Savor the color, crisp days and cozy moments that make fall magical.
There’s a moment every year when the Northwoods lets go of summer.
Photo by Roxie Sharp
Maples catch fire first, splashing red and orange across shorelines and glassy lakes. Tamaracks turn a luminous yellow, colorful mushrooms push through the forest floor, and fallen leaves and acorns blanket the ground.
Even the soundtrack changes. The docks come out and the boats disappear. Summer neighbors head home. The loons grow quiet, leaving the landscape hushed and still.
To savor this fleeting season, slow down and soak up every moment with these autumn rituals.
1. Soak Up the Shoreline Show
Pick a lake and watch the shoreline transform. Maples blaze red and orange, birches glow gold, and oaks deepen to russet and bronze, painting the water’s edge in layers of color. Visit on a calm morning, when the lake turns to glass and autumn’s brilliant colors shimmer in the reflection..
2. Take the Scenic Route
Some of the best scenery is just around the bend. Turn onto a back road and travel beneath canopies of crimson, amber and orange. Pull over when the view is too beautiful to pass up.
3. Find Fall Underfoot
The trees may steal the show, but there is another display underfoot. Mushrooms in unexpected shapes and hues peek through fallen leaves. Acorns and pinecones scatter the trails, vivid green moss blankets old logs, and fading ferns weave through a pine needle carpet.
4. Strike Tamarack Gold
Just when you think the color show is over, the tamaracks deliver the grand finale. These conifers blaze brilliant gold before dropping their needles. Make spotting the season’s first golden tamarack an annual Northwoods tradition.
5. Listen for the Last Loon Call
The loons begin their journey south as winter starts to move in. Rise early and sit by the water to hear one last haunting call. Soon the lakes will fall silent, and you won’t hear that familiar sound again until spring.
6. Simmer Into the Season
Make a pot of chili, soup or stew. Bake bread, apple crisp or sprinkle cinnamon in your coffee. Then invite someone over. A chilly day feels extra special when warm food and a cozy kitchen is shared with friends.
7. Gather by the Fire
When the fall chill settles over the woods and water, a warm fire beckons. Bring in some wood, strike a match and listen as the flames crackle to life. Settle into a favorite chair and soak up the warmth and the glow.
8. Glide Into Fall
See the fall transformation up close. Pull on a warm sweater, slip a canoe or kayak into the glassy water and paddle beneath the color. Tuck a thermos full of warm tea between your feet and savor the stillness.
9. Bring the Season Home
Fill a basket with pinecones, acorns and fiery fallen leaves, or hunt for a beautifully twisted branch that catches your eye. Clip fading hydrangeas from the garden, tuck branches blazing with color into an old crock and heap crisp red apples into a wooden bowl.
10. Bundle Up and Stay Awhile
Don’t abandon the screen porch just because sweater weather has arrived. Grab a blanket, pour some tea and stay outside as evening settles over the lake or woods. Listen to leaves rustle, geese pass overhead and the wind move through the pines.
Soon the brilliant leaves will fall, the lakes will freeze and snow will hush the woods. But for now, the Northwoods is putting on one last spectacular show.
Catch it while you can.
