Last fall, I spent an afternoon paddling around backwaters and Rice Lake, just downstream of Marine on St. Croix. My camera captured a little of the beauty I witnessed.

The colors were brilliant, the sun shining, the sky that certain blue, and the water high enough to explore hard-to-reach areas. Yellow leaves drifted down from the silver maples and settled on the water surface.

The outing was a rare opportunity to slow down and soak in the season, before winter arrived. I tried to capture some of that relaxed pace in this leisurely video. It does jump around, so different parts of the paddle are juxtaposed against other sections. Don’t look for a linear route!

Hopefully, the river will soon be ice-free again, and once more open to exploration by boat.

The music is the London Philharmonic Orchestra performing the first movement of Beethoven’s Concerto No. 5, in E-flat Major, recorded in October 1938.

Note: Any green plants on the banks are invasive buckthorn. It seems like a key area to stop the spread of this noxious plant while it’s still possible.