Fall in Hudson Valley/New York State

<p>Its a while since I photographed in NYC and had a thought that I may usefully combine a week there with maybe two weeks in the Hudson Valley- travelling as far as the Canadian border if I need to, and then maybe circling back via the Finger Lakes area and Eastern Pennsylania back to New York City.</p>

<p>My photographic objectives would include fall foliage and landscapes, old farm stuff and if I were to fall over any derelict industrial stuff, well that would be great too. </p>

<p>My questions are when should I plan to be in the Hudson Valley/ northern New York State to get best chance of great fall colour? And second, what areas might I focus specifically on given the broad route I've outlined. And any magical little villages I should see?</p>

Dave there's a Web site that provides past years foliage bydate and geographic location. for the whole northeast. It

also provide the drop rate. Google it. If you can't find it let me know and I'll get it for you later when i get home. Alan

This - http://www.oldrhinebeck.org/ - is always a great way to spend an afternoon. Check the dates.

I just remembered. the Foliage Network.

<p>Can't connect to the Foliage Network and in any case historically these sites tend to show the status last time they updated, and don't make it easy to see when peak actually was. I guess I'm hoping that some local photographers can help.</p>

<p><a href="https://www.google.com/search?q=mohonk+mountains&ie=utf-8&oe=utf-8&aq=t&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&client=firefox-a&channel=fflb">Mohonk Mountain House. </a>Beautiful area. </p>

 

<p>some of our friends fron NJ want to come oit here to the " lower poconos" to ne " leaf peepers"<br>

thing is every year they say when we let them know<br>

" OH well we cannot come sunday how about next week"<br>

Well it is not like visiting the statue of liberty.<br>

It always rains hard and they have to wait 360 days.<br>

Like the Jim Thorpe annial fall festival/ they get it right 1/10 of the time.<br>

all I can suggest is stay loose keep in contact and prepare to fly immediately.</p>

 

<p>For fall foliage, timing is everything. I grew up in southern Vermont, Manchester to be specific, and the rule of thumb was to plan for peak fall color in that part of the state at Columbus Day.</p>

<p>The color change is triggered by shorter days - the sun-based photosynthesis that keeps the leaves green all summer decreases with shorter days until the chemical reaction no longer generates enough green to cover the underlying colors. So the triggers is timed only to the seasonal changes in the length of daylight. However, the magnitude of that change varies with how far north a location is. So the Columbus Day target for southern Vt was good, but the color changed earlier farther north, by about 2 weeks at the Canadian border. The timing for the lengths of days and its effect on fall foliage is due to north latitude only.</p>

<p>But other factors influence the timing as well. Last year, I went to Manchester, but I missed the peak by a week. It was a dry year, drier than average, that is, and reduced water in the trees causes the photosynthesis to peter out sooner than usual. A wetter than average year will have the opposite effect, but the rainfall's effect is limited - it will only move the peak by a week or so. And I have to add, the color a week past its peak in that part of the country is still spectacular.</p>

<p>Temperature can have a larger effect. A very warm late summer and early fall can delay the foliage by a lot (I've seen it hold it back by about a month many years ago), and a very warm year not only causes the color to arrive late, it lasts much less time - some trees can go from green to brown and done. Colder than normal also inhibits the photosynthesis reaction and will cause the color change to be early, but the amount of time is mall compared to what high temps can do.</p>

<p>And, of course, it all gets more complicated and even harder to plan when the season is colder and wetter than usual, or colder and drier than usual. The competing effects get tough to quantify. The National Weather Service produces seasonal forecasts for temps and rainfall around normal, above normal, and below normal. That forecast may be helpful in choosing a schedule.</p>

 

<p>Here's the foliage reports and maps for 2012. <a href="http://www.foliagenetwork.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=34:northeast-us&Itemid=68&layout=default">http://www.foliagenetwork.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=category&id=34:northeast-us&Itemid=68&layout=default</a></p>

<p>Alan. I'm afraid the link comes up "permission denied " for me. I don't understand why. Thanks for trying.</p>

<p>Hi David,<br>

You mention "derelict industrial stuff" and eastern Pennsylvania. If you come this way in your trip, consider visiting Bethlehem Steel. You can spend a day or 2 walking around the Steel Stacks and old stone/brick industrial buildings that remain. There is a path across the river so you can shoot from there also. Some of the buildings have been renovated, but still have their original character. Many are still large ghosts of the "The Steel's" past. The whole area centers around the 4 blast furnaces of the former Bethlehem Steel plant. The stacks are lit up at night. There are plenty of nice eateries and places to stay in Bethlehem. Most area photographers spend time there, and it's even interesting enough to pull us nature photographers out of the woods. <br>

According to photos taken last year, fall color in this area (east Pennsylvania near Kutztown) peaked during the first 2 weeks of November. <br>

Another location you may want to consider in eastern Pennsylvania is Delaware Water Gap. The park straddles the NJ/PA state line along the Delaware River. It's a very nice location in the National Park system. <br>

Sounds like you are planning a very nice trip at a lovely time of year. If you like apples, you'll be here at the right time. Best wishes.</p>

<p> </p>

<p>Can anyone get to the reports from this link beside me?</p>

<p><a href="http://www.foliagenetwork.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=129&Itemid=87">http://www.foliagenetwork.com/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=129&Itemid=87</a></p>

<p>Alan, be careful: The reason others may not be able to open that link is because their virus / malware checking software is stopping them. Here's what I see when I attempt to open that link.I see the same thing even if I go to their home page. I'm sure it's not intentional on the part of the Foliagenetwork - they probably are experiencing very low traffic this time of year and they may not even be aware they have been compromised.</p>

<p>Tom M</p><div></div>

<p>Bear Mountain, West Point, Garrison, Cold Spring, Hyde Park, Rhinebeck, Storm King Art Center, New Palz, Olana all come to mind. Time: 2nd half of October - 1st half of November for the southern Hudson valley, October for the northern part. Keep driving north and you'll get to Lake Champlain if you bear East or you can continue up to the Adirondacks (Lake Placid, Saranac Lake) which would be great. Personally, I would go up to Vermont or Western Massachusetts as there are more, nicer, New England-style villages there. The Finger lakes are nice, but a bit off track. It's a lot of driving if you ask me.</p>

<p>Thanks Tom- I'll stay away from it. I'm running Norton Anti-Virus but I didn't get any warnings. Hope I didn't compromise my computer.</p>

<p>Well not mine Alan and itwouldn't have been your fault anyway. I just get a notice that I don't have the necessary permissions to access the site- the same whether I use your link or use my own stored link to the site, which I've used before. Whether its the site not allowing me access or my ISP blacklisting it I really don't know.</p>

<p>I lived in the Finger Lakes region for 62 years. It has some of the best locations for fall time photography. If you want the best color then I suggest around the 2nd week end of October is the best for the Finger Lakes. A few weeks early for the fall colors in the Northern areas. I took these two images in the Finger Lakes region. <a href="http://johndoddato.blogspot.com/">http://johndoddato.blogspot.com/</a></p><div></div>

<p>Keuka Lake Overlook<br>

<a href="http://johndoddato.blogspot.com/">http://johndoddato.blogspot.com/</a></p><div></div>

<p>Nice shots, John.</p>

<p>Thank you all for your help. Looks like I have the timing about right since I was provisionally planning to be in the Finger Lakes area in the second week of October and the Adirondacks and surrounds the week before that. </p>

<p>Robin I've photographed fall in Maine and New Hampshire three times- looking for somewhere different and also want somewhere that I can combine with a week walking round NYC. A lot of travel these last 15 years tells me that on average we drive just over 2000 miles on a two week trip (which is what I plan for my circuit, plus an extra week in NYC). I also know that we drive about double the shortest route which means I should plan on a trip of c 1000 miles which this is, Newark to Newark. </p>

<p>John, we've probably crossed paths. I spent 9 years in Ithaca (undergrad and grad) beginning in 1964, and for a semester, lived a couple of miles north of Taughannock Falls and have many pix of it. </p>

<p>However, perhaps more interesting is a Kodachrome that I took in 1971 on my old Nikon F + probably my 300 mm lens. If I remember correctly, I was probably just a hundred feet or so to the west (right) of the location from which you shot Lake Keuka. A couple of years ago, I re-photographed the slide with a d200 and touched it up in PS. Not bad for a 40 year old slide, eh?</p>

<p>Cheers,</p>

<p>Tom M</p>

<p>PS - BTW, I like your shots, and I completely agree with your suggestion about the wonderful photo opportunities around Ithaca.</p><div></div>

The general timing of the change of colors in the Northeast varies by latitude and altitude as well as by seasonal factors

such as rainfall accumulation and the arrival of the first frost.

 

Near the Canadian border, the change can begin as early as late September. Eastern PA would probably be peaking in

late October. Central Park in NYC usually starts turning around the time of the marathon (first weekend in November),

but I have seen it change even later in recent years.

 

Given your itinerary, I would suggest three weeks in October beginning with your northernmost destinations on roughly

the first or second weekend in October. You could fly to NYC, drive up I-87, and work your way southward.

 

It's difficult to narrow the timing range down due to the seasonal variation, however, each location should hold strong color for a

week or more, as different trees change at different times. Even if you arrive a bit past the peak, there still should be

opportunities to capture shots of late changing trees and/or leaves on the ground before they dry out and turn brown. If

you arrive too early, you may encounter only green foliage.