World Of Swirl

What to do on a gloomy, rainy autumn day? Why, experiment with slow shutter speeds, of course!

Blaze

So many beautiful trees! And so little time as the days are much shorter. I'm doing my office work during the evening so that I can be out the door early in the morning. I get home around dinner time and download my photos. Rinse and repeat.

Initially it was thought that we would have an early foliage season in New England this year. That hasn't turned out to be the case. Colors are lasting longer than I expected, especially up in north-central Maine.

Rather than drive several hours to a remote part of the state (as I have been doing for two weeks now) I figured I'd stick closer to home for today. This tree was photographed in my neighborhood just now.

Katahdin Shrouded...Mostly

Today I ventured up north to Millinocket, Maine (and nearby Baxter State Park, one of my favorite haunts).

Alas, I didn't make it into Baxter thanks in part to heavy winds and rain, which forced me to change my itinerary. "The worse the weather, the better the pictures" is an old adage among outdoor photographers. I think this is more or less true.

The rainbow above was a nice little gift for my efforts, even if the rainbow wasn't exactly "placed" where I would have liked it for a nicer composition, but oh well.

I met these two gentlemen while standing on the Abol Bridge outside of Millinocket, trying to catch a glimpse of Mt. Katahdin, which remained enshrouded in storm clouds for the remainder of the day.

The fellow on the left had just completed a through-hike of the AT (Appalachian Trail). An amazing accomplishment; it took him six months to complete the hike which begins in Georgia and ends at the summit of Katahdin. The AT is approximately 2,179 miles (or 3,506 km). The fellow on the right lives in NYC; he drove all the way up to Maine to pick up his frazzled friend.

I managed to hike several feet to my Toyota before driving approximately 100 miles to Bangor, mostly on a smooth interstate highway with a Thermos of hot coffee by my side. Such hardship.

Northern Road Trips 2010

The autumn colors are currently at their peak in northern Maine, New Hamshire and Vermont. Actually, it's sliding towards "past peak" in the northernmost areas of these states, and the peak is moving towards the central portions.

I'm "working" northern Maine and northern New Hampshire this week, driving along some of my favorite autumn roads while veering off course on a whim if I think there might be something to see. Sometimes there is and sometimes there isn't. But there's only one way to find out for certain, and it helps to have a willingness to take the road less traveled.

Speaking of Robert Frost, I'm off to northern New Hampshire this weekend. But not before I revisit Aroostook County, Baxter State Park and the Moosehead Lake region in Maine.

The trees are beautiful this year. Leaf drop continues to remain moderate in Maine despite Tropical Storm Nicole several days ago and frosts, winds and rain since that time. I find myself using a polarizer filter more often than usual these days.

More to come.

Old Meetinghouse

Passed by this old meetinghouse in northern Maine (Aroostook County) and the golden orange tree in front of this building was just amazing.

Interactive Foliage Map

If you live anywhere in New England (or if you're visiting during color season) you can send in reports via Yankee Magazine's interactive foliage map.

Sign up as an "Ambassador" (it's free) and add to the map while keeping an eye on how the fall colors are shaping up. There are also contests and prizes. Later!

Leafpile #7: September 23rd, 2010

Today is the first official day of autumn and as you can see from a recent kayaking trip, the fall colors haven't completely arrived in my part of the state just yet. But it won't be long.

Here's the second round of weekly foliage reports (for northern New England):

Maine - Moderate color change in the northernmost areas of the state (50%) or less). Cooler temperatures and shorter days mean that we'll see changes soon, however.
Read more

New Hampshire - White Mountains are beginning to show color. Some small pockets in the north showing a 25% or less color change, "...but with a frost forecast for this weekend, that could change as early as next week."
Read more

Vermont - 25% towards peak color for much of Vermont, but changes with cooler weather have been noticeable in the past five days alone.
Read more

Raking it all in: I'm heading up to northern Maine this weekend to look for moose and whatever early color there is and I'm going to check out the White Mountains area of NH just after the weekend.

2010 - A New Leaf

Well here we are - on the cusp of another leaf season in New England.

Last winter was quite mild overall by New England standards, with very little snow. This summer was one of the warmest on record for New England, with very little rain. So what kind of a color season are we going to have, anyway?

According to the first foliage report out of Maine (posted today), forestry officials think our leaf season will be "business as usual". The nights are cooler, the daylight shorter. Peak colors will kick in up north (Aroostook County in Maine) beginning in about 10 days.

There is definitely an autumnal bite to the air; it really does feel as though summer has ended in my part of Maine (Bangor region). I've already noticed the telltale scent of woodsmoke drifting through my neighborhood.

Usually September is one of the nicest months in Maine with balmy days, cool nights, fewer tourists and fewer biting insects. (Not to lump tourists and insects together there...sorry.)

A few trees here and there (in my area) are already showing early signs of color change. We'll see how things shake out over the coming days. We are nowhere near peak, however.

Elsewhere:
Vermont reports early color but also not near peak, same with New Hampshire. Early color exists in both states, but with less than 10% color change anywhere, I'm not going to tank up the Toyota just yet.