Home · Register · Join Upload & Sell

Moderated by: Fred Miranda

New fredmiranda.com Mobile Site

New Feature: SMS Notification alert

New Feature: Buy & Sell Watchlist

FM Forums | Trip Location Advice & Meet-ups | Join Upload & Sell

2 3 end

Archive 2022 · New England Fall Color

gdanmitchell
Online
• • • • • • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #1 · p.1 #1 · New England Fall Color

I started this thread since the chances that we might attempt a New England autumn visit just increased a bit. (I've been following two separate threads, one on Vermont and another on New Hampshire — and rather than double-posting in both it seemed like a new thread could combine them.)

I'm pretty far out of my league when it comes to this area. Aside from frequent visits to NYC, I've only been to New England once... about a week ago! We were in Southwestern Vermont in the Wilmington area.

From what I read here and elsewhere, the color starts in the north and works its way south over a period from roughly the very end of September through about three weeks into October in a typical year. With that in mind — and working around some scheduling limitations of our own — we're imagining something like the following...

We might be in the region between about October 8 and 15. We initially considered flying in/out of Boston, but we have much better flight options thru Newark-Liberty, so we are pretty sure we'll start and end there. We'd rent a car and head north, when we arrive, probably starting out by heading to northern Vermont and New Hampshire. From there we imagine working our way gradually back toward the south (perhaps heading toward the Berkshires near the end?) and eventually back to EWR for the return flight.

From what I gather, this would likely put us in the zone for good color during this period, though perhaps a bit on the trailing edge in the far north. To those of you who are familiar with the area and the seasonal color, are we on the right track? Thoughts about a large loop that would have us on the road between about 10/9 (the day after we arrive) and 10/14 (the day before we depart)?

On our recent visit (late-August) we enjoyed the Wilmington area (and a bit north and east), though it often seemed difficult to find open landscape views. (Instead I often photographed close-in forest subjects.) We also enjoyed our two brief forays into the Berkshires area to see "The Mount" and The Clark Museum.

Thanks in advance for advice!

Dan

(As a fall-back we have some alternative ideas for our fall color foray that could take us back to Utah, a favorite at this time of year, and/or the eastern Sierra* and possibly Nevada.)

* I love the Sierra, but I've been photographing it for decades. In fact, I have a book out: "California’s Fall Color: A Photographer’s Guide to Autumn in the Sierra" from Heyday Books. I'll likely make it up there briefly again this year... but I'm looking for something new!

Sep 03, 2022 at 12:21 PM

colormuse
Offline
• •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #2 · p.1 #2 · New England Fall Color

Dan,
It has been a number of years since I went leaf-peeping extensively in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. But I recall years when the colors were kinda lousy in ME and NH, they were invariably marvelous in VT. Northern NH, north of the White Mountains, offers some nice scenes, but to my mind, not worth another visit.

If you're thinking of checking out the White Mountains, and the foliage reports are saying "spectacular", some roads can be moving parking lots, and pulling over for that perfect shot can be problematic. If you happen to run into rainy/windy weather, that'll rip the leaves off the branches in no time at the higher altitudes.

I had assumed that Vermont would be a washout this fall, due to the intense drought conditions we've been experiencing in Massachusetts. But the Burlington Free Press seems to believe otherwise. So I'd check this out:

https://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/story/news/local/vermont/2022/08/23/leaf-peeping-colors-prediction-vermont-fall-autumn-2022/65413471007/

There are number of websites, state sponsored and otherwise, that offer day-to-day foliage reports and auto viewing routes as well. I've found them to be reasonably accurate, although occasionally overly enthusiastic. After all, they're there to encourage tourism.

Vermont is crisscrossed with a spiders web of back country dirt roads, all well maintained (at least when I was visiting regularly). I'd definitely pick up a copy of the Vermont Road Atlas and Guide, published by Northern Cartographic.

Have fun!
Merrill

Sep 03, 2022 at 03:33 PM

gdanmitchell
Online
• • • • • • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #3 · p.1 #3 · New England Fall Color

colormuse wrote:
Dan,
It has been a number of years since I went leaf-peeping extensively in Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. But I recall years when the colors were kinda lousy in ME and NH, they were invariably marvelous in VT. Northern NH, north of the White Mountains, offers some nice scenes, but to my mind, not worth another visit.

If you're thinking of checking out the White Mountains, and the foliage reports are saying "spectacular", some roads can be moving parking lots, and pulling over for that perfect shot can be problematic. If you happen to run into rainy/windy weather, that'll rip...Show more →

- - -

Thanks for replying.

I've already seen a number of the fall color websites that were mentioned in the other threads on New Hampshire and Vermont, and what I found there is partially the source of some of my general ideas about this potential last-minute visit plan.

The "moving parking lots" point makes sense, and I noticed on my recent Vermont visit that finding places to pull over and photograph here is difficult. (I'm used to the West, largely California, where there are far more opportunities to pull over, set up a tripod, and make photographs.) The dense forest and relatively flat landscape (at least compared to what I'm used to) also present challenges that are new to me.

In addition, during my recent Vermont visit I became aware of the side road situation... and I explored a few of those in the area north of Wilmington. Given a few years (like the decades I've spent exploring the Sierra), I think I could eventually find some interesting subjects well off the beaten path.

Having noted all of this, one bit of advice that I've often offered to folks coming to "my" Western landscapes for the first time is to not attempt to start with the "secret places" that locals learn about over years of persistent exploration, but to instead give in and start with the more accessible and even iconic locations... and gradually work out from there.

I guess what I'm saying is that, unlike the situation here in the West where I've photographed for decades (and I usually don't even bother with maps when I go exploring!)... I'm a total newbie in New England... and I welcome even very basic advice for this first foray.

I have this general notion about a loop that would start with our arrival at Newark-Liberty where we'd pick up a rental car. I'm imagining some sort of itinerary that would go north along the eastern boundary of New York, perhaps landing in Albany or similar the first night. (It will have been a very long day!) From there, I'm trying to sort out a realistic and fruitful loop that might go up into northern New Hampshire before working my way back to towards the south, perhaps again in Vermont and then maybe Massachusetts before going back to Newark-Liberty about a week later.

What would be super helpful — if possible — would maybe be some places along such a loop that would be worth visiting/staying. Thanks in advance for such material!

(It may simply be too late to put this together, in which case I have some "out West" alternatives that I can easily put together involving California, Nevada, Utah, Colorado and perhaps some other places.)

Dan

Vermont, last week:

http://gallery.gdanmitchell.com/gallery/var/albums/NaturalWorld/TheLandscape/New-England/NewEnglandWoods02Vermont20220827.jpg

Sep 04, 2022 at 11:30 AM

Al Trujillo
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #4 · p.1 #4 · New England Fall Color

In 2019 four of us visited NH, VT and ME. I live in Colorado, have never been to New England and am a bit of a sore-head when it comes to planning. There was a website (I don't believe it exists any longer) that had a ton of information on peak colors in the area and they had information that came from spotters from Canada down to Georgia. Their archived information was especially useful and I reviewed all their reports and developed an average of peak leaf color periods from the previous 15 years.

Based on all that I determined the period of Oct. 7-12th would be best to visit mid- VT and NH (the White Mountains, west to Jenne Farm, etc.), and the period of Oct. 13-18th was best to visit the coast of ME (including Acadia NP and further north to Canada).

The research paid off and we hit each spot perfectly!

We rented a VRBO in Lincoln, along the NH-VT border and traveled in each direction from there every day. The colors were overwhelming! Following our schedule on the 12th we left Lincoln and drove east and stayed at another VRBO near Ellsworth, ME, and traveled up and down the coast from there. Our trip was better than any of us expected.

If I would do something different it would be to seek flights to Bangor, or elsewhere (NH?) other than Boston. We enjoyed our time in Boston but driving in that city is about the worse thing I've ever done. Also, the roads, towns, cafes were quite busy on weekends but during mid-week things slowed down quite a bit.

I hope you find this useful. When you hit it right you'll simply be amazed. I've never seen such intense colors in my life. I can dig through my files and give more specific routes we followed if interested.

Sep 04, 2022 at 02:28 PM

gdanmitchell
Online
• • • • • • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #5 · p.1 #5 · New England Fall Color

Al Trujillo wrote:
In 2019 four of us visited NH, VT and ME. I live in Colorado, have never been to New England and am a bit of a sore-head when it comes to planning. There was a website (I don't believe it exists any longer) that had a ton of information on peak colors in the area and they had information that came from spotters from Canada down to Georgia. Their archived information was especially useful and I reviewed all their reports and developed an average of peak leaf color periods from the previous 15 years.

Based on all that I...Show more →

Thank. That is useful information. Your idea of finding a spot to stay and then traveling from there in different directions appeals to me. I had been thinking of allocating five night to two in each of a couple of places and one final one further south (likely in Massachusetts) on the last evening, but perhaps cutting it down to two locations might make sense.

Sep 04, 2022 at 07:12 PM

Al Trujillo
Offline
• • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #6 · p.1 #6 · New England Fall Color

gdanmitchell wrote:
Thank. That is useful information. Your idea of finding a spot to stay and then traveling from there in different directions appeals to me. I had been thinking of allocating five night to two in each of a couple of places and one final one further south (likely in Massachusetts) on the last evening, but perhaps cutting it down to two locations might make sense.

Our western states have a scale that makes driving back east a little easier. The entire of VT, NH and ME could fit into CO easily with a bit of room to spare. Staying in one place for a few nights really did make it easier. Lincoln, NH is next to the White Mountains and about as close to the middle of everything we wanted to visit in those two states.

Sep 04, 2022 at 08:51 PM

gdanmitchell
Online
• • • • • • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #7 · p.1 #7 · New England Fall Color

I think I'll check out the prospects in Lincoln tonight or tomorrow.

Dan

Sep 04, 2022 at 08:57 PM

Ed McGuirk
Offline
•
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #8 · p.1 #8 · New England Fall Color

Dan

I live in MA, but grew up in VT and NH. I have been photographing New England autumn for 30 years, and it's still fresh and exciting every season.

I have photographed landscapes out west a lot too, and you are right, photographing New England landscapes is a different ball game. Wide open grand landscape views are at a premium because most roads in New England were built along the bottoms of river valleys in the hilly terrain. For classic natural landscape images (as opposed to the Barns, Churches, & Coverrd Bridges genre), this means shooting intimate landscapes, telephoto extractions of hillsides, woodland interiors, waterfalls, etc. In the natural landscape arena, for me this means getting lost and driving around on back roads, seeking more intimate scenes. Shooting around ponds and rivers can also be a good strategy, the views are more open, but as an added bonus, on many mornings there can be fog, which is magic photographically. Re-calibrate expectations away from grand scenics and you will be richly rewarded.

If the classic New England pastoral, Barns, Covered Bridges are your thing, then this ebook is a good resource on shooting Vermont, and it includes some natural landscape locations as well..

https://www.amazon.com/Photographing-Vermonts-Fall-Foliage-Iconic-ebook/dp/B075M32NFD

But if you are seeking more natural landscapes, then middle to northern Vermont and New Hampshire is the ticket. Given this years drought which has badly affected southern New England, I think there is a higher risk for a below average to poor foliage season in Massachusetts and far southern VT/NH. Up north has been dry but not as bad. Due to the warm and dry weather, the foliage forecast for mid to northern VT/NH calls for early, brief and brilliant color. Assuming this is correct, then I would base out of either Lincoln, NH to concentrate on the White Mountains) or White River Junction VT to concentrate on central Vermont. I think the best natural landscapes in Vermont are in the Northeast Kingdom, north of Saint Johnsbury VT (a good base for that area). But if foliage is early this year, that area will be approaching past peak by your dates. It's late to be booking lodging for autumn, so I would avoid trying to cobble together staying in 2 or 3 locations, I'd choose a base location and day trip out of there, within 90 minutes of either Lincoln or White River, you can reach a ton of good areas.

Basing out of Lincoln NH gives you access to the 3 Notches (mountain passes), Franconia Notch, Crawford Notch and Pinkham Notch, and to the Kancamagus highway Rt 112. My favorite Notch is Crawford, about a 25 minute drive from Lincoln. The "Kanc" is spectacular photographically, but is a parking lot over the 3 days of Columbus Day weekend. Do it on a weekday instead, or try the lesser traveled part of the Kanc west of Lincoln. Lots of mountain views, rivers, and waterfalls to be had around Lincoln. In the Notches and along the Kanc you will also find more spots to pull over for views than you get in southern VT. The Basin, Sabbaday Falls, Rocky Gorge falls, Crystal Cascade and Silver Cascade are good (and easy to reach) waterfall choices in this areas. For some backroads getting lost driving, try the roads around Sugar Hill NH (which also has some nice grand scenics too). If foliage is really early and the Lincoln area gets too advanced, it's an easy drive 30 to 40 miles south to the Lakes Region of NH, which turns later. The area around Squam Lake is very nice

Basing out of White River Junction VT gives you good access to the area around Woodstock VT, and the towns along the Connecticut River. This portion of Vermont would have more emphasis on pastoral scenes, and less wide open views (as compared to New Hampshire's White Mountains). Andy's e-book covers this area extensively. Beware, Woodstock is another parking lot location on weekends.

I'm not sure if you have seen this resource, but if you are willing to explore the archives of this website, there is a lot of good info on VT and NH locations in the fall.

https://jeff-foliage.com/

Given the hot dry summer, I think southern VT/NH and MA are too big a risk this year. And since this is your first autumn in New England, go for the full glory of autumn in the White Mountains (Mass and southern VT pale in comparison IMO) I highly recommend basing out of Lincoln, NH and driving to various locations. From looking at your website, I think you would enjoy the natural landscape opportunities of the White Mountains. And the glorious red maples make autumn in New England something special that you don't see out west.

If you want to get a sense of some of the possibilities and locations, here is a link to my website, lots of New England images here.

https://www.edmcguirkphoto.com/Image-Galleries

Ed

Edited on Sep 06, 2022 at 10:24 AM · View previous versions

Sep 06, 2022 at 08:25 AM

gdanmitchell
Online
• • • • • • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #9 · p.1 #9 · New England Fall Color

Ed,

Thanks! That is perhaps one of the most helpful and useful responses to a FM post that I've seen in years of hanging around here. :-)

You confirm some of my first (literally) impressions of the New England landscape from my recent visit, in particular about how roads follow valley bottoms, the lack of open views (in comparison to the terrain I'm more familiar with in the West), the wonders of fog (which I chased a bit in August), the importance of intimate views (something of a photographic passion of mine), and the value to picking one place.

Your point about sticking to one place more than traveling around to different lodgings confirms what I've gradually started to figure out based on earlier posts and some other information I'm seeing. As of last night I was starting to come up with a general plan that is more like what you suggest about northern Vermont and New Hampshire. In particular... last night I was looking for lodging in the Lincoln area.

I'm still not quite completely committed to this trip... but it is looking more and more likely by the moment. Again, your information has been extremely helpful. (Let me know if I can ever return the favor when you visit California!)

Dan

Ed McGuirk wrote:
Dan

I live in MA, but grew up in VT and NH. I have been photographing New England autumn for 30 years, and it's still fresh and exciting every season.

I have photographed landscapes out west a lot too, and you are right, photographing New England landscapes is a different ball game. Wide open grand landscape views are at a premium because most roads in New England were built along the bottoms of river valleys in the hilly terrain. For classic natural landscape images (as opposed to the Barns, Churches, & Coverrd Bridges genre), this means shooting intimate landscapes, telephoto...Show more →

Sep 06, 2022 at 10:19 AM

Ed McGuirk
Offline
•
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #10 · p.1 #10 · New England Fall Color

You are welcome Dan, I'm glad it was helpful.

Lodging can be tough during your dates, given how late it is, you may already be finding that out. Act soon.

And if you stay in Lincoln, it's only an hours drive to Northeast Vermont, in case the foliage runs later than normal.

I've shot autumn in both Colorado and Utah, and seen lots of fall images from the Sierra's. But I can confidently say you haven't really photographed autumn until you visit New England. Don't let your visit to southwest Vermont fool you, the views in the White Mountains of New Hampshire are very different, and much more impressive.

Sep 06, 2022 at 10:32 AM

mreynolds767
Offline
• •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #11 · p.1 #11 · New England Fall Color

Dan, a good friend of mine has a e-book that is very reasonable ; $30
Has 60 locations mapped out and should answer your time of year questions well.
He just released a new update a week ago, every bit of info in it is spot on, he leads workshops throughout the season to these
locations. Has all of the famous and less well known locations.
PM me if you want a link

The best color IMO is the Franconia Notch (Lincoln area) of NH and west into VT. This area will turn a little sooner than you are planning I think so you may want to move things up a few days.
Make sure you AVOID the Kansumugus(sp) Highway on the weekend but make sure to include it in your plans for a day during the week.
I really think the best time for the White Mountains in particular would be 10/3 - 10/11 ; with Northern VT even a little prior. Middle of the month the Berkshires, other MA, Southern NH, Southern VT locations along with Acadia are good targets but agree with others that this year's drought like conditions could make them less dramatic this year.

I also don't love your plan of driving from NJ ; that just sounds messy. Adds NYC traffic arriving and departing in addition to the miles/hours of wasted driving vs. a flight into/out of Boston. I understand you can save some money on the flights to NJ but not sure the savings is worth it!
Someone mentioned Boston traffic being bad ; I am not sure they have driven in NYC traffic!
Flying into NJ it will be a very long day to reach a suitable location same day.
Flying into Boston it will be not a problem to reach a suitable location same day.

I live in MA and go out a few times each year for the past 8 years or so every Fall. Have also made trips to see foliage in CO, OR in past years and this year hopefully will head out to UT for the same.

Sep 06, 2022 at 11:53 AM

Ed McGuirk
Offline
•
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #12 · p.1 #12 · New England Fall Color

mreynolds767 wrote:
I also don't love your plan of driving from NJ ; that just sounds messy. Adds NYC traffic arriving and departing in addition to the miles/hours of wasted driving vs. a flight into/out of Boston. I understand you can save some money on the flights to NJ but not sure the savings is worth it!
Someone mentioned Boston traffic being bad ; I am not sure they have driven in NYC traffic!
Flying into NJ it will be a very long day to reach a suitable location same day.
Flying into Boston it will be not a problem to reach a suitable...Show more →

Dan, I completely agree with MReynolds on the airports. New Jersey is way too far and difficult a drive. The traffic in Boston is only tough for the first 10 miles or so, and Logan airport is very close to Interstate 93, the main route to New Hampshire. It's only 2.5 hours to Lincoln from Logan. Traffic in downtown and suburban Boston is bad, but going directly from the airport to NH avoids most of that.

Some other alternatives albeit with connections, include Manchester NH (Southwest airlines), Portland Maine (2 hours from Lincoln), or Hartford CT (avoids all the NY NJ traffic).

Sep 06, 2022 at 12:26 PM

gdanmitchell
Online
• • • • • • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #13 · p.1 #13 · New England Fall Color

Thanks for the additional information and for the advice regarding EWR.

I agree that the idea of flying into Boston has a lot of positives. On the other hand, there are a few things that I'm considering relative to EWR and the consequent longer drive.

— Because of the flights available to us from here (and my strong inclination to avoid red-eyes!) we won't arrive on the east coast in time to go to fall color locations that same day no matter what. If we flew to Boston we'd likely end up getting a hotel for that first night in Boston, then picking up a car and driving the next day. If we fly to EWR it looks like we can arrive a bit earlier there, pick up a car, and make a few hours headway to the north before we get a room for that night. (My preferred airline doesn't have a great Boston schedule... and their option that best fits our timing has us flying to EWR and then catching a connecting flight to Boston, adding some extra travel time.

— Our sons and their spouses live in NYC, so EWR gives us a chance to meet up with them while we're there, likely at the end of the visit right before we fly home.

I'm going to look at moving up the dates a bit as suggested. Our schedule is flexible enough to make that work.

Thanks again for all of the good information.

Sep 06, 2022 at 01:24 PM

amv8
Offline
• •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #14 · p.1 #14 · New England Fall Color

Hi Ed & mreynolds767, I also want to thank you for your very informative posts. I'm hoping you can offer some advice for my specific situation. I'm coming to New England from California with the goal of doing some fall foliage photography from 10/16 thru 10/20. From other posts, I realize that this is a little on the late side, but the main reason for the trip is to be in Boston the weekend of 10/21 to attend parents weekend where our son just started college. Thus, we just didn't have flexibility on the dates.

We are flying to Hartford, renting a car and currently have 3-4 nights booked in the Northampton, MA area. Then we will drive to Boston and fly home from there after the weekend. We had planned on doing day trips in western Mass and the Berkshire area, but from your posts it sounds like the foliage may be weak due to the drought in that area.

Could you offer any additional advice/recommendations for our situation? I'm more interested in photographing intimate landscapes, water & foliage, etc. rather than broader vistas. Thanks!!

Sep 06, 2022 at 03:58 PM

gdanmitchell
Online
• • • • • • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #15 · p.1 #15 · New England Fall Color

Still working on logistical details today, but now it looks likely that we can move our arrival up and get to Lincoln, NH on 10/4. We'll likely stay there for four nights, so we'll mostly be there on weekdays. We will take a lazy route of some sort back to the NYC area, likely making one stop somewhere along the way.

To all of you knowledgable New Englanders, if you found yourself leaving Lincoln on a Saturday (e.g. 10/8) and had to be back in NYC on Sunday (10/9) evening, what would you want to visit and where might you stay along the way, particularly if you might want to photograph on Saturday evening and Sunday morning?

Thanks, again.

Dan

Sep 06, 2022 at 04:58 PM

Ed McGuirk
Offline
•
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #16 · p.1 #16 · New England Fall Color

amv8 wrote:
I'm coming to New England from California with the goal of doing some fall foliage photography from 10/16 thru 10/20. From other posts, I realize that this is a little on the late side,
We are flying to Hartford, renting a car and currently have 3-4 nights booked in the Northampton, MA area. Then we will drive to Boston and fly home from there after the weekend. We had planned on doing day trips in western Mass and the Berkshire area, but from your posts it sounds like the foliage may be weak due to the drought in that area....Show more →

amV8

The hot weather and drought this summer have stressed the trees in southern New England, making it more likely that this year could be below average, or even poor. About 3 or 4 years ago we had similar summer weather, and many trees turned early, had dull color, or went straight to brown and dropped. That's not to say this is certain to happen, but it may be more likely.

In terms of your dates of 10/15 to 10/20, in a normal year that would be peak for central Massachusetts and all the way into the western Boston suburbs, and parts of northwest Connecticut as well. The Berkshires in western MA are at higher elevation and would peak a bit earlier than 10/17, but would still have some color in your date range. This year it could be early. If you are staying in Northampton, I'd suggest driving Rt. 2, the Mohawk Trail, both west to North Adams, and east to the Quabbin region around New Salem and Petersham (both of which are nice quaint New England villages). A good backroads tour is to drive a loop around the Quabbin Reservoir, lots of woods, farms, and old New England villages. The color along the Connecticut River lasts a bit longer due to the moderating effect of the river, so if the mountains to the west in the Berkshires are past peak, there will be more color in the CT River valley. If the area around the Quabbin Reservoir is past peak, you would need to continue further east on Rt. 2 towards Boston, in places like Concord, MA, or the old Grist Mill in Sudbury. I've never shot NW Connecticut myself, but it is a rural area that may be worth exploring too.

Other 10/15 to 10/20 options for good color in a normal year would be Acadia National Park in Maine, or Cape Cod, but both of those are way too far away from your base in Northhampton

Predicting foliage timing and quality is always tough, but this year is even more of a crap shoot due to the drought in southern New England. However, even in a below average year, there are always some pockets of color around, you just have to work harder at driving around to find them. If the color is still mostly green, head further north up RT. 91 to the Brattleboro VT area, or to higher elevation like the Berkshires near Mt. Greylock. If central MA is past peak, head further east (which is also lower elevation).

Since you are from California, even a below average year may still look amazing to you

Edited on Sep 07, 2022 at 08:02 AM · View previous versions

Sep 07, 2022 at 06:04 AM

Ed McGuirk
Offline
•
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #17 · p.1 #17 · New England Fall Color

gdanmitchell wrote:
Still working on logistical details today, but now it looks likely that we can move our arrival up and get to Lincoln, NH on 10/4. We'll likely stay there for four nights, so we'll mostly be there on weekdays. We will take a lazy route of some sort back to the NYC area, likely making one stop somewhere along the way.

To all of you knowledgable New Englanders, if you found yourself leaving Lincoln on a Saturday (e.g. 10/8) and had to be back in NYC on Sunday (10/9) evening, what would you want to visit and where might you stay...Show more →

Dan

The earlier dates will be a big help in hedging your bets on an early turn this year, that's a smart move to make.

From Lincoln, NH to New York City is a 6 hour drive. Particularly since you moved your dates forward, even in an "early" foliage year, on 10/8 any location that is about 3 hours south puts you in Massachusetts, where it will still be mostly green. If shooting 10/8 PM and 10/9 AM is a priority, I'd suggest staying in Lincoln an extra night , and doing a long drive on 10/9. If instead you are alternatively interested in trying some other locations, I think your best bet would be to cross over into Vermont, and take Interstate 91 south to Brattleboro Vermont. Brattleboro itself will still be green, but drive west on Rt. 9 to the Hogback ski resort viewing area. It's at high elevation with a wide open south facing view, great for grandscapes at sunrise or sunset if you have clouds. Or push further south to the Berkshires and stay in Stockbridge or North Adams in Mass. The Berkshires are at higher elevation, and are more likely to have color on 10/8 than the rest of Massachusetts. The drive down I 91 in Vermont is incredibly scenic, but there is no place to stop. Ironically, Interstate 91 is one of the few roads in VT that is up high with great wide open views, but of course it is illegal to stop. Rt 5 in Vermont follows the Connecticut River too, with places to stop, but much slower travel times. Anything more than 60 miles south of Lincoln is still going to have a lot of green on 10/8, even in an early year.

Sep 07, 2022 at 06:27 AM

gdanmitchell
Online
• • • • • • •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #18 · p.1 #18 · New England Fall Color

Ed McGuirk wrote:
Dan

The earlier dates will be a big help in hedging your bets on an early turn this year, that's a smart move to make.

From Lincoln, NH to New York City is a 6 hour drive. Particularly since you moved your dates forward, even in an "early" foliage year, on 10/8 any location that is about 3 hours south puts you in Massachusetts, where it will still be mostly green. If shooting 10/8 PM and 10/9 AM is a priority, I'd suggest staying in Lincoln an extra night , and doing a long drive on 10/9. If instead you are...Show more →

Something Vermont-ish is what I was thinking of. Keeping in mind that the entire area is new to us, even the possibility of passing though new country is appealing.

We were briefly in the Berkshires (passed though Adams, etc. a couple of times) on our late-August visit and we liked it, to that's a possible target for that in-transit day. (On that visit we stayed a few miles north of Wilmington, VT, and we drove that direction on two occasions, once to visit "The Mount," and on the other to go to the Clark Institute.)

My hunch regarding the driving days on 10/8 and 10/9 is that we might photograph early on the first morning in the Lincoln vicinity and then start making our way south in an unhurried manner. A drive through Vermont and down the Berkshires might be the ticket. As to photography on the evening of the 8th, it is possible, but we might just enjoy, too — same for the morning of the 9th.

Dan

Sep 07, 2022 at 11:31 AM

mreynolds767
Offline
• •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #19 · p.1 #19 · New England Fall Color

amv8 wrote:
Hi Ed & mreynolds767, I also want to thank you for your very informative posts. I'm hoping you can offer some advice for my specific situation. I'm coming to New England from California with the goal of doing some fall foliage photography from 10/16 thru 10/20. From other posts, I realize that this is a little on the late side, but the main reason for the trip is to be in Boston the weekend of 10/21 to attend parents weekend where our son just started college. Thus, we just didn't have flexibility on the dates.

We are flying to Hartford,...Show more →

Amv8: check out a place in CT(near the MA border) named Enders Falls
Is a nice park that does not get too crowded and has 5 different waterfalls all close together along with wonderful foliage colors at that time of year. I have been multiple times and those mid-October dates are usually perfect for peak color.
https://www.mattreynoldsphotography.com/print/autumncascades

Old Stone Church is another spot you should check out on the MA side and closer to Boston ; town of West Bolyston. A good fall location may be slightly past peak on those dates but will be close enough to make going there worthwhile. Great sunset option.
https://www.mattreynoldsphotography.com/print/stonechurch

Harvard Pond would be another good spot that has nice foliage and can be great if you get some early morning fog for sunrise. The Quabbin Reservoir is very close to here.
https://www.mattreynoldsphotography.com/print/theawakening

Sep 07, 2022 at 02:29 PM

mreynolds767
Offline
• •
Upload & Sell: Off

p.1 #20 · p.1 #20 · New England Fall Color

Dan, the town of Woodstock, VT might be a good option for you.
Some great color and farm type scenery in that area
It does not save you from a long ride that last day but is along your planned route.

Sep 07, 2022 at 02:37 PM

1 2 3 end
FM Forums \| Trip Location Advice & Meet-ups \| Join Upload & Sell 1 2 3 end

This site is protected by reCAPTCHA and the Google Privacy Policy and Terms of Service apply.