Good Morning, 99%'ers! Today's Open Thread is what I started to write about last week and then let the Floridiots distract me. Enjoy.

During the third week in October in western North Carolina, we are at the peak of what is known as "leaf peeping" season. Here in the lower elevations in town, the trees are in the early stages of fall color, but up on the mountains, they are in their full glory. Many tourists come to drive the Blue Ridge Parkway, with all of its wonderful scenic vistas, and to view fall color in the mountains. Access to the Blue Ridge Parkway is easy from Brevard with a relatively short drive up US 276 north to where it intersects with the Blue Ridge Parkway. The drive up US 276 to the Parkway is very beautiful in and of itself with Looking Glass Falls, Sliding Rock, and the Cradle of Forestry Center along the way.

Many tourists prefer to stay in this area as it is much lower key and more affordable than Asheville, which is 35 miles up the road. During our weekly Peace vigil last Saturday, there was a actually a traffic jam in downtown as a result of all the tourists in the area, nearly all of whom were heading up to the mountains to take a scenic drive of fall color. Most of the predictions I have read say that we should have above average fall color this year, but that is a best guess too.

So what is it that makes the leaves change color and how do the prognosticators know if it should be a good year for color? Predicting good fall color is not completely scientific, but there is a science behind the changes to the leaves during the fall.

Deciduous trees generally take on some fall color before dropping their leaves. During the growing season the leaves are green due to the presence of chlorophyll which does not absorb the green wave length of the light spectrum, thus making leaves appear green to our eyes. The presence of Chlorophyll in the leaves masks out any other colors in the leaves during the growing season. Chlorophyll is the chemical in plants and trees that allows for the conversion of light into energy by a process called photosynthesis.

Photosynthesis is a process used by plants and other organisms to convert light energy, normally from the Sun, into chemical energy that can be later released to fuel the organisms' activities.

The trees are using the energy created by photosynthesis to take water and carbon dioxide to produce simple sugars which nourish them during the growing season. At the same time, the trees continue to manufacture more chlorophyll to keep the process going.

These sugars are the basis of the plant's nourishment — the sole source of the carbohydrates needed for growth and development. In their food-manufacturing process, the chlorophylls themselves break down and thus are being continually "used up". During the growing season, however, the plant replenishes the chlorophyll so that the supply remains high and the leaves stay green.

What happens in autumn is as the daylight hours become shorter and the temperatures get cooler, the veins in the leaves that carry the chlorophyll necessary for photosynthesis begin to narrow as the process begins to shut down for the winter months. As less and less chlorophyll is delivered to the leaves, they appear to change color due to the carotenoids which are always present, but have been masked by the chlorophyll during the growing season. Carotenoids are essential to the process of photosynthesis, but we just do not see their presence in the leaves during the growing season.

Carotenoids serve two key roles in plants and algae: they absorb light energy for use in photosynthesis, and they protect chlorophyll from photodamage

We do see the presence of carotenoids in many of our fruits and vegetables and they are essential to our own health as they function as antioxidants.

Carotenoids are the pigments that give fruits and vegetables such as carrots, cantaloupe, sweet potato, and kale their vibrant orange, yellow, and green colors. Beta-carotene, lycopene, and lutein are all different varieties of carotenoids. They all act as antioxidants with strong cancer-fighting properties.

But during the fall when so many species of trees take on brilliant colors, carotenoids are largely responsible for those colors. And that is a simple explanation of fall color.

Carotenoids are responsible for the brilliant yellows and oranges that tint deciduous foliage (such as dying autumn leaves) of certain hardwood species as hickories, ash, maple, yellow poplar, aspen, birch, black cherry, sycamore, cottonwood, sassafras, and alder. Carotenoids are the dominant pigment in autumn leaf coloration of about 15-30% of tree species. However, the reds, the purples, and their blended combinations that decorate autumn foliage usually come from another group of pigments in the cells called anthocyanins. Unlike the carotenoids, these pigments are not present in the leaf throughout the growing season, but are actively produced towards the end of summer.

Catching autumn colors at their peak is a best guess sometimes and not all trees peak at the same time. I have noticed that younger trees seem to change earlier than more mature trees of the same variety. Sometimes, just one tree can produce a spectacular show of color each year. I remember one nearby tree that becomes a brilliant gold, particularly when the light hit is just right.

Perhaps my most memorable experience of fall color happened our first year here. My husband and I were treated to one of the most spectacular shows of fall color on November 1 as we were driving south on US 276 over Cedar Mountain and Caesar's Head. The South Carolina side of this road is very steep and curvy with little development so it is heavily forested. It was about 10 am in the morning and the sunlight through the hickory trees made the yellow gold of the leaves glisten brilliantly. It was like driving through a tunnel of gold. That one time was serendipity of the right day and the right light. I have never experienced anything like it since.

The video below was made four or five years ago as a promotion for Transylvania County where I live much of the year. It was shot in late autumn when the colors were gorgeous. Every time I watch it, I get goose bumps. Enjoy the beautiful fall colors and just two of our over 200 waterfalls here.

[video:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ESa5xJF6z84]

One note: It looks like the backpackers will be arriving shortly after lunch. I still have some work and shopping to do in advance of opening up the gg Bed and Breakfast to host three guests, so I may not be on line much today.