Tuesday, December 10, 2024
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PHOTOS: Chasing autumn down the Middle Fork

by CASEY KREIDER Daily Inter Lake
| November 3, 2024 12:00 AM

Snow-dusted summits rise up to fill the sky above hillsides covered in a vibrant tapestry of bright orange and yellow larches as the Middle Fork Flathead River weaves its way through John Stevens Canyon.  

A fly fisherman’s rod slings beads of water into an arc as he snaps his looping line back and forth across the surface of the river. A photographer grins as he crunches down a path of fallen leaves to a sweeping view of fiery foliage and freshly-frosted craggy peaks. 

Don’t blink, shoulder season is fleeting. A single night will transform this palette of warmth into a canvas of white as the prevailing winds whip up a frenzy of fresh snow, leaching the landscape of the last traces of autumnal glow. 

    Larches color a hillside above the Middle Fork Flathead River in John F. Stevens Canyon. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider 
 
 



    The snow-dusted peak of Glacier National Park's Mount Saint Nicholas rises behind a larch-covered hillside along U.S. Highway 2 on Wednesday, Oct. 23. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider 
 
 


    Milan Mena casts a line into the Middle Fork Flathead River below Loneman Mountain. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider 
 
 


    Larches color a mountainside in John F. Stevens Canyon along U.S. Highway 2 on Wednesday, Oct. 23. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider 
 
 


    Larch needles along the Middle Fork Flathead River and U.S. Highway 2. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider 
 
 


    Fall colors and low clouds between Deerlick Creek and the shoulder of Mount Penrose along U.S. Highway 2 on Wednesday, Oct. 23. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider 
 
    Larches color a hillside above the Middle Fork Flathead River in John F. Stevens Canyon. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider 
 
 
 
    The snow-dusted peaks of Glacier National Park's Mount Doody, left, and Battlement Mountain behind a larch-covered hillside along U.S. Highway 2 on Wednesday, Oct. 23. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider 
 
 
    The snow-dusted flank of Mount Penrose is seen behind a larch-covered mountainside along U.S Highway 2. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider 
 
 
    Larches along the Middle Fork Flathead River and U.S. Highway 2. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider 
 
 
    Larches color a mountainside over the Middle Fork Flathead River. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider 
 
 
    Milan Mena casts a line into the Middle Fork Flathead River below Loneman Mountain. (Casey Kreider/Daily Inter Lake)
 Casey Kreider