Greetings Leaf Peepers far and wide! Lisa and I just got back from a trip up north to New Hampshire and Maine. The colors while bright in many areas, they were subdued in others. We found the brown leaves a distraction but as I’ve said for the past few weeks, if you are finding brown or bare trees get back in the car and MOVE!. Also shooting from a greater distance like looking down from Table Top Rock in the Dixville Notch image below, it’s hard to pick out all the bare trees (but they are there).

We drove up Route 16 and the morning of the 5th started out very foggy. It was starting to clear by the time we hit Lake Chocorua but as I’ve been saying the fall colors are still north of Conway and I was right. By the time we got to Pinkham Notch, the colors were getting really bright and I stopped at the wide pullout to look down the valley.

We continued North on 16 to Gorham and we were surprised by how bright the colors were in Gorham and in Berlin NH. We stopped in the Milan State Park to meet with some Friends that came over from England. Then we traveled to Dixville Notch after seeing all the wonderful images this past week. After that we made our way through to Maine traveling down Route 26 to Bethel where we stayed at the Elizabth Inn. It was a good place and comfortable and we ate at a burger joint down the road.

In the morning we traveled through to Stark where the colors were very nice. The woman who runs the Stark Inn (B&B) said she had to raise the room cost, it’s now $75 per night for a double. Needles to say this is one of the best deals in New England. We got to Groveton and I caught some of my best pics ever because the hills beyond the bridge were all lit up in color. Then we found our way back way to Lancaster and Route 3.

We got off Route 3 at Weeks State Park and did you know that this park is FREE to drive up? The house tour costs $5 but you can drive to the top and on a clear day see all the mountains in the Presedential Range.

We continued toward heading home but Lisa decided we would go and take 116 over to the Pondicherry Wildlife Refuge. We pulled on our walking shoes and made the 1.5-mile trek to the viewing stand and once there I laid down on a bench… It shows I don’t get enough walking in. But this is a very easy walk and is a straight, pebbled road. But! no motorized vehicles. You can walk, bike, or ride a horse only.

The clouds were moving in and as we got down to the junction of Route 3 and 302 I was really tempted to drop down through Crawford Notch, even if it was going to rain. But we stayed on Route 3 to I-93 and on our way home. This is what Lisa and I saw this week and what I “think” will happen will be down below.

My photographer friends have been posting pictures from around northern Vermont, New Hampshire, and Massachusetts which combined with my webcam views of New England gives me a pretty good idea of what is going on.

What has been seen in the past few days…

Some of my photographer friends who have been out on the road this past week.

Vermont

John Rowe Photography shot this image of Kettle Pond in Grafton State Park Vermont

Kettle Pond can be found in Grafton State Park Vermont and off of Route 232. Here you will find the entrance to drive up Owls Head Scenic View Road, where you can get a view of the Kettle Pond and other ponds and hills nearby.

Maine

Lisa and I drove into Maine on Route 26 and came down through Grafton Notch State Park (there are several different “Graftons” in New England). Visit my Vistaphotography Gallery for more.

Why I really stopped for this picture is the cloud forming around the peak far above. I love it when atmospherics like this happen. Here is an atmospheric shot of Northwestern Maine in the previous year. Showing you what I mean by Atmospheric might be easier.

New Hampshire

Chris Whiton of White Mountain Images submitted this image of Bretton Woods and the Mount Omni Hotel.

Not every panoramic view out there has to be a drone shot. Chris took the Gondola up and took this panoramic shot.

Massachusetts

John Burk Photography submitted this image of one of the colorful areas on Mount Greylock Massachusetts

John says “Red maple wetlands have been looking pretty good. At Greylock on Thursday, there was already high leaf drop, even some sticks in places (the photo was a rare good color spot) at most elevations. Mohawk Trail had some early color in the deep valley in Charlemont. Couldn’t see a lot because of the thick fog early and coming back in the dark”…. Thanks, John.

Mark Spremulli Photography submitted this image of a Cranberry Bog in Carver Massachusetts, taken 7 Oct 23.

Jeff’s thoughts on Oct 8-13

I have published my 2024 fall foliage calendar. This year I created my calendar with 12 scenic months of New England images. This will allow you to explore New England from top to bottom in all seasons. Also, on the same page, is my 2024 covered bridge calendar and a Winter in New England. Click the link on my calendar page to go to Lulu.com and view/purchase.

Well I’m always cautious to be too optimistic because I don’t want to get your hopes up but if you are in New Hampshire or Vermont today (Saturday) is your rainy day to deal with. Tomorrow the rain starts to leave and Monday through the first part of next week appears to clear (it does appear at this time to be coming back next weekend but at this moment the rain percentages are not high (yet)

The next good part is the rain (yes this is a good part) The winds are low, so while we get rain, we are not getting windy conditions during the next week. So if you are here through the week you should also be seeing the leaves on the trees and not ALL on the ground.

The temps from Sunday on are more in line with October Temps. 60s during the day and 30-40s at night and this is going to help speed things up a bit. So be ready for very chilly mornings as you get to Dunkin’s to get your HOT Pumpkin Spice coffee…

Where to look this coming week…

If you are coming for a drive on the Kancamagus, do it because nothing I see indicates that the Kanc is done right now. I think you should be able to drive through the White Mountains and the NorthEast Kingdom and see really pretty color, BUT… But, be aware that after a couple of days of rain, some leaves will be down on the ground. If you find such a spot, move your feet.

Also start looking in the southern portions of NH, VT, and ME. I’m seeing very colorful images around Killington and Stoddard NH. Massachusetts is also showing color along the Mohawk Trail (Route 2) and that means all the small towns between Route 2 and the northern border are going to be prime for the colors. Massachusetts has a small number of covered bridges to go and find and a town of historical sites and National Parks.

Jeff Foliage Folger

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

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