Jeff Foliage… (Really it’s Jeff Folger but my editor at Yankee Magazine started calling me, Jeff Foliage). I’m a photographer and artist in Salem MA. Some would say I’m passionate about photographing New England’s fall foliage.

In the early years, Barbara Hall, my editor at Yankee Magazine said I was a bit “obsessed” with capturing Autumn’s fiery show. (They could be right) They even wrote an article about me titled:  The Leaf Seeker: Jeff Folger. I retired from the Air Force in 2003 and at that point, I discovered Yankee Magazines’ fall foliage website. I started asking questions in their foliage forum and learning from others. Soon, people were asking me, where to go.  My proudest moment was when Yankee Magazine asked me to be their first foliage blogger and tell everyone where I was finding peak fall foliage in my autumn travels or more importantly NOT finding it. 

Now it has been over 22 years since I first started searching for New England fall foliage and I’ve driven over 30,000 miles, chasing peak color and it doesn’t fail, someone will mention Peak fall color, and I still start thinking of my next foliage excursion. 

Why do Christmas and Autumn have much in common for me?

Over the years I’ve been interviewed by Conor Knighton of CBS Sunday Morning, BBC host Chris Packham of Autumn Watch New England, Jim Cantore of the weather channel, and WGBH radio host Callie Crossley in Boston, and a hundred newspapers around the world. They all asked one question…

They all have asked that age-old question. Why?

After 20 or so years, I think I finally have an answer to why I do this. Autumn is to me, an early Christmas present, and like Christmas, I was always trying to figure out what I was going to get.  Today as Spring progresses into summer, and then into fall, I will be looking at the weather, rain totals, along with other climate events to try and predict what we might get in the way of fall colors.

Can I do it with any real accuracy? Maybe, but it’s really more of an educated guess. Each year the trees are affected by so many different factors that it’s almost impossible to do it accurately. Even if I could be everywhere in New England every day, taking temps and soil samples, and measuring rainfall, it still would only be a guess.

So now I try to read the scientific reports and statistical info that NOAA puts out, I will admit much of it goes over my head. But I look at what they say and I try to watch how much rain New England gets versus if drought becomes a problem. All these things are tied into what our fall foliage season will become.

Reviews for Jeff Foliage

THANK YOU for all of your hard work. My husband and I just made our first road trip to New England from the western US. It took a lot of planning. I am SOOO happy I took your advice about the real possibility of a “slow burn”. We had originally planned on arriving at the end of September but changed our plans to a week later. That turned out to be perfect. It has all been so beautiful… Cheryl Hime

Thanks so much for sharing the fall foliage with all of us. although my wife and I miss not being there very much this year, your photography and perspective on things make us feel like we are there in our minds… You are APPRECIATED!!.. Hoss

Oh, my aching sides! I had tears laughing and hands clapping, applauding the adventure. I love that kind of “what the heck am I doing” road trip. Lisa, bless you! When I travel, the back roads call to me to stay away from the highway. I’ve been lost, pulled over by the police because I was doing 30mph on a 25mph Vermont road! In Vermont, we’ve been stuck in mud during the spring, spinning out on the ice during the winter, and drove on roads that seemed to have no end and loving every minute of it. Hope you videoed it! Mary L Penedo

Thanks, Jeff. Followed all your posts. I got to North Conway on Sept 29 and missed the peak in the north part of New Hampshire and the Kanc. But, I drove south to the lakes area, Lake Sunapee, Meredith NH, and other places south NH. I saw so many areas of peak foliage, I was so pleased. It was a great foliage season. I stayed 17 days. The only difference was the limited restaurant experience and meeting other people from all over the world. I had a fantastic foliage 2020. I am already looking forward to next year and, hopefully, if no issues with coronavirus, I will try to go to Acadia NP just before my NH visit. Thanks. Stay safe. Janice

Thanks for the reports. My wife and I returned last week from a tour of Maine, Vermont, New Hampshire, back to Maine, and then on to Massachusetts. Eight days and as per your reports the colors were not as spectacular as last year. But we made the best of it, some of it in the rain, and I got some decent pictures. I greatly appreciate what you and your wife do for the Leaf Peeping Community. Have a Healthy and wonderful Holiday Season… Joseph Pizzarello

Jeff, this article is so valuable because a lot of the places you mention are relatively close to me. Thanks for the information that one can drive to a viewpoint up Mt Tom! Jeff, speaking for myself, your articles/columns have been enjoyed this year more than ever, because aside from showing places it’s been difficult or impossible to get to this year, you’re just bringing us all this beauty to look at and marvel over. Thanks and love to you and Lisa for your undaunted spirit!… lighthouse75