Skip to main content

Welcome the First Day of Fall

My sunflowers are still blooming into the autumn

 Happy first day of fall! Today is the Autumnal Equinox, and the smoke from wildfires in Washington, Oregon, and California has finally left the Treasure Valley. I woke up on Sunday morning to beautiful clear blue skies, a welcome sight after several weeks of smoke so thick that the sun barely peeked through. After a week of air quality alerts in Boise, which made it hard to exercise outdoors, this past weekend prompted lots of outdoor recreation, and there was a hint of fall in air. 

I love welcoming the autumn and noticing the cool, crisp mornings, changing fall colors, and taking delight in small things like hot coffee, various pumpkin recipes, and the beginning of a cozy season. This year looks a lot different for all of us, and routines have been upended, but fall is here, and choosing to mark time with the seasons can keep you in touch with nature and provide a sense of reassurance in an otherwise tumultuous season of life. 

Here are a few easy ways to delight in the beginning of autumn:

  • Buy some fall-flavored coffee to make for yourself at home, like Starbucks' Maple Pecan or Pumpkin Spice. Caribou Coffee also makes a magical ground coffee called Pumpkin Love. 
  • Take a fall hike in the Boise foothills. Over the weekend I started seeing beautiful yellow rabbitbrush along the trails near Hull's Gulch Reserve, and some of the gulches in the foothills are starting to feel like fall amongst the cottonwood trees. 
  • Make a fall-inspired recipe. Some of my favorites include Trader Joe's Fall Turkey Chili with Pumpkin, Maple Pecan Muffins, and Creamy Pumpkin Pie Bars.

Happy Autumn! 


Autumn walk along the Boise River 



Looking towards the beautiful Boise foothills 


Labels:
Location: Boise, ID, USA

Comments

  1. Eve ESeptember 22, 2020 at 6:32 AM

    Some pumpkin spice is in the mail to you right now! Expect it in a few days.

    ReplyDelete

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Morley Nelson Snake River Birds of Prey Driving Tour

Driving tour of Birds of Prey National Conservation Area - click here to see the brochure and map A couple of weeks ago, I took a driving tour of the Birds of Prey National Conservation Area. The driving route outlines some notable geographic features of the area, as well as bringing birds to great spots above the Snake River for catching glimpses of birds of prey. Read more about the history of this unique area here .  View of Initial Point Snake River at Celebration Park Helpful bird identification sign at Dedication Point This sign at the Kuna Visitors Center has great ideas for stops along the Western Heritage Historic Byway View from Dedication Point
Post a Comment
Read more

One Year in Boise!

  View from 8th Street Extension Trail  A beautiful morning walk in the foothills  This week marks my anniversary of living in Boise for one year! I can hardly believe that this time last year, I was arriving in the City of Trees, strolling along the Boise Greenbelt in awe, and taking photos of the river. In some ways, it feels inconceivable that a year has gone by, but in other ways, the amount of things I've done and places I've gone in Idaho this past year seem impressive. It seems like a common theme that individual moments and days can seem slow, but years fly by.  In honor of my one-year anniversary of living in Boise, I jotted down a list of some of my favorite memories of exploring this city and state.   Memories of this past year (in no particular order): Floating the Boise River twice Showing my parents Boise (driving up to Bogus Basin, running a half marathon, the farmer's market, biking the Greenbelt,  hiking Ridge to Rivers trails, etc) Le...
1 comment
Read more

Quarantine Driving Tour of Boise

Map of the Boise Driving Tour to go along with this guide. Find the map here . We're all still under the statewide Stay at Home order here in Idaho, but many of us are itching to get out and enjoy the beautiful spring weather we've been having. Luckily, outdoor recreation is still permissible and encouraged, as long as social distancing guidelines are followed.  Another great way to shake things up and enjoy the beauty of this time to year is to take a scenic drive around Boise. I put together a guide of some significant parts of Boise  Here is a map with directions between each stop on the driving tour: Boise Driving Tour Map 1. Start at the  Idaho State Capitol Building in downtown Boise. Did you know it's the only capitol building in the U.S. that is heated with geothermal water?   check out this online tour of the Capitol and this fact page on the Capitol .  2. Cruise through downtown and stretch your legs at Freak Alley Gallery ,  an a...
1 comment
Read more