Nature rarely blesses Southeast Alaska with spectacular displays of fall color. We have too many moving parts. Unlike New England with its blanket of blazing maple trees softening their already soft mountains we rely upon many plants and animals that offer up color during the fall die back, salmon included.

In great years reddening sorrel, crabapple, and cranberry brush peak with yellowing cottonwoods, devil’s clubs and willows. This year cottonwood, willow, high bush cranberry, and alder leaves already litter forest trails. The umbrella like devil’s clubs leaves will soon join them. Only a few ground hugging sorrel, wild strawberries and high bush cranberry brush show bright red color. It’s a Fall to look down and deep into the forest for little universes of beauty.  

While Aki sticks her nose into a recently dug hole, I am drawn to pure white mushroom wings growing on the side of a mossy stump. They have captured dark a few magenta colored spruce seeds fallen from the paws of squirrels perched above in the mother tree. Nothing else in the forest displays white. Nearby a cluster of glistening pink fungus have interlocked their caps as if to protect a community of ferries. 

Deeper in the woods we come across the almost cartoonish Amanita or Fly agaric. With fat stem and bright yellow or red spotted cap it looks like an amusement park escapee. Our most poisonous mushroom, those who eat it experience a brief period of drowsiness followed by a drunk like excitement and then a deep coma like sleep. Some little creature has taken a bite out of this one but we don’t see it in the vicinity sleeping off a drunk.