It was to be an ethereal autumn, to be nestled by the banks of Lake Towada, in Aomori, Japan, and to experience the beauty of Oirase Gorge and its surrounds.

And indeed if wishing to be in an ethereal moment was to be desirious of its eternity, then it was surely an outstanding …… but achingly fleeting experience.

In previous blogs, I had extolled the wonders of the “off-season” experience and why this window offers a reflective experience for a landscape that is on the brink of something past or to come.

I have since discovered that like Sister Miriam Winters‘ rendition of Joy, the longevity of Autumn, with its shimmering appendages, and the crumples of energy returned to the earth, is measured not by the certainty of time, but by the idiosyncrasies of wind, and rain.  

And so it was, on a wind-swept morning, heralded by a pre-dawn shower, that we experienced that briefest of experience, strewn with the memories of fallen branches and golden leaves, while the trees lay bare in homage to our Creator.            

Aomori Itinerary: Aomori City; Aomori Museum of Art – Yoshitomo Nara Respective, Jogakura Bridge, Nakano Momijiyama, Lake Towada, Oirase Gorge, Towada Art Centre, Suiren-numa Pond, Mt Hakkoda, Hirosaki Castle.   

Panasonic Lumix G9 and GF10. November 2023