John writes…Every fall, or autumn as would say, people from all over the world come to witness one of nature’s great spectacles – the autumn foliage change. One of the most revered rituals of New England is “leaf-peeping” – driving to see the green leaves of summer turn to vivid shades of glowing orange, brilliant yellow, fiery red and rich brown. Brightest of all are red swamp maple, and sumac. Aspen and birch turn yellow, sugar maples a peachy orange. Each species of tree and shrub has its own unique hues which can vary from year to year.

The brilliance of this spectacle is attributed to mild autumn days coupled with cool, crisp, but not freezing evenings, and a dry continental climate.

But “leaf-peeping” is an odd term…because once the foliage change begins, the colours are right in front of you…full on…over tens of thousands of square miles!

We were worried that the hot dry summer would delay the change, and we only had the window from 23-26^th September. We hired a car and headed to the hills of Vermont and New Hampshire. Picture postcard New England towns and farms were breathtaking, and the colour change was as good as it gets. Staying in small B&Bs or country inns we met a fascinating cross section of people. Perhaps not surprisingly we found a number of inns were run by Brits who had fallen for this stunning area.  Also to our surprise, many of the barns contained historic cars – often Model T Fords of different types.

And when the leaves start to fall…it is just like the first snowflakes of winter. And talking of which, when the snow does come (usually in November) the ground will be white for the next 4-5 months, and cross-country skiing and skidoo-ing become the norm in these parts.

Now we are back in New York, in torrential rain and strong winds, waiting for a weather window to head down to the Chesapeake and Annapolis for the US sailboat show. Work beckons!