Remnants of fall color

An unexpected side effect of the unusual early hard freeze is that many of our deciduous trees were caught in mid-leaf dropping time.  Leaves which normally fall after their abscission layers form; well, they were stopped in their tracks - zapped -- so remain on the trees.

This is largely true here of oaks, which form a ghost forest of varying colors on the hillsides surrounding the Asheville basin, but there are other species, too.

A walk around Beaver Lake (for a second time this week) reminded me of the maintained color, but more about the exceptional reflections of the nearby mountains that a calm lake provides.

And our German HomeExchange partner, now back in Asheville for a couple of weeks with an exchange with neighbors, remarked on the color that he saw, flying from Charlotte to Asheville, always a lovely flight to see mountain views.

Beaver Lake reflections

Another Beaver Lake view