Do you Explore or do you just look for Peak Color?

First, they are not mutually exclusive. You can explore AND look for peak fall colors. We are, after all, leaf peepers and that is the trophy that we are visiting New England to find…

Fall colors at Belvidere Pond — Belvidere Pond in Belvidere Vermont, view in my gallery.

When you go looking for fall foliage, are you really open to the experience? Or are you locked into only being happy if you find peak fall colors? For each and every one of us, the experience is different as well as how we enjoy it.

I do want to find peak colors but Lisa and build our itineraries around new places that we have never visited before. This way if the colors are not there, then we still have the experience of discovery to enjoy.

I took a long drive up to northern New England and met with a friend (Gustav Verderber) who lives in the North East Kingdom of Vermont. Being the 2nd week of September we were not surprised to not find any color here but the signs were everywhere that with a mild frost or two the colors would soon be arriving.

Being open to the experience

Almost everybody focuses their rapt attention skyward and on what comes around the next bend. I know because I find myself doing this also. 🙂

On this morning with Gustav, we made our way up through Hazens Notch Road. I noticed a post made of a tree with a railroad lamp and made a mental note to stop on the way back. This story might have ended if Gustav had taken us over the notch and kept going but since we didn’t want to go to Montgomery and its many covered bridges today, we turned around.

Heading back, I suddenly spotted that lamp. I stopped and looked at it for a minute. I got out and went around the car when he said to make it quick… You see the homeowner had a “Don’t tread on me” flag hanging from his balcony. I think Gustav was considering the chances that the gentleman who lived here might take offense and fire a shot to get us on our way…

railroad lantern in hazens notch — An interesting marker for someone’s address on Route 58, Hazens Notch.

The rest of the day I kept looking around the next corner and skyward but I also tried to be open to the experience of exploring and making images that were presented to me.

It’s not about the Destination, It’s the Journey

There is a lot of wisdom about not focusing on the destination but instead focusing on the journey that gets you there. One reason I love Lisa is that she helps me break the pattern of driving hellbent on seeing what a destination looks like instead of stopping to see things along the way.

I was at Crystal Lake in Eaton New Hampshire and down at the lake there was no fog so I left. I ended up driving up a nearby mountain road. Even though this day’s “destination” disappointed me, I had begun to explore a road I had never been on and really had no idea where it would take me…

As I got to the top of this very steep dirt road, I drove through some fog. I again felt angry that the fog was up here and not down on the lake. (wait for it…)

Foggy Road in Eaton New Hampshire. View this in my gallery.

That was when I took a look in my rearview mirror… I hit the brakes and grabbed my camera. I love atmospheric shots where the sun comes streaming through the fog. The fall colors weren’t bad but timing it when the fog appeared was about perfect. I drove along this road till it came back into Tamworth. This whole day from this point on was one incredible image after the next. Here is an article about driving around Tamworth New Hampshire.

My destination was the lake and I suppose I could have gone home disappointed but instead, I was open to the experience of exploring past my destination. Just for your notes, during an average year, Tamworth New Hampshire is usually very pretty around 14 October.

Jeff Foliage Folger

Autumn is a state of mind more than a time of year – Jeff Foliage

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