The Last Breath of Fall

It’s amazing how quickly the swamp transforms with just a few days’ time. When I was here only three days earlier, the landscape was still drenched in shades of green. But as the cold weather moved in and autumn deepened, the colors shifted almost overnight — golden hues replacing the greens, painting the cypress canopy in tones of fire and earth. That morning carried a quiet magic of its own — a thin veil of mist drifted just above the still, black water, softening the reflections and adding a touch of mystery. Though the dense fog that had been forecast never arrived, the subtle haze created a tranquil mood all its own. The water level had also dropped nearly six feet lower than in previous years, revealing a completely different perspective of the trees and their gnarled roots — a rare and captivating view I had never witnessed before. Photo © copyright by Kevin Reaves.