Saturday, September 21, 2013

Fall colors are getting more intense

Fall colors are getting more intense. Sumac is one of the first to show vivid reds. The next six weeks are going to be a lot of fun!

 

Wednesday, September 11, 2013

Cold nights, warm days, and transition of colors

I think that September and October are my favorite months in the Helderbergs. Now the colors start to transition from vibrant summer pinks to colors we associate with autumn: yellow, red, beige, brown, purple. The weather has been changing almost from hour to hour. Two nights ago the temperature was in low 40s, but today (93F) is extremely hot and humid and even early morning it felt like we were in a sauna. We are expecting a big thunderstorm so tomorrow a lot of delicate flowers will be destroyed. I was lucky to take an early morning walk that yielded a lot of pictures. Enjoy!
 
 
 
 

Apple growers in New York State predict a big crop this year, 100% or more than in an average year. We have several apple trees on our piece of land and they are loaded with fruit. The same goes for crab apples. This is one of the trees growing in our enclosure; the color of these very small crab apples is very intense.
 


Saturday, September 7, 2013

A seven-year-old picture: the Helderberg Hills

I was cleaning my hard drive today and came across this picture that I took in 2006. The camera I was using was really not good at all by these days' standards so I had to resort to some heavy enhancements. I can't repeat this shot any longer as trees around our property are obscuring the view

Friday, September 6, 2013

The Helderbergs' sunsets in early September

The last few evenings produced stunning sunsets. John was a chauffeur and I was a photographer.
 

These two pictures were taken on Tabor Road in Berne. There is a marsh there, and yesterday around sunset we spotted some duck activity. BTW, a year ago there were many more ducks than we get to see this year. Last evening all ducks flew away when they saw our car, but the Great Blue Heron has stayed.

 
The picture below shows a view from "our" hill on to Irish Hill, across Helderberg Trail. So what you see at the bottom is not our house. I never get tired of this scenic landscape.
 

And here there are some recent sunsets, with clouds and with clear sky.

 


Tuesday, September 3, 2013

Peace in the woods followed by a thunderstorm

Yesterday we put out several trail cameras to see whether and how much deer activity we have in the woods. We get to see a couple of fawns together with a doe, but have not seen any bucks for a while now. This year we did not draw any doe permits so it would be good to know whether we have any chance to shoot a buck on our piece of land.

It was so peaceful in the woods. I am not sure whether the picture below can convey it, but to me this is the best place in the whole world.


A peaceful afternoon turned into the dark evening. The thunderstorm brought rain, lightning and thunders. I thought that the clouds in the sky were magnificent.