View Full Version : Forest Service predicts 'magnificent' fall colors
So get out there in a couple of weeks, if you are not already, and enjoy the splendor:)
The article (http://morningsentinel.mainetoday.com/news/local/5402117.html) also gives a foliage update site.
MyName1sMud
09-12-2008, 11:27
That sounds pretty good!
Click on What's happening in the wilds of Maine? (http://www.mainefoliage.com) for fall foliage updates through October 15. My link's the Maine DOC website mentioned in post #1.
I was up on the Bigelow Range last year for a couple days during peak foliage, all i can say is wow!. Nothing quite like it with all those colors transmitting through my brain.
I am hiking in NH for a few days [1] at the end of this month.
I hope to time it just right with the foliage.
Can't wait!
[1] Alas, family obligations from not visiting in two years and limited vacation time aren't going to let me do the Cohos trail.. :( I'd rather go hiking than getting a dose of family/Catholic guilt..but what are you gonna do? ;)
Homer&Marje
09-12-2008, 16:01
I am hiking in NH for a few days [1] at the end of this month.
I hope to time it just right with the foliage.
Can't wait!
[1] Alas, family obligations from not visiting in two years and limited vacation time aren't going to let me do the Cohos trail.. :( I'd rather go hiking than getting a dose of family/Catholic guilt..but what are you gonna do? ;)
Ah good ol' catholic guilt, It can be washed away though with a dash of scotch.:D
Can anyone name a year in recent past that the foliage "Was Not" spectacular in New England?
Can anyone name a year in recent past that the foliage "Was Not" spectacular in New England?
yup, i can, can't remember exactly the year but drought years in particular just make the leaves turn brown(dingy dead looking) hope i didn't bust your bubble.
as the article stated, an abundance of rainfall makes the leaves quite magnificent so this year is it!:D
Ah good ol' catholic guilt, It can be washed away though with a dash of scotch.:D
I am an Italian Catholic.
We just eat away our guilt.. :p
As Woodsy mentioned, all the extra rain will make a spectacular fall. I remember just before I left for Colorado (1999) it was a dry year in New England. Friends reported a rather blah Fall IIRC.
As Woody mentioned, all the extra rain will make a spectacular fall.
Its woodsy, don't you have spell check on that thingy :D
Its woodsy, don't you have spell check on that thingy :D
I'll have to spread the word, and tell my friends what I heard...
:)
I'll have to spread the word, and tell my friends what I heard...
:)
welcome back east ahead of time.
hope you have a 'mag'nificent' fall foliage tour of NH
BTW, i'm a recovering catholic, it ain't that hard.:p
Homer&Marje
09-12-2008, 21:21
I grew up right next to a lake, and don't remember even in the drought years it being that bad, maybe I didn't "expand" my horizons enough those years and see beyond the lake:D Maybe I was just lucky
Blissful
09-13-2008, 12:47
Looking forward to some day hikes in SNP this fall to see the colors.
this article is cruel and unusal punishment for those who probably won't be able to get out there (like me)
So get out there in a couple of weeks, if you are not already, and enjoy the splendor:)
The article (http://morningsentinel.mainetoday.com/news/local/5402117.html) also gives a foliage update site.
Well, I hope the predictions are accurate. But based on many years of observing these predictions, I've concluded that very few foresters know much about what triggers bright fall colors.
At least, their predictions in my experience are as often wrong as right. Once the season begins foresters are able to tell fairly accurately the state of the colors. Though as Henry Thoreau pointed out autumn colors are a process, not an event -- a process that begins in August, and ends with the demise of the last oak leaves in early winter.
Red maples give an early splash of color. But the more subtle sugar maples have their own peak many days later. And, of course, every species follows its own time schedule.
I've yet to see a total failure of autumn splendor. Watch carefully and you will discover that Henry knew what he was writing about in his essay, "Autumnal Tints."
JUst don't get discourage when you read in the papers that on a certain weekend colors will be at their brightest and that weekend comes with 48 hours of fog and rain -- as often happens. The colors will be there when the sun shines again. Well, at least some of them will be.
Weary
Watch carefully and you will discover that Henry knew what he was writing about in his essay, "Autumnal Tints."
Weary
Read it here (http://www.vcu.edu/engweb/transcendentalism/authors/thoreau/autumnal.html).
Pokey2006
09-14-2008, 17:04
yup, i can, can't remember exactly the year but drought years in particular just make the leaves turn brown(dingy dead looking) hope i didn't bust your bubble.
as the article stated, an abundance of rainfall makes the leaves quite magnificent so this year is it!:D
There was another year, several years ago, when the color was superb, but just before it peaked, some big storm came and blew all the leaves off the trees. Bummer.
Just saw the first twinges of color in Pinkham Notch today.
There was another year, several years ago, when the color was superb, but just before it peaked, some big storm came and blew all the leaves off the trees. Bummer.
Just saw the first twinges of color in Pinkham Notch today.
"Alls in my brain, maybe things just don't seem the same"
(Jimi Hendrix)LOL:sun
sorry, had a flashback from the 60's, the fall foliage season gets me pretty excited like that, all those colors... Pokey did say twinges though...
So what's happening with leaves in the wilds of Maine?
Baxter State Park, the lakes between the park and the town of Millinocket, and the Moosehead Lake region are also best bets for leaf peepers during the next week. The northern portion of the Old Canada Road National Scenic Byway in Somerset County is another touring route with good color.
Click on mainefoliage.com (http://www.maine.gov/doc/foliage/) to find out.
Slo-go'en
09-25-2008, 19:20
Here in the Northen Prezies (Gorham/Berlin area) the colors are not quite peak but almost. I was in Maine, as far north as Saddleback about a week ago and colors were just starting to come out there then.
I would say peak around here would be next week or so. However, with two coastal stroms predicted to team up and dump heavy rain and wind Friday and Saturday, we'll just have to wait to see how far inland the effects are and what's left on the trees after it is all over. One bad storm and it can be all over folks!
_terrapin_
09-25-2008, 19:47
Here in the Northen Prezies (Gorham/Berlin area) the colors are not quite peak but almost. I was in Maine, as far north as Saddleback about a week ago and colors were just starting to come out there then.
Hmm. I did a weekend jaunt up & down Mt. Jefferson last weekend. Didn't see too much color, either on the mountain or on the ride up. I did see a huge moose by the side of Rte. 115, however.
So what's happening with leaves in the wilds of Maine?
The leaves in northern Somerset County, like Bingham area, just south of the AT @ Carratunk...Pierce Pond area are coming on strong with the sugar maples turning a brilliant orange, my favorites. Been up there most of the week enjoying as the leaves turn:-?
Slo-go'en
09-25-2008, 20:20
Hmm. I did a weekend jaunt up & down Mt. Jefferson last weekend. Didn't see too much color, either on the mountain or on the ride up. I did see a huge moose by the side of Rte. 115, however.
A couple of cold nights this week really perked the colors up. Still a fair amount of green and not too brillent yet, so thats why I said maybe another week. Depending on what the storm does tomorrow and Saturday to them.
So what's happening with leaves in the wilds of Maine?
Along midcoast Maine the red maples are beginning to turn, the marsh grasses surrounding the tidal stream near my two acres are turning yellow, seaside golden rod and fall asters have achieved their peak, fall berries, and wild crab apples are beginning to turn, but my lawn and my red oaks have never been greener.
I picked swiss chard from my garden for supper tonight. My wife insisted it had gotten "too big." But after I washed and cooked it, I noticed she had three helpings. It was delicious.
Weary
Jan LiteShoe
09-25-2008, 23:03
Along midcoast Maine the red maples are beginning to turn, the marsh grasses surrounding the tidal stream near my two acres are turning yellow, seaside golden rod and fall asters have achieved their peak, fall berries, and wild crab apples are beginning to turn, but my lawn and my red oaks have never been greener.
I picked swiss chard from my garden for supper tonight. My wife insisted it had gotten "too big." But after I washed and cooked it, I noticed she had three helpings. It was delicious.
Weary
Three helpings! What's the recipe?
;-)
I have chard to pick too. The sassafras are showing a little flash of orange in mid-NC, but that's about it. Maybe some burgundy on the dogwoods. But chard I have!
Nicksaari
09-25-2008, 23:18
attending a family get together Oct 16-21st in Lee County, extreme SW Virginia. first time ive ever been there, and i am beside myself with anticipation. look forward to seeing grayson highlands, the ride in itself will be quite nice.
if youre lucky enough to be in mountains, you're lucky enough
Along midcoast Maine the red maples are beginning to turn, the marsh grasses surrounding the tidal stream near my two acres are turning yellow, seaside golden rod and fall asters have achieved their peak, fall berries, and wild crab apples are beginning to turn, but my lawn and my red oaks have never been greener.
I picked swiss chard from my garden for supper tonight. My wife insisted it had gotten "too big." But after I washed and cooked it, I noticed she had three helpings. It was delicious.
Weary
Same here. Don't ever remember grass this green, this late.
I like chard. Prefer the main ribs cut out and cooked separate. That way the leaf does not overcook. Prefer balsamic vinegar over red wine vinegar.
Loads easier than spinach, and the plant is pretty non-fussy.
I do hope we have some leaves left after Kyle.
Homer&Marje
09-26-2008, 07:40
Just got back from the Whites, SW of the Kangamangus and the colors were just starting to change in front of our eyes.. it was actually really cool... we are going up to the same spot a week from tomorrow to hopefully see the peak of it all.
So get out there in a couple of weeks, if you are not already, and enjoy the splendor:)
The article (http://morningsentinel.mainetoday.com/news/local/5402117.html) also gives a foliage update site.Yeah and look what the Farmers Almanac says for the winter..................http://www.farmersalmanac.com/weather/a/could-this-winters-weather-add-to-economic-woes
When this time of the year comes, it always passes too quickly. Sometimes, I've nearly missed it altogether.
Those who have the time to observe the annual ritual in all its splendor, capture what you can and share it here with those who are less fortunate.
Jan LiteShoe
10-05-2008, 18:06
When this time of the year comes, it always passes too quickly. Sometimes, I've nearly missed it altogether.
Those who have the time to observe the annual ritual in all its splendor, capture what you can and share it here with those who are less fortunate.
Life is not long enough to miss a Fall!
:sun
Cookerhiker
10-05-2008, 18:13
Just returned from the WVa highlands around Dolly Sods & Canaan Valley in Monongahela NF. Camped last night on the Blackwater River. At the 3,000' and up elevation, the leaves are nearly at their peak.
Homer&Marje
10-05-2008, 18:21
Just got back from the Whites up in New Hampshire, was at about 2500-3000 the whole time it was fantastic...really intricate at ground level.
Life is not long enough to miss a Fall!
:sun
Ditto
Favorite time here, cept the squirrels throwing pine cones on my head.:rolleyes:
kaplunk...:D
Colors here have been "magnificent" as the forest service said they would be.
I may throw a pic or two up, ifin time allows.
Three helpings! What's the recipe?
;-)
I have chard to pick too. The sassafras are showing a little flash of orange in mid-NC, but that's about it. Maybe some burgundy on the dogwoods. But chard I have!
I usually just steam chard for 10 minutes or so and serve it with sour cream, salt and pepper.
Don't ever remember grass this green, this late.
We haven't seen green grass since spring down south. The drought continues...:(
Homer&Marje
10-06-2008, 09:35
Heres a sample of the pics I just came back with. Will be a few days I will have them up on Picassa... lot of good pics this time. heres a sample Hope you enjoy.
Life is not long enough to miss a Fall!
:sun
I took your advice and a short walk. As I went about my business today, I did a bit a leaf peeping too.
I've been noticing more color lately. The most color at present is provided by Virginia creeper and poison ivy.
Dogwoods in full sun sport deep red leaves and a heavy fruit set which pleases robins greatly. Tufted titmice seek their dinner in nearby pines whose cones have now opened.
White ash and sassafras are beginning to show their colors generally, sugar and red maples only where they receive full sun.
Unusual this season, most black walnuts still hold their yellowed leaves which ordinarily would be dry and crumbed on the ground weeks ago.
Circumstances are expected to be optimal for color development the next 2 days, then there will be 2 days of rain which may put an end to this year's show.
superman
10-06-2008, 21:31
The colors are great here. Fall is nice but it's also sad since it's when I can start to see my neighbors again.
DuctTape
10-07-2008, 14:07
I'm still loving Arizona, but this really makes me miss the northeast!
We have a few red maples starting to turn here. Certainly wasn't a good year for paw paws.
Frau
Light frost overnight where I live about 20 miles from Port Clinton.:cool: Leaves turning brighter!:sun
Thirties again tonight.:cool: Sunny,:sun even brighter colors tomorrow!!:welcome
Hey Leaf Peepers, Where is the peak this weekend?:sun
I'll be in New York next weekend. Have a day hike planned on Friday morning for the wife and I at Bear Mountain. How's it looking? Will we miss the peak? Colors still around?
Can't wait!!
From last weekend in NH:
http://www.pmags.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=18428&g2_serialNumber=1&g2_GALLERYSID=9b7269e0127675108ae6001d1d0952b4
http://www.pmags.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=18450&g2_serialNumber=1&g2_GALLERYSID=9b7269e0127675108ae6001d1d0952b4
Hey Leaf Peepers, Where is the peak this weekend?:sun
Somewhere north of The Green Diamond or at higher elevations I'd guess. We haven't gotten the forecasted rain and trees continue to hold onto their leaves. Color improving, but we're still looking at a good bit of green.
It's a great time to be outdoors. Quite a variety of raptors passing over Hawk Mountain's North Lookout these last few weeks too.
Yes , its a great time to be outdoors , nice photos mags! Life the way it should be as we say here in maine. Beautiful!
Gray Blazer
10-10-2008, 08:03
Can anyone tell me how the colors are in the Smokies right now? I have the opportunity to go this weekend.
Well seeing dial-up is working this morn, loaded a few pics of some colors for y'all to gaze at
This Red Maple image (http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=28514)from first sunlight this AM
another from Peak foliage (http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=28516) around Oct 1
final image (http://whiteblaze.net/forum/vbg/showimage.php?i=28515) of Peak foliage
Needless to say, it has been a magnificent foliage year and extended as well, good colors still abound.
Thank you for sending rainbows over the wires from the land of the pointed firs.
sbennett
10-12-2008, 13:25
Went up to the Smokies this weekend...here are some pics (which I hope actually attached to this post):
file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Stephen%20Bennett/My%20Documents/My%20Pictures/Great%20Smoky%20Mountains%20National%20Park%2010-10-2008/Great%20Smoky%20Mountains%20National%20Park%2010-10-2008%20044%20%28Small%29.jpg
Cookerhiker
10-13-2008, 21:17
From Cranberry Glades area of Monongahela NF en-route to the Gathering:
I think I would have enjoyed seeing the cottongrass at Cranberry Glades more had I been there, but I do appreciate the image on my screen.
Wish I had time to go back to the Cranberry. In lieu of that, 3 Ridges was beautiful this past Sunday.
Frau
Jack Tarlin
10-14-2008, 14:50
We New Englanders tend to forget that the leaves change in the rest of the country, too.
The foliage along I-64 in West Virginia was spectacular a few days ago, and I-81 thru Virginia was also really nice.
That being said, Hanover right now is about as pretty as it ever gets; this really has been a good foliage year.
The best way to enjoy the awesome foliage is get out and hike like I did last weekend and have plans to again this weekend.
Cookerhiker
10-14-2008, 15:47
From this morning's ride on the Great Allegheny Passage (http://www.atatrail.org):
When I post my trip report later today, I'll add more photos, but for now, here are some aspen shots. Not quite the riot of color you get in New England, but still rather nice.
http://www.pmags.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=18522&g2_serialNumber=2&g2_GALLERYSID=9b7269e0127675108ae6001d1d0952b4
http://www.pmags.com/gallery2/main.php?g2_view=core.DownloadItem&g2_itemId=18528&g2_serialNumber=2&g2_GALLERYSID=9b7269e0127675108ae6001d1d0952b4
From this morning's ride on the Great Allegheny Passage (http://www.atatrail.org):
Where exactly is that?
The foliage in SW Pennsylvania this weekend was fantastic, specifically near Confluence, PA and along the Allegheny Passage from Ohiopyle to Markelton. Certainly opened my eyes to a very pretty corner of the world.
Cookerhiker
10-14-2008, 22:06
Where exactly is that?
The foliage in SW Pennsylvania this weekend was fantastic, specifically near Confluence, PA and along the Allegheny Passage from Ohiopyle to Markelton. Certainly opened my eyes to a very pretty corner of the world.
The first tunnel is the Big Savage Tunnel between Mileposts 21 and 22 only a mile north of the MD/PA line. The third tunnel (see through tunnel) is known as the Borden Tunnel just south of Milepost 18 in MD. The middle photo is taken in-between.
The Big Savage Tunnel is 6/10ths mile long and is lit (dimly but sufficient that you don't need a headlamp but take off your sunglasses). If you return to the Trail, keep in mind the Big Savage Tunnel is closed from around Thanksgiving to mid-April because of ice.
About a mile north from the Big Savage Tunnel is the Eastern Continental Divide.
The colors are great here. Fall is nice but it's also sad since it's when I can start to see my neighbors again.
That is also a minor problem here on my bit of the coast of Maine. I am compensated, however, by a late autumn opening to the salt marsh to the East that is blocked by leaves in sunnier and warmer seasons.
The blueberry & poison ivy are scarlet while the populars are yellow, down south in the NE Ga mountains. I love the fall season.
I've been out exploring in Pisgah Nat. Forest the past couple days. So far the leaves are just starting but man, they are beautiful.
The first tunnel is the Big Savage Tunnel between Mileposts 21 and 22 only a mile north of the MD/PA line.
The east portal of the Big Savage Tunnel gets my vote for best view from a RAIL trail (I've done a few but not them all...)
Cookerhiker
10-15-2008, 13:17
The east portal of the Big Savage Tunnel gets my vote for best view from a RAIL trail (I've done a few but not them all...)
It's also great on a hot day (not that we have than many in far-western MD) when you sense the overwhelming coolness when approaching the tunnel from that side.
My wife and I visited my son last weekend. We flew up Thursday night, and couldn't see him until after lunch. Friday morning, we drove up to the top of Bear Mountain and took a short (3 or 4 miles) hike around the mountain. I had originally planned a longer hike, but we were able to see him earlier than we originally thought, so downsized the hike. We climbed the tower and took pics first, then went down the AT going south, around the peak on an old road, then back up to the top on the AT. Gorgeous day, beautiful leaves - probably a week or two away from peak foliage when we were there.....
I've attached a couple of pics, posted more on a picasa album, if you're interested...
http://tinyurl.com/5nswxl
According to The Reading Eagle, yesterday was to be the height of fall color in the southeasternmost portion of Penn's Woods. It's a shame you missed it. I didn't and I'm here to tell you about it.
Click on Peak Performance (http://www.readingeagle.com/article.aspx?id=111152) for leaf peeping suggestions by local hiking enthusiasts and be sure to mark your calendar for next year.
Jan LiteShoe
10-26-2008, 16:07
Last weekend (the 18th) in Greyson Highlands, the highest elevations were past peak, but still lovely.
The mid-elevations were peak, and the lower elevations still coming on.
There was enough pitch and roll to the vista that the waves of color coulkd be traces down the mountain.
Brought home some Virginia Ginger Gold apples and made an apple crisp. So, my fall experience has been inhaled somewhat.
Spent the day locally in sunny mid-state NC (elevation 500 ') , where the dogwoods are burgundy, the grapevines are golding up, but little major color yet.
Pre-Thanksgiving seems to be the best show around here in the NC Sandhills, when the blackjack and turkey oaks turn red against the pines.
Jan LiteShoe
10-26-2008, 16:10
That is also a minor problem here on my bit of the coast of Maine. I am compensated, however, by a late autumn opening to the salt marsh to the East that is blocked by leaves in sunnier and warmer seasons.
That's cool. Seasonal views. Gives you something to mark the seasons and look forward to.
Kind of like feasting when strawberries are in season - only colder.
;-)
According to The Reading Eagle, yesterday was to be the height of fall color in the southeasternmost portion of Penn's Woods. It's a shame you missed it. I didn't and I'm here to tell you about it.
As the foliage splendor works its way south, much of the Northeast foliage lays on the ground after a wild windy and rainy night, the roads this AM looked more like leaf paths than asphalt roads, pretty cool just the same.
We did have a great month to 6 weeks of foliage though, best ever!:)
It was a wet and windy afternoon yesterday here too. Consequently the fire danger is much reduced temporarily.
When I visited with Ron at the 501 Shelter caretaker's residence today, we talked about that issue and both agreed it is important hikers use their best judgement about when to kindle fires until we get some snow on the ground. In fact, on Pennsylvania State Forests, kindling fires is not permitted from October 1 until December 1.
There are few places east of the Susquehanna where the AT is on state forest land, one of which is Weiser State Forest where Eagle's Nest Shelter is situated. He told me information explaining the prohibition of fires is posted at the shelter, so please consider yourselves forewarned.
Click on more (http://www.whiteblaze.net/forum/showpost.php?p=429161&postcount=35) to read an earlier post of mine including the applicable Pennsylvania code.
I just finished a section hike from Harpers Ferry south to Daleville. Here's a link to a few photos of the fall color I saw.
http://picasaweb.google.com/RabbitOnTheTrail/VirginiaLeaves2008#
That's cool. Seasonal views. Gives you something to mark the seasons and look forward to.
Kind of like feasting when strawberries are in season - only colder.;-)
Though I've been skeptical of foresters ability to predict autumn leaf beauty, afterall, they are members of a profession dedicated to cutting down trees, not assessing how pretty they are, I must confess that those that Woodsy quoted many posts ago, were right on this year.
I can't think of any recent year, when the autumn leaves were more spectacular. And along midcoast Maine, the beauty continues. Yes, the leaves have dimmed. But even 24 hours of rain (two inches) and 30-mph winds have not managed to dislodge all the leaves.
One of my poplar trees was blown partially over. Which is good. My shore is lined by wild apples, an elm I planted, a half dozen wild red oaks which I nurture, a red maple I planted, and a couple of grey birches -- plus a lot of other junk and invasive stuff.
When I bought the place 47 years ago, it was all open field, with just a few spindly poplar in the foundation of a tiny building that once served a century-old tidal mill.
As the poplar and other seedlings spread, I didn't much worry. I was working to clean up the adjacent grossly polluted Kennebec estuary. Some weeks I worked three times the hours the contract between the union and the newspaper contract called for.
I took the position that if the company didn't complain about my radical coverage, I wasn't going to complain either. Well it worked. At least environmentally. It just didn't earn me much money.
More recently, as laws changed, making cutting closer than 250 feet from tidal waters, more and more difficult I sometimes wish I had taken a bit more care of the couple of acres I own.
Weary
As the foliage splendor works its way south, much of the Northeast foliage lays on the ground after a wild windy and rainy night, the roads this AM looked more like leaf paths than asphalt roads, pretty cool just the same.
We did have a great month to 6 weeks of foliage though, best ever!:)
Mostly earthtones left here on the coast.
It was one of the better foliage years in recent memory. Might be the wet July. Might be the late frost.
Homer&Marje
10-27-2008, 07:40
I have never seen the bright oranges that are coming out this year. It's like they are glowing. Still need to get my photos developed from my ancient camera but I think I have a bunch more. Just got back from cape cod, stayed overnight doing a little car camping saturday night in that wind and rainstorm:D Gusted to almost 60 mph, made for an interesting night. Colors of the trees near the coast were fantastic. Lots of good walks on the beach with no one around.