Scenes of September, White Mountains – Many New Englanders, myself included, look forward to the cool September nights, and after the heat wave we have had this summer we are finally getting some cool temperatures here in the New Hampshire White Mountains. The problem is the cool air didn’t arrive until the end of this month, and most of September has been very hot, and the foliage has only begun to change.

For the last few years, I have started shooting autumn foliage scenes around September 24, and one year I was even shooting foliage scenes on the last day of summer, but not this year. The weather has slowed the process down, and the trees are barely showing any color. I dare say we are at least a week or more behind schedule here in the White Mountains region.

I spent one morning this month shooting at Bedell Bridge State Park in Haverhill, New Hampshire. This 38-acre state park is located along the Connecticut River and it was the site of the second longest two-span covered bridge in the country. I also spent a full day scouting out a few new locations in the Lake Tarleton (above) area of Piermont. It has been a number of years since I have visited this area, and I forgot how beautiful it is.

I finished up documenting the historic Sandwich Notch. I will be heading back to shoot more of the area in the future, but am done for now. You can read more about the abandoned Sandwich Notch Hill Farm Community here and the Sandwich Notch Road here. Moses Hall, who died in 1930, was the last person to live year-round in Sandwich Notch. He is buried at Rural Cemetery (above) in Sandwich.

I finally had the chance to explore the new trail system at Warren Town Forest in Warren, NH. This trail system opened to the public in 2014 and was built by Hermit Woods Trailbuilders, LLC. I love quality stonework, and the stone staircases built along this trail system are excellent. They are not overpowering, look natural, blend into the landscape, and should last for years (above). The professional trail building groups bring craftsmanship and know-how to the New Hampshire trail system that can’t be replicated by the average Joe.

Since the autumn foliage is behind this year, I will share with you the image that represents October (above) in my 2016 White Mountains calendar. It is of Dolly Copp Road (above) and is one of the many back roads in the White Mountains region that looks incredible during peak foliage. You can purchase the White Mountains calendar here.

All of the above images can be licensed for publications by clicking on the image you are interested in, and you can view more new images from the month of September here.

Happy image making..

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Erin Paul Donovan

Owner of ScenicNH Photography LLC

Erin Paul is a professional photographer, writer, and author who specializes in environmental conservation and historic preservation photography mainly in the New Hampshire White Mountains. His work is published worldwide, and publication credits include: Appalachian Mountain Club, Appalachian Trail Conservancy, Backpacker Magazine, and The Wilderness Society.