Me and my lovely Dina headed out on a multi-stop trip all the way to Altamont, NY approximately fifteen miles from Albany. We had a mission of fresh local NY produce and the spectacular growing fall colors! The morning began in Harriman State Park. It was absolutely silent. Getting there around 7:30am provided us with perfect light and total immersion into nature. The colors were spectacular. We saw many white tailed deer and even a wild turkey poking around the park. Definitely have to drive slow. Plus why drive fast when you will miss soaking in all the beauty! That was just the beginning of the day.
Next our mission moved through Harriman and up I-87 on to Catskill State Park. Specifically the Haines Falls area. A quiet, humble quaint little town 1900ft in the mountains with one of the largest falls in New York State. Kaaterskill falls. A popular destination growing tremendously (The lot was filled to the brim and it is a small lot. A bus was even trying to squeeze in!) The popularity cost us the hike toward the falls with destinations ahead of us. No loss though. We headed up the mountain to the outlook over Kaaterskill Falls. A place I wanted to go several times and hadn’t had the opportunity to before. Well worth the trip; nice and quiet to boot.As you walk down the trail you are surrounded in yellow leaves with sunlight backlighting. Creating this ambiance that just puts you at peace. You veer to the right at the fork and come to a short, but steep ramp/stairs down toward the creek from North and South Lake. As you pass the large boulder a sharp view down appears and an immense view abroad showcasing the Catskill Mountains in the vibrant fall colors.
Our Mission from there on out was to head on up to Altamont, NY. We were in search of NY farms and fresh produce. NY is one of our country’s largest producers of apples and I was damn well gonna take advantage of it!
I had an ace up my sleeve. We weren’t over three hours away from home just for the produce. I also planned on hiking the Indian ladder trail and taking in the views of the Adirondacks in John Boyd Thatcher State Park. It is a beautiful park that fits the niche of many. From picnic areas, pull off over looks, to dangerously narrow cliff side trails and bat caves. After the quick tourist pull off taking in the tremendous view we headed further up the mountainside and Indian Ladder Trail. The Trail rounds the outer cliffside of John Boyd Thatcher Park and passes under Minelot Falls. There are tremendous limestone cliffs that have been eroded over the myriad of years. The origins of the trail comes from the Native Americans first creating the trail as a path around the cliff face that involved the creation of ladders in order to scale the great heights. Currently now replaced with modern metal stairs. Can be muddy and slippery so beware. Not for the faint of heart when looking down at times.
The day ended with a long trip home and the sun-backlit leaves waving goodbye in the cool autumn breeze.
Crystal clear day with absolutely no wind to be felt. Incredible reflections abound at Harriman State Park.
Faces down and butts up. Two visitors along side us taking in the vertical drop of the falls with the calling landscape of the Catskill Mountains.
A donkey found of all the visitors. Looking for some grub. All I was thinking was “Please don’t lick my lens!”
Those dramatic cliffs at John Boyd Thatchers State Park. The Light was bursting from up above. I decided to underexpose bringing the light within not blowing out my highlights severely and saturating the rest of the picture. I then Took my SB-800 flash unit and lit the tree to create a sense of depth.
An underground erosion of the limestone cliffside at John Boyd Thatcher State Park, NY. The Water had found a weaker area of the limestone and eroded its way through hundreds of feet of limestone.
Talk about backlighting! Need I say more?
