Autumn Path in the Black Hills

- At the time I took this image, I had been hiking up to friendship tower in the Black Hills. It’s a trail I hiked every evening after work for about 2 weeks during peak autumn. I stopped about 3/4 way up this hike to catch my breath, I bent over to rest & looked up to this incredible view of the trail disappearing into the colorful trees. It looks like a passageway to another realm. Every hike up here during autumn was special because you noticed the subtle changes in color & leaf placement. By the end of those two weeks all the leaves had fallen & the trees were bare with pointy branches. This experience helped give me exactly what I needed in my life at that time. Change. I began embracing it & not trying to control everything around me. Now I just flow with the wind, welcoming new beginnings & experiences.