valley.