A Tree Revealed. © Copyright 2022 G Dan Mitchell.
The branches of a winter oak tree, with only a few autumn leaves remaining.
This tree stands alongside a trail that I’ve hiked for years, one that runs up a little valley in the oak-grassland hills south of the San Francisco Bay. I have hiked here in all seasons for decades, but I think winter is still my favorite on this route. On Christmas Eve Day, it was sunny and pleasantly cool, with haze muting the light a bit. I approached this tree from the other side, and didn’t see the color of the leaves until I looked back it after passing.
It might surprise people from other parts of the country, but quite a few trees around here still have their leaves, either because they never drop them or because, like this oak, they manage to hang onto them all the way into the new year. While this oak still has a few leaves, glowing in the sunlight, most of them have fallen, revealing the silhouette of the trees branching structure.
G Dan Mitchell is a California photographer and visual opportunist. His book, “California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra” is available from Heyday Books, Amazon, and directly from G Dan Mitchell.
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