Cottonwoods and Milkweed

Today we went on a long walk to see signs of fall. It was a beautiful, sunny, and crisp fall day that eventually became overcast and cloudy. Our walk was a success, though, because we saw a beaver swimming, meadowlarks (I love meadowlarks!), a garter snake, milkweed pods and seeds spilling out, and fall color in the sumacs and cottonwoods. I love how this tree seems to be changing from the bottom up:

We stood under a cottonwood for a while, looking at the leaves. The yellow is not as intense as the yellow of aspen leaves, but the cottonwoods also make a rustling sound. It is a peaceful, awe-inspiring thing to listen to trees in the wind. It is good to stop once in a while, and listen.

Trees have always been a source of joy for me. I felt lost without them when we lived in the desert.

The showy milkweed seeds were spilling out everywhere. It looks very different from the last picture of them that I posted!

The fluffy seeds were caught on the grasses everywhere I looked. And the grasses were beautiful. The grama was a purplish color, and the foxtail was a lovely raw sienna. I am still learning the grasses here! There are so many unfamiliar ones.

The goldenrods are finished flowering, and beginning to dry. Asters, mostly white ones, were everywhere. And there is something tall with yellow flowers in the highway ditches, but I have not been able to find any yet on a side road to pull over and investigate.

There were ducks out on the water, but I was not close enough to identify them.