Why are we always pushing things. Can’t we just enjoy what is in the here and now? I am just beginning to enjoy summer and it’s almost August. I worked for 5 hours in my yard yesterday to get some clean up done and some flowers planted. I suppose most people have done this in Spring and now they are off vacationing or doing fun things during their summer Saturdays, but I am behind.
Then I got a notice that I had sold 100 beach Christmas photo cards! Wow- some people do plan ahead. In the online shopping and selling world, it is really too late to begin making Fall items to sell. The items will take some time to get “out there” for people to find, but I opened a new Zazzle “Fall Colors” wedding store anyway. Most of my fall wedding stuff is hidden in my main store so I thought I’d get it all together, along with new things, to make it easier to find.
I love the Fall season and cherish every moment of it. Now that I have moved I won’t get to see the color around the lake, but look forward to seeing what this new area has for color. It’s an opportunity for new photos. But, today I will enjoy the summer day, and not think ahead.
I can’t believe I waited so long to pick apples this year. I would have to kick myself if I let the season pass without picking some fresh, juicy apples. A few days ago the weather was just gorgeous and my son and I drove to Hancock, New Hampshire to pick some Courtland apples at Norway Hill Orchard. It’s just off Rt. 202 and you can get there by going up Forest Rd., or Norway Hill road.
(UPDATE, 2018: This orchard is closed. So sad.)
The homestead – Are they lucky or what?
Actually the variety available was mind-boggling and since I usually pick Macintosh (they were about gone by then), I chose the Courtlands, which turned out to be very delicious.
It was easy to see that the season was about gone, with all the rotted “drops” under the trees, but we filled our peck size bag, paid the $9.
View of Mount Monadnock from the Orchard
Traveling around these New Hampshire roads in Fall is such a treat. When I first moved here from Florida I felt like I was driving through a beautiful painting each time I took a trip. Going to the grocery store was almost enjoyable.
On the way home I snapped this photo going down the hill from the orchard. As we headed to the house, I began making notes of all the recipes I would be trying soon with my fresh picked apples.
Driving Home
If you are making a day of it here in New Hampshire, you could travel down through Hancock and head out Rt. 123 to Stoddard and climb Pitcher Mountain. It’s not a long climb and the views are spectacular.
I’ve been thinking that this Fall season the colors just aren’t what they’ve been the past couple of years. There are areas of brightly colored trees and before all the rain and wind, I did see some bright red trees along the roads and a few big maples in gorgeous yellow and orange.
Fall 2010
Yesterday, Friday, October 8th, was a warm, sunny day around here and I took a walk to the lake for some seasonal photos. It was very windy but with the air being so warm, it felt good. I got some shots at my favorite spots, but still wasn’t very impressed with the colors.
I know that by this time last year everything was much brighter . I’ve read that a hot, dry summer can adversely affect Autumn’s foliage and I think that was the culprit this year. We certainly had a very hot and mostly dry summer. But I’ll share my photos with you, because we take what we get and no matter what, I live in one of the most beautiful places on earth, no matter what the season.
Turtles and Trees
Along the lake 2010
As I write this part of the post it is 2024 and I no longer live in New Hampshire. My old posts, with foliage photos, need some help. I leave them up because of the pictures. I like seeing them too.
The New Hampshire woods are always full of interesting items to see. In Fall we get to find some new types of mushrooms.
I don’t know what kind of mushroom these are, but I came across them as I was hiking the woods around my place. See my next post where they are more open and flat and I take a guess at their name.
Unless you pay close attention when walking in the woods, you will miss these little bunches of fungi. I take my camera (no iPhone at the time – hence the lack of photos to share) and don’t touch them because most likely they are poisonous. If I can remember where they are growing I might try to return in a day or two and see how they have changed.
One thing I’ve learned from reading about (and viewing) mushrooms is that they will change their look quite quickly – some of them. They may only last a few days or they can last into winter and beyond. Some are delicate and easily broken or mashed and others are as hard as a rock.
As I photograph the mushrooms I see in my area, I look them up in my books for identifying. That is not easy I have found. In order to really be sure of a mushroom name, close observation of all parts is needed. Read this article with excellent photos, at NH Garden Solutions to see what types of mushrooms you may find in the Fall season.
My Audubon “Field Guide to New England” only lists a few mushroom types and warns that at least 10 of the mushroom species in New England are deadly poisonous to eat so making a mistake in choosing can cost you your life. I will only be photographing and not picking to eat.
*Blog update: It is 16 years later as I update these old blog posts and I am always struck by how easy it is nowadays to share photos online. In 2010 I carried my camera with me (if I remembered) and took only a few photos at a time. Growing up and using film cartridges that had to be mailed away, only to return 12 or 24 photos is ingrained in me, I guess. Back then we had to be discerning about what pictures we decided to take. Space for preservation was very limited. Even though I had progressed to a digital camera, I never took loads of photos of the same thing! Now that I have an iPhone, I tend to be the same way, unless it is something I really want to be sure I capture correctly.
These old posts are not very well written, or SEO compatible, but I’ll be keeping the ones that I can save as a memory of what I used to do.
