Bear Creek Lake Park: October 2013

Well, the fall foliage just insists on sticking around. Fortunately, I was able to squeeze in an hour late this afternoon and spend some time with it. I'd been hoping to return to Bear Creek Lake Park, where I'd enjoyed three fabulous hours a year ago. So that's exactly what I did.

It was a bit of a sprint again, like Chatfield State Park last weekend and Chatfield Botanic Gardens on Wednesday.  By 4:15 when I arrived the sun was already low in the sky.  But the ticking clock just forces me to take a more businesslike approach.  Stop, shoot, move.  Lather, rinse, repeat.

Clouds on the horizon obscured the sun before the foothills could.  I read a good tip in Outdoor Photographer magazine just this week for those situations -- just take the sky out of the shot.

Bear Creek saw some massive flooding during the heavy rains that hit the state last month.  The water was still running swiftly, which created some beautiful opportunities combined with rocks and fallen leaves.

The foreground here is darker than it probably should be.  But I liked the light in the tops of the trees too much.

I'm not sure if everyone's a fan of how a polarizing filter can change the shade of a blue sky so much within a single shot.  I tend to appreciate the gradient that often results.

Leaf litter on a trail is one of those thing I'm just a sucker for.  It always looks like someplace I want to be.

I'm fortunate I didn't step in a hole and break an ankle, as much time as I spent looking up for views like this.

When I do an out-and-back walk, I always enjoy seeing something on the return trip that I'd totally missed on the way out.  This view of the rushing creek, a giant tree and various hues of foliage was one of them.

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One last shot of the creek, and it was time to head home.  I think my appetite for foliage pictures may have finally been sated for the year.  Unless, of course, something else catches my eye. :)