“Autumn, the season that teaches us that change can be beautiful.” -Heather Stillufsen, American Illustrator for RoseHill Studios
Each season of the year — whether it be winter, spring, summer or fall — has its own unique set of traits that make it enjoyable in different ways.
Despite the cold weather associated with it, winter also brings warm fires, hot chocolate, Christmas spirit and beautiful blankets of glistening snow.
Springtime means we get the opportunity to watch everything become colorful and full of life once more.
Summertime brings warm weather, weekends in the sun and more opportunities to get out and do what we love.
Fall, however, happens to be one of my favorite seasons of them all. Like many, I enjoy watching as the beautiful greenery that surrounds us gradually begins to turn into a new array of vibrant fall colors: yellow, red and orange.
The first day of fall was on September 22, so it’s no surprise that we are beginning to see these changes take place. This process happens “because of changes in the length of daylight and changes in temperature,” according to the College of Environmental Science and Forestry.
These changes cause the leaves to “stop their food-making process. The chlorophyll breaks down, the green color disappears, and the yellow to orange colors become visible. … At the same time, other chemical changes may occur, which form additional colors,” they wrote.
It is no secret that we unconsciously take these beautiful changes for granted too often — leaving them unexplored and underappreciated!
This fall, I encourage all of you to gather with family and friends to look at and enjoy the seasonal changes offered to us by the scenery in which we are surrounded.
The Best Places to See Fall Colors in Southern Utah:
- Capitol Reef National Park
- Highlands of Escalante
- East Zion
- Fremont River
- Burr Trail
- Calf Creek Falls
- Southern Utah’s Fall Color Loop
– by Hailee Eyre (18) Cedar City/Panguitch
Feature image caption: Trees along the cedar mountain road are starting to show off their vibrant fall colors. Don’t believe us? Go and see for yourself! Courtesy Hailee Eyre.
Read about more fall activities in Good Start on the Scarecrow Contest Scavenger Hunt.
Hailee Eyre – Panguitch
Hailee Eyre is a journalist at The Byway. She attended Southern Utah University in the fall and is pursuing a career in the medical field. Her favorite topics to write about are those that intend to inspire others, providing motivation as means to better yourself or the world around you. In her free time, Hailee loves to be outdoors, whether it be hunting, fishing, boating or hiking.
Hailee is currently serving a mission for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints in the Pennsylvania and New York Church History Sites Mission.