Most of the woods here on the Naskeag Peninsula are a mixture of coniferous and deciduous trees. In September, the tree canopy is fairly well knitted together, the mossy trails below it often are in glowing shadow, and the treading usually is soft and silent enough to stalk deer and other animals (if the wind is right).
Now, hundreds of thousands of multi-colored leaves are spiraling down and turning crisp on the trails due to lack of rain; increasingly, light is pouring through the canopy in new streams, and the walking is too loud to stalk anything – crunch, crunch, crunch. It’s still beautiful, but we need rain. (Brooklin, Maine)