A walk in the wet fall woods

I keep waiting for one of those crisp fall days when the brightly colored leaves stand out against a vivid blue sky, but alas, the good weather comes only on days when I'm tied up in meetings. I drive to work in the dark every morning and no matter how clear the skies may be while I'm inside teaching classes, the clouds start to gather the minute I leave the building. Soon the leaves will fall and we'll be black to bare brown woods, so if I'm going to enjoy the fall colors, I'd better do it now regardless of the weather. 

And so we went out for a hike at Lake Katharine this morning, walking through constant drizzle over paths covered by slick wet leaves. Occasionally the dim woods would open up onto vistas of yellow and red leaves alongside the lake shrouded in mist. I walked through shooting pains in my hip and hobbled back to the car both refreshed and exhausted. Conditions were lousy and I wondered if we'd ever see the sun again even as the lovely fall colors pulled me onward. Light at the end of the tunnel! I just wish the tunnel weren't so wet, dark, and cold.