Last Remnants of Summer

In December, I continued my quest for those last signs of summer.   We've finally received a covering of winter snow so it is time to conclude my exploration.  

A late morning walk at nearby Lowe Pond was during one of those balmy days that deceive us about the shortening days and colder morning.  Traveling light, I had only my ancient iPhone 8.  In this warm light, it was sufficient to show one of the last beautiful milkweed pods bobbing in the gentle wind.  On January 7, freezing rain, sleet and snow have won the battle to break it down.

The winter sun stays low, and continuing my December exploration, I found this batch of teasels in golden backlight.  They are a bit hardier and will stand tall for most of the winter barring a heavy wet snow.

On another December day, I was exploring a favorite woodlot where this charred stump of an ancient tree attracted my interest.   There are no signs that it was felled by a saw.  It's base is at least 30 inches so it certainly was over a century old.  This reminds me of the jagged mountain peaks I saw three years ago in Patagonia.

I devoted a lot of effort to cleanly compose the image relative to the surrounding trees.  It's a hemlock and likely those hemlocks behind it derived from it.

On a later date when the same woods were now free of snow, I returned.  As I approached the tree line, another arrangement of dried weeds presented a pleasing composition. Yes, milkweed fascinates me.  The pods' warm colors  and the pure white of the seed's fluff are always attractive.

There is another colorful side to early winter, the bittersweet's brilliant red berries stand out on even the grayest winter day.  I am not the only one attracted by these red clusters.

I am betting that if I walk out to this spot tomorrow, the red berries will all be gone.  There are some flocks of cedar waxwings lingering in our brush patches.  Just yesterday, a flock of sixteen was in my neighbor's hedgerow cleaning off some similar dried berries.  

Now, in early January, the remnants are yielding.  This is what I am seeing.

This finished off my theme of summer remnants.   Maybe I'll turn to ice forms or the patterns in naked trees.  I hope this theme encourages you to look at the eye-candy each season offers.  For me, it is enough to lure me to explore winter for what it offers.

Paul Schmitt