Hillsides of colorful trees along I-90 in southeastern Minnesota Sunday morning.
I DID NOT EXPECT IT—leaves rusting under a gloomy, grey sky which gripped the second to last day of October like an iron fist.
Autumn seemed determined to hang on, to stand strong and sturdy against winter for one final weekend.
And it was a glorious one. Not glorious in the sense of sunny skies and warm weather.
But beautiful and wondrous and spectacular in the surreal scene of clouds and wisps of fog that pressed against the wooded Mississippi River bluffs along Interstate 90 in southeastern Minnesota Sunday.
As my husband and I traveled through the area between Nodine, Minnesota, and La Crosse, Wisconsin, and onto Tomah, I couldn’t take my eyes off the hillsides of trees shaded in muted hues of rust and moss green and the occasional spark of golden yellow.
I did not expect this so-late-in-October autumn beauty.
Despite the drive day of off-again, on-again rain and mist and pressing-down-upon-you iron grey skies, I felt myself appreciating the irrepressible beauty of the natural world around me.
Even on the dreariest of days, around each curve in the highway, a new scene unfolded and I couldn’t stop taking pictures between swipes of the windshield wiper blades.
Driving I-90 near Dresbach, heading toward La Crosse, fog shrouded the wooded bluffs.
Woods fade into sky into stone in this surreal setting Sunday morning near La Crosse.
And then, several hours later, we saw the same trees from a different perspective as we drove back from Tomah. Here we are driving into Minnesota from La Crosse.
I-90 hugs the bluffs on one side, the Mississippi River on the other along this picturesque stretch of winding roadway between the border and Dresbach.
Approaching Dresbach...
What most surprised me were all the leaves still clinging to branches. I expected most would have been blown off by fierce autumn winds. And the colors, oh, the rust of oaks, so beautiful.
© Copyright 2011 Audrey Kletscher Helbling
Minnesota Prairie Roots 
so pretty, I love the mist but not when driving.. you must have done some hard travelling!! c
The mist and rain really were not that bad. It was all just so lovely. We did some hard driving in that we drove for 2 1/2 hours, spent two hours with our daughter and her friend and then turned around and drove the 2 1/2 hours back to Faribault. It was a car exchange trip.
Very pretty colors, indeed! I see a face in your fall,bluff image 🙂 Glad you were able to soak in the autumn beauty while it remains!
That’s exactly what I thought: Enjoy the color while I can. Wouldn’t you know that today is bright and sunny here, two hours from the river.
I’m trying to see that face in the bluff. Maybe being from South Dakota helps, huh?
lol, yes, we see things with our special eyes! (I see one in the third photo from the top) Perhaps I watched Labyrinth one too many times as a kid 🙂