Thoughts come clearly while one walks. ~Thomas Mann, German novelist and 1929 Nobel Prize in Literature laureate
It’s time once again for the annual Walktober, hosted by Robin of Breezes at Dawn.
Today, we’re in Central Illinois, where a prolonged drought has stressed trees and produced a faster color change than what typically takes until mid-October to peak.
Nevertheless, it’s a beautiful day — temps in the low 70s, sunny and clear — so let’s hop into our sneakers and head outside for a two-mile stroll.
Look! Here’s a maple with a sunny dress on:
And for those who prefer shades of orange:
And let’s not forget how red some maples turn:
This is the time of year when leaves FALL to the ground. Somebody’s got some work to do here with a big rake:
This dude on a bicycle seems oblivious to the beauty surrounding him:
Fall in Central Illinois is harvest time. Here, you can see a line of trees — some of which haven’t begun to turn color yet — right next to what used to be a field of soybeans:
Look how the sun catches the beauty of these trees:
Here’s a dogwood whose color makes it stand out in the midst of much bigger trees:
Notice how this one is turning a purple color from its top down. That’s a lot of leaves:
Sometimes, the views are breath-taking:
Other times, the trees almost look as if they’ve been painted:
Here’s another dogwood, this one turning shades of maroon and purple:
Old Glory dwarfed by these beauties:
I hope you didn’t forget to scuff your feet through some leaves and listen to them crunch! Thank you for joining me on my walk. Let’s plan on doing it again next year, if not sooner:
I cannot endure to waste anything so precious as autumnal sunshine by staying in the house. So I have spent almost all the daylight hours in the open air. ~Nathaniel Hawthorne, American novelist
Musings by an ND Domer's Mom 
Such gorgeous, rich colors! We are way behind you, with our trees just beginning to show hints of color. Thank you so much for joining Walktober again this year. 🙂
I love doing Walktober!! Seeing where others choose to go and meeting new blogging friends is awesome. Thank you, Robin, for hosting it!
Debbie, thank you for this stroll, it was BEAUTIFUL! As you know, Autumn is my very favorite season, so I really enjoyed this.
I’m amazed at the colors of your trees because we haven’t had much change in ours. A little, but not as much as your part of the States. I’m hoping for a few good cold snaps, so that we get some change.
“Look how the sun catches the beauty of these trees:”
GORGEOUS!
“I hope you didn’t forget to scuff your feet through some leaves and listen to them crunch! ”
HA! And yes, that is my favorite thing to do. I love that sound. And also, the smell of the leaves.
Thanks again for the stroll, my friend. I’m hoping to get some photos today of our trees. X
Thanks for joining me, Ron! In a normal year, we wouldn’t have this much Fall color yet either. But we haven’t had measurable rain in ages, so I understand the trees are reacting as best they can. We’re supposed to have TWO cold fronts blow through in the next several days, and I’ll see if we can forward them on to your area.
Don’t you LOVE the sound of leaves crunching underfoot? Every chance I get, I’m shuffling my feet through the leaves and enjoying their swoosh — makes me feel like a kid again, ha!
I’m looking forward to seeing your trees, my friend! xx
Debbie, what GLORIOUS COLORS! Thank you for letting us join your walk and enjoy them vicariously through you. It’s still mostly green here, but a few yellow & orange trees are popping out here & there. Enjoy!! 🍂☀️🍂🤗🍂
I’m delighted you enjoyed seeing them, Virginia! When it’s this hot and dry, we always fear the Fall color will be nonexistent, but somehow Mother Nature comes through. I’m glad I took them when I did, though, because as you know, if you wait too long, you won’t find anything but muted yellows and browns.
This is just wonderful, Debbie! The colors are great, but that covering of leaves on the ground is best! I loved kicking through leaves when I was a kid, and I still love it. There’s quite a shortage of leaves around here, but if I can find some this year, I’ll have a little fun again. Thanks for sharing such evocative photos!
I’m so glad you enjoyed the walk and the photos, Linda! We’re expecting a double-whammy cold snap this weekend, and I imagine much of the color will fade fast as the leaves drop in the high winds. Looks like we got outside and walked just in the nick of time!
Wonderful colours! Thank you for taking us along on your walk – I enjoyed kicking up some leaves and breathing the fresh Illinois air!
I enjoyed having you along, FF. There’s nothing quite so much fun as scuffing leaves (and knowing you don’t have to rake them, ha!)
The trees really are beautiful this year, but I wish it would rain. We had plenty of rain in the Spring and early Summer, but as of August, it’s been rather dry. Still, I guess we should just enjoy colorful trees, since there’s not much we can do about the drought!
We’ve got the same problem — too much rain in Spring and Summer, hardly a drop since August. And the days when we’re supposed to get rain? Well, a few drops isn’t going to suffice! Still, somehow, the trees have managed to look splendid, despite all the early naysayers.It’s just a challenge, getting all those leaves gathered when the wind is blowing so hard!
Wow, Debbie, you’ve captured some gorgeous fall leaf color! I love this time of year, so splendid to walk about in the cool air, bright sunshine and see sights like this!
Eliza, thanks so much for stopping by to walk with me! Fall is my favorite time of year, too — the colors are just beautiful, and it’s so pleasant when the heat and humidity finally break.
Debbie, I really enjoyed this walk with you down in the middle of Illinois. Loved shuffling along in the beautiful leaves. Since we got our snow yesterday, leaf-shuffling might be a thing of the past up here. Enjoy your fall while it lasts!
Brr, it’s already way colder here than I like! Today, it never even made it to 50 degrees and with a misty rain, that felt pretty raw.
The colors are great. We still have soybeans waiting for harvest in Kentucky, rode my horse by some this weekend.
LOVE the quote! I’m saving this one.
Thanks for stopping by — feel free to do so any time! Most of our fields are harvested, but I’ve come across several that are being held up by the rain.
This is fabulous color. I grew up in central IL and my mother is there–she was describing the color to me last weekend. Now I’ve had a glimpse!
Thanks so much for walking with me! It really has been beautiful, but the key is catching the glory before it all fades. Sometimes one gets lucky!!
Well, I don’t know how I missed your Walktober! What a wonderful walk you had, on such a sunny day. We haven’t seen many of those for awhile now. I’m glad you shared it with us!
I’m glad you found it and walked with me! It was a perfect day — not many of those in 2020 — and wasn’t it good of Robin to round us all up and let us enjoy walking around the globe together?!
Wonderful Walktober, Debbie. The colours are beautiful and the day looked perfect.
It was — thanks for joining me!!
🙂