My Top 10 Reasons to Look for Fall Color
People are always asking me, WHY go looking for the fall colors?.
I have to admit; I am a BIT obsessed with New England fall foliage. For some reason magazines, radio, and TV all feel it’s strange that I focus so much of my time on this one subject.
I think many of you are just like this as well. Well, who can blame us? The fall colors show up and “leaf” in so short a period, only to be whisked away by an errant breeze or autumn rain passing through, creating a carpet red and orange on the ground.
My Top Ten Reasons to Go in Search of Fall Colors
10 – I love to get out and find a new spot that I’ve never been to before! (Although I do revisit my favorites each year).
9 – Getting out gives me a reason to get away from the computer. Don’t get me started on that… It helps me to connect with the natural world.
8 – I get to meet people of a like mind, who are out looking for the same thing as me.
7 – I love to sit down under a big old tree in a flame of red or orange, or orange and yellow, or red and yellow, pick your favorite color combo. Anyway, taking a walk through a cemetery on a sunny afternoon and standing under a tree to look up at the back-lit leaves (with a camera of course) is my idea of a great day.
6 – It goes without saying I like to find little back roads that lead to unexpected things. Things or places or barns or well, you get the idea. These things have been long forgotten, or at least never explored by me.
5 – Hills dappled in sunlight from passing clouds making the colors glow. I also have a rest stop on I-89 (mile marker 38, northbound side) that is on the side of a hill. As you look across the valley and past the highway, you can see dappled hills of red-orange and yellow.
4 –Sharing these experiences is so much fun! This is something I love to do and if I’m lucky I get to share the finding of these things with my wife. We take weekly trips in late Sept and October where we explore new scenic locations. That makes the finding even more special!
3 – Memories, Autumn seems to be a time of memories. Kicking up a pile of leaves and watching them rain back down, brings back memories of a fall, an autumn so long ago. Maybe your father or a neighbor would burn piles of leaves (I know that isn’t a “green” thing to do) but it smelled wonderful, with the leaf-scented smoke filling the neighborhood.
2 – Sharing my photos here with all of you allows me to bring the greatest show in New England to thousands of fall foliage leaf peepers who may never get to witness a beautiful fall afternoon here in New England.
***And my number 1 Reason to get out and find fall color!***
1 – It’s the chance to get out and make new memories, practice what I preach about “being in the moment” and of course last but never least…. IT’S ALL ABOUT THE FALL COLORS!!!
So when or if you get out in the woods remember back on this and if you have a minute, drop a comment here and let me know what you enjoy most about getting out and looking for the fall colors…
Remember you can also go to the Autumn Fall foliage Facebook Group. Remember to answer the intro questions when you ask to join the group.
Once you join you can post your fall images from past years until Sept and from Sept till early November, we only allow people to post images from that particular year with location and date. Talk about up to date… 🙂
Jeff Foliage Folger
Autumn is a state of mind more than a time of year – Jeff Foliage
- Visit my Fine Art America Gallery
- Visit my Amazon store to pick up New England-related materials
- Visit my Pictorem Gallery (Free shipping in the US and Canada)
- My Facebook foliage page
- Threads.net/@Jeff_Foliage
- Follow our new Fall Foliage FB Group!
- You can visit Lisa’s Artist Facebook Page by clicking here
I cannot WAIT to get up to Vermont. We’re going up for Columbus Day week and plan on getting up early most days to catch the morning light. My favorite place and my favorite time of year.
Love that shot from Chocorua Jeff.
After reading your top 10 reasons to look for fall color, my husband and I are definitely going to jump in the car and do some leaf peeping….after checking weather and our calendar, we decided on Sept 28, 29, 30 as approximate dates of our little get-a-way,,,,where do you suggest for color and convenience not more than 4 hours away? where to stay? not looking for hiking or walking, just riding and looking….we are both on the elderly side, but adventuresome. Any suggestions? Have been online and ended up at Chalet of Canandaigua in and around Finger Lakes….what do you think as far as color??? Hoping you can help us!
Miriam and George Wilson
Hi Miriam, I pulled up their location for the Chalet of Canandaigua and I was thinking closer to Columbus Day weekend. But since I don’t normally get out too far into New York (like ever) I called them up and they confirmed the between the 5 to the 22 is usually better.
Now the bad news… All their Friday/Saturdays are gone. They have one room as of 4:58PM EST for Sun-Thursday 11-15 October. They also have a little room 5-8 October so you have two choices. If you have to have the 28-30th of Sept then you will want to drive over to the Appalachians.
If you can drop back later to the 1st or 2nd week in Oct then you will either have to pick mid week or start calling around to other hotels and Inns.
You can also hit my Thrifty Lodgings page (https://jeff-foliage.com/thrifty-lodging/) where I have links to B&B.com, Combined Hotels.com AND Booking.com where put can in the town name and they will tell you based on your dates desired as to what is available.
I’m sorry I can’t be more help.
Thanks so much, Jeff, for making that call to the Chalet and for getting back to me so quickly…..we did decide not to go on the weekends anyway and the weather looks good for Sept 28, 29, and 30, plus we’re going to stick with those dates because we have to go to Hilton Head in October…..you mentioned driving over to the Appalachians, but which state and can you give me some towns to type in for the location?