It’s fall, and that means the seasons are changing. It’s not all that apparent in the city (we noticed it was over 100 degrees one day- and then suddenly 80 degrees the next.) But if you go out of town, you can see more changes than just the temperature. I headed up to Flagstaff for some great fall color.
I was headed for the hiking trails just below Snowbowl Ski Resort. The mountain has more aspen trees than you find down around the town. When I arrived at noon, it was 48 degrees on the mountain. The night before, it had been below 32 degrees and there was a tiny dusting of snow. It didn’t stick, but it was the first snow of the year.
You can tell there had been a frost the night before, because there was very little undergrowth left. I hiked The Katchina Trail because I hiked it in the spring, and I wanted to compare.
In the spring, this trail was all ferns and lush green plants. Now it’s covered in bright yellow falling leaves. It’s still beautiful- though in a different way.
If you hike the Katchina trail or any forest service trail, always be sure it sign in at the trail head. This helps the forest service track how many people use the trail, and it also leaves a record of where you were just in case anything were to happen to you.
I was excited to dig my sweaters out of the closet for the first time in months, and I definitely needed one! Under the trees it’s dark and chilly as can be. Dress warm if you’re going up north, particularly if you’ll be there later in the day than I was.
This rock is a favorite picnic spot of mine. I like to bring a blanket to sit on and some snacks, and just sit and enjoy the woods. Also, the view looking up when laying on the rock is pretty great.
There are several trail heads in the area. The Katchina trail is the last one before you are actually on Snowbowl property. But there are many others, and they all offer long walks around the mountain and beautiful sights.
This particular meadow (above) always catches my eye because of the amount of aspen trees around it.
And here I am enjoying them. The leaves will stay of the trees for another week or two, unless there is a huge storm (which I doubt) so if you haven’t been up north yet, don’t worry! Take a day sometime before Halloween and head up.
Oak Creek Canyon has some very pretty colorful leaves every year as well. Even in Flagstaff, there was a variety of colorful views to enjoy.
Get up north and check it out! It always feels a lot more like fall once you’ve seen some leaves falling.
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