Tuesday 15th October

We continued our journey travelling through White Mountains today heading toward Vermont. A very sunny, scenic day with lots of eye candy of leaves and more covered bridges. We took our time taking as much as possible as we travelled the countryside.

Some information for you about the Fall leaves of New England from a brochure we picked up along the way...

"The changing colors of autumn signal that trees are getting ready for winter. Throughout spring and summer, most of the food necessary for a tree's growth is made in the leaves. This food making process takes place in the cells containing chlorophyll, which gives leaves their green color.

In fall, partly due to shorter periods of daylight and cooler temperatures, the leaves stop making food. The chlorophyll breaks down and the green color disappears; yellow and orange - previously masked by the green - appear.

The vibrant reds, purples, and bronzes come from other chemical processes. The brilliant red of Maples has a sweet side: in the warmth of fall days, sugar is produced in the leaves and the trapped by the night's chill. The more sugar that accumulates, the brighter red the leaves turn.

The degree of color varies from tree to tree. Leaves directly exposed to the sun may turn red, while those on shady side of the same tree may be yellow. Colors also varies depending on weather conditions. When autumn is warm and rainy, leaves may have less red coloration.

As colors vary from mountaintops to valleys and from day to day, there is no way to predict when fall foliage will be at it's peak. This is a time of change, when each day is colored anew. Only two places in the world have this brilliant foliage - New England and part of Japan -..."

Bath was one of the towns visited which had a store called "The Brick Store" - the oldest general store in America! It was just by the Bath covered bridge, the longest in New Hampshire.

Colours of fall in the sunshine today was brilliant again!