Bright spirit

Gateways in Chinese temples can be very decorative. This looked like a recent addition to the narrow path up to one of the higher grottos in Bingling Si (Temple of the Bright Spirit). A large dam, the Liujiaxia Dam, was built across the Yellow River in the 1950s, flooding part of the backwaters. A wide walkway was tacked on to the cliffs here, wending past several of the caves which remain above the level of the water. I stopped on the path, unsure of which way to go, but happy to take in the first changes of leaf colours in this part of the world. The temple is at almost the same latitude as Palermo in Sicily, but the winds across the Asian steppes make it feel colder.

Autumn! Does the lady coming down the stairs count?