Guy Tal | Photographer, Author

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One of the ways aspen trees propagate is by growing new trees out of the roots of older ones, resulting in groups of genetically identical specimens, referred to as clonal colonies. Different trees turn at different times and trees that are genetically similar turn together. This phenomenon creates patches of color where different groups of trees in the grove change at different times. Colors range from bright green through fiery yellow and all the way to deep orange and pink.

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A mountain lion (cougar/puma) left these fresh tracks among fallen aspen leaves. For all the years I’ve been photographing in these places, this is the only time I saw a live mountain lion in the wild.

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A storm the previous day blew these colorful leaves to the ground. Many have not yet fully turned and those that have were in various stages of decay resulting in a dazzling array of colors, patterns, and textures.

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Aspen trees and dogwood bushes reflecting in a mountain lake.

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Aspen trees in late autumn, about to shed the last of their leaves.

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Bracken ferns line the bottom of a grove of young aspen trees in the peak of autumn color. The curving trunks made me think of a slow sensuous dance.

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Aspen trees growing against a red sandstone wall. The title refers to the fact that it’s very rare for aspen trees and sandstone to exist in the same place. Aspens generally grow at high elevation, while red sandstone generally is found in the lower, hotter, parts of the desert. This is the only place I know where red sandstone is found high enough so that aspen trees can grow in the same place.

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Aspen leaves floating among intricate foam patters at the outlet of an alpine lake.

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New foliage on aspen trees and snowberry bushes in dazzling autumn display among the skeletons of trees killed by wildfire years before.

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Small grove of aspens looms out of thick fog in winter.

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Aspen trees, bare for the winter, atop a high desert plateau. The canyon country below, covered in thick fog, the peaks of desert mountains loom in the distance.

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Aspen trees on the shore of a thawing lake. The spaceship-looking ovals are spots where the ice had melted faster thanks to underwater springs.

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Aspen boles in winter. Recently-dead trees turn a bright orange before drying up.

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Soft afternoon winter light filters through an old aspen grove.

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Bare aspen trees in winter, covered in hoar frost from a passing storm.

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Dormant aspen trees engulfed in wintry mist.

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Aspen trees in deep winter slumber in a clearing in a thick grove. Soft mist filled the grove as a calm winter storm passed through.

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Aspen trees in winter fog.

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Aspen trees in spring, glowing in the last of the warm sunlight, seen from my campsite.

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Aspen and dogwood grow among the Sierra Nevada granite boulders.

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Aspen grove against a backdrop of the slope of a desert mountain, green with new growth as spring arrives and the last of the snow had melted.

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Last light of the day, camping in a high-elevation aspen grove. In the summer months, these high groves provide shade and comfortable temperatures while the desert below bakes in the heat.

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In these high sagebrush-covered plains, thunderstorms can be violent, but usually for short periods as storm cells wander around the landscapes. The light during such storms, on the other hand, can be profoundly peaceful and revitalizing.

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Gently making its way through a grassy alpine meadow, this creek will eventually become a desert river destined to travel some of the most scenic desert canyons on Earth before arriving at the Pacific Ocean.

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Bare aspen trees against a backdrop of crimson-colored willows during an early snow storm.

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Last of the autumn foliage still clings to these young aspens as they prepare for the big sleep.

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Aspen trees in fog during spring rainstorm.

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First snow falling over aspen grove in autumn color.

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Aspen grove in thick fog during a summer monsoon rainstorm.

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Aspen trees reflecting in alpine lake.

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Fallen aspen tree, likely felled by avalanche, supported by its brethren.

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Burned aspen snags lit by the low sun in winter.

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A cold autumn morning by an alpine beaver pond surrounded by aspen trees.

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Vibrant new foliage on aspen trees growing in an alpine meadow. The last of winter’s snow still lines gullies in the steep slopes beyond.

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Young aspen tree catching the last light of the day.

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Yet-to-turn aspen trees mixed with maples in vibrant autumn display.

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A thick aspen grove reduced to thin, faded lines in winter.

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Red leaf on fresh snow
Autumn is no longer here
Sadness lies ahead

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Testament to their tenacity, these stunted and wind-beaten little aspens grow on a precarious exposed promontory.

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Last leaves adorn a lone aspen tree that has yet to shed its autumn coat.

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Last of the autumn leaves in an aspen grove.

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Multicolored aspens in autumn display.

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After a good rainy season, this aspen sapling sprouted at the edge of an alpine lake. In time, the water will recede back to its normal levels.

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Bark and fallen aspen leaf.

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Tall aspen trees glowing in the last light of the day.

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Aspen groves in vibrant autumn colors catching a last rays of sun before an evening storm moves in.

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Aspen tree trunks embracing each other against a lichen covered rock wall.

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Varied autumn colors in aspen trees.

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A small aspen tree growing among a thick forest of its brethren, holds on to its leaves for just a few more days.

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Last of the golden foliage on mountain aspen. These leaves were mostly blown away by a passing storm the following evening.

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These unusually tall aspen trees receive the last of the sunlight on a late autumn evening after a difficult season of drought.

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Aspen trees in a high mountain meadow, set against a backdrop of cloud shadows on a mountain slope.

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Low clouds fill a valley between an aspen grove and distant mountains.

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Vibrant new foliage on aspen trees growing in an alpine meadow. The last of winter’s snow still lines gullies in the steep slopes beyond.

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A momentary break in a large storm. Seconds after, this area was hit with a hailstorm that left a layer of hailstones on the ground 3-4” thick. Much of the colorful foliage was gone.

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A final touch of sunlight on a small aspen grove before it was ravaged by a major hailstorm.

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Last rays of sunlight caress a desert mountain slope as a heavy storm moves in.