FALL IN NEW ENGLAND: A KALEIDOSCOPE OF COLOR

This was my only photo trip this year, and it was fun and very colorful. It started with an overnight flight from San  Diego to Albany, New York via a stop  in Washington D.C., to meet the LightChase Photo Group in the early afternoon of October 11th. We then drove into Vermont and started our tour. The Fall colors were amazing. I had not seen these kinds of displays in a long time, and this was a banner year.

I had been instructed to be a minimalist when packing as I would be traveling in a Ford Escape with three others and would also be traveling with my walker/rollator. I succeeded in only having a shoulder camera bag, a carry-on sized bag which was able to hold my tripod, some backup gear, and some clothes, (I did have to factor in some winter-like layers as well.) as well as a small backpack. I

think I succeeded in being pretty light. 

 

On the way to our base house for the next three nights we stopped for dinner at a nice restaurant where we enjoyed getting acquainted a little more with each other. There were two couples: the Remys and Kerns, as well as myself and John Hewitt, along with our intrepid leader, Mark.

Once at the house, we all went about unpacking and getting ready for a full day of photography in the morning.

SATURDAY, 12 OCTOBER:

We first photographed around the grounds of our residence. The walker helped me to ascend and descend the hill behind our dwelling where we got a good overview of the area.

Then it was time for breakfast at the Peacham Cafe, where we all enjoyed a hearty meal.  

We visited the areas around Stowe, VT, as well as around Conway, N.H. Mark has explored this area for years and did a great job of finding great color and subject matter, but it was impossible to keep track of specific locations. We photographed a couple of covered bridges and the streams that they crossed.

The evening was spent back at our "house" with Chinese take-out for all.

SUNDAY, OCTOBER 13:

It was overcast this morning so we had a little extra time to pack our gear and then head out to find Fall color. It was explained that there is a difference in geology of the two states though they are neighbors.  Vermont has lower mountains and they are more rounded, while New Hampshire is more rugged with peaks and valleys. The colors in New Hampshire are more dynamic as well due to its geology. Mt. Washington, located in N. H., is the tallest mountain in New England and is home to some of the wildest wind and weather, and is located just North of Conway. We did not visit Mt. Washington, but did visit the town of Conway, which is only 8 miles from Fryeburg, Maine where I spent my Junior Year in High School at Fryeburg Academy.

We visited two covered bridges in the area -

Conway Covered Bridge:

Albany Covered Bridge:This bridge was constructed in 1858 and renovated in 1970. Yes, you can still drive over both of them.

MONDAY, 14 October: Today started with light  rain, but it was not an issue for us at the time. It did eventually get to be a steady rainfall so we had to take care to protect our cameras. 

It was fun capturing Fall color in different weather settings. Dinner tonight was in the town of Lincoln, N.H.

TUESDAY, 15 OCTOBER:

This morning we were off from the house at a reasonable time though we wanted to capture snow in the area. It was cold, but I was bundled up in my rain gear over my other layers, and was comfortable. We enjoyed breakfast at a local small restaurant.

The weather did not adversely affect the color show and the wind was not an issue. We did have some clouds which added to the picture taking. 

16 OCTOBER, Wednesday:

We found new things to photograph. There was a bit more snow on the mountains, and we were bundled up for it. We took a break mid-day and enjoyed the comfort of our house with a fire in the fireplace. We had a review of some our images and discovered that we all needed to clean our sensors, I had a large piece of dust(?) in the pictures of the rainbow that we had seen and photographed this morning. 

Mark had his sensor cleaning gear with him, and helped us all get rid of our dust spots. 

Later in the afternoon we went out once more before going to dinner.

Although there was no sunset color due to the overcast, we again enjoyed being out in nature and chasing the light and color. We enjoyed a nice meal at a local BBQ restaurant.

Once back at the house it was time for a shower and packing of our gear for tomorrow's travels. 

I will be dropped off in Lowell, MA so I can meet up with my brother and the others will head West to their homes in Ohio and Illinois.

In summary it was a good trip though I was limited due to my balance issues to where I could go. Mark was helpful and I was able to enjoy the adventure and being out in nature with my camera.