Fall Foliage

“The trees are about to show us how lovely it is to let things go.” -Unknown
This is a repost of one I shared several years ago, but the trees are changing and we are transitioning away from our summer home to our winter home and thought I would share the info again…and the beautiful photos.

The fall colors are taking over in upstate New York and Pennsylvania. It truly is a beautiful time of year. Our trees in Texas change color, but we don’t get the colors you find further north. Do you know why? Here is an explanation…Although temperature and rainfall influence the colors, the onset of longer nights is the most important factor in leaf color change. The daylight hours in the south stay more consistent so we have less color.

So why do leaves change color? Changes in leaves’ plants have three primary pigments that are important for the color changes we see during autumn: chlorophyll, carotenoids and anthocyanins.

Chlorophyll, the pigment that gives plants their green color, is necessary for photosynthesizing light and creating sugars that feed the plant. Carotenoids assist in photosynthesis and are responsible for the oranges and yellows color. Anthocyanins, acts as a protective “sunscreen” for leaves; they produce the red colors we see in leaves. Anthocyanins are produced only during the fall when chlorophyll levels start to drop.

During the growing season, chlorophyll takes center stage as it’s repeatedly produced and broken down again, making the leaves appear green. As the days become shorter, there is less available sunlight for photosynthesis. This slows chlorophyll production until none remains. The carotenoids and the anthocyanins are then left allowing the leaves to bare their brilliant colors.

Temperature and moisture are the main drivers of the amount and brilliance of the colors. Warm, sunny days with cool (but not freezing) nights allow for lots of sugars to be produced during the day, which are then trapped in the leaves as the cool nights close the leaves’ veins. This extra sugar leads to the production of more anthocyanins, boosting the reds, crimsons and purples in the leaves.

In most parts of the temperate world, 15% of tree species will turn yellow and only 10% will turn red. In certain regions, however, like New England, 30% of the woody species will turn yellow and an incredible 70% will turn red. You’ll find some of the most brilliant color changes in trees such as maple, dogwood, sumac, oak, poplars, birch and elm.

My friend Julia took this picture of the marina right after we left…thanks for the wonderful picture.

These pictures were taken by a local photographer in upstate New York. His name is John Kucko. Just out his Facebook page.

Fall isn’t all about the foliage…there are plenty of pumpkins, Indian corn, mums and gourds too.

Fall Foliage

“The trees are about to show us how lovely it is to let things go.” -Unknown
This is a repost of one I shared several years ago, but the trees are changing and we are transitioning away from our summer home to our winter home and thought I would share the info again…and the beautiful photos.

CONTINUE READING HERE…»

San Juan Islands 2023

Our first stop in the San Juan archipelago is Stuart Island.  We find Reid Harbor busy, but the spacious bay accommodates many boats so finding a spot is no problem.   Stuart Island is one of our favorite spots.  We enjoy several days of hiking on this remote island. It is always good to get off the boat […]

September Updates

“Never forget that it takes only one person or one idea to change your life forever.” –Author Unknown 
September was a busy month and I’ve made a lot of posts of the main events, but I wanted to include a few other things we did during the month. During Marina Day in June we won the door prize…two tickets to ride on The Teal. This cruise boat runs educational, ecological and sunset excursions on Cayuga Lake. We decided to use our tickets during the full moon on September 1st. It was a wonderful trip.
The Teal is docked across the marina from our boat.

The beautiful full moon from the stern of The Pearl.

Labor Day weekend we drove to Bloomsburg to celebrate Hattie’s birthday and spend the holiday with family. We always have fun with them.

Hattie had her 4th birthday party at the city park.

S’mores and the fire pit are some of the best parts of summer.

The final dock party on pier 3…days are getting shorter and the nights are getting cooler…fall has arrived.

We said good-bye to summer the same way we welcomed it in…a picnic at Sheldrake Winery and dinner at the Boatyard Grill.

Here’s to the end of another wonderful summer and the start to more adventures this fall.

Our little runabout.

This picture was taken on September 20 and the following picture just ten days later…fall is arriving very fast.

Dirty Harry’s Balcony Hike

Dirty Harry’s Balcony offers great views of the western Cascade Mountains on a relatively short hike that is closer to Seattle than most. The 4.2-mile (6.8 km) return trail ascends 1,354 ft (412 m) through healthy, second-growth forest from a trailhead that is only a 45-minute drive from our apartment. The trail is named not…

Sept. 29 – Cirque du Soleil Echo

“Because our days are filled with the rational, practical and expected, Cirque du Soleil exists to bring us that which has never existed. And makes us feel things we’ve never felt. Life needs folly, life needs cirque” -Cirque du Soleil

The highlight of our family trip to DC was attending Cirque du Soleil Echo. The show was in the nearby town of Tysons, Virginia. Getting there on the Metro was part of the fun. The train stopped right next to the show sight. This particular show takes place under a huge big top, which gave us the feeling we were at the circus.
The grounds of Cirque du Soleil Echo.
There was a lot to see and do while we waited for the show to begin. Of course there were things to buy…souvenirs, drinks and food. And lots of photo op places.
Our seats are the red dots on this seating photo. We Loved being up close seeing the expressions on the actors.
Our first look at the stage. 

The set revolves around the mysterious CUBE that is as tall as a 2-story apartment building. At different points during the show it is dismantled, stripped, and rebuilt, scaled by animals, swung from by artists, and used as a mesmerizing projection surface. Surrounding the cube is the stage that resembles water in a lake, every interaction with the CUBE creates a unique effect that ripples into the future.

Echo a story about connection, collaboration and the power of intention. The ability to have a strong vision and put all your energy into it to make that idea come to life. The main protagonist Future is a young girl who represents the youth of today and the awareness that the youth have for what’s going on in the world. At the beginning of the show she discovers how the world is changing and the effects this change has on the world, negative or positive and then at one specific moment something happens which changes everything for her. She makes this big decision and she brings everyone together, animals and humans, to work together to rebuild our world.

Future and her companion Ewai.
The opening act blew us away. The actors were so close and it was aww inspiring.
Watching the kid’s faces was just as entertaining for me.
These two were the clowns for the show. Entertaining during set changes. We truly enjoyed them.
Icarian Games…a very popular acrobatic circus act that is described as human foot juggling.
Hair Suspension Duo. The hair hang is an aerial circus act where performers are suspended by their hair, performing acrobatic poses and manipulation.
Banquine/Korean Cradle entertained us with a dizzying array of stunts. At one point we actually thought they might land on us.
The largest puppet I’ve ever seen. There were people inside helping it to move.
Slackwire duo. It’s an acrobatic circus act that involves balancing and moving along a flexible, thin wire suspended in the air.      
This flying poles act features a first-of-its-kind pole apparatus named Chrysalid that is semi-attached to the stage floor. This groundbreaking performance requires exceptional strength.
The Contortion. This act left us wondering just how he could move the way he did and left my joints aching.
The Teeterboard Act was fun to watch as they flew high in the air.
The cube filled with all the actors. It was beautiful.

More Fun Facts:
  • Cirque du Soleil ECHO is the 20th Big Top creation from Cirque du Soleil and its 51st overall.
  • It takes 10 projectors to cover the entire stage and the rotating CUBE–the most ever for a Cirque du Soleil Big Top show.
  • At one of the most surprising points in the show, one of the CUBE’s walls supports 40 artists.
  • The roof of the CUBE contains a light box with 1.68 miles of LED strips.
Dinner after the show at Founding Farmers.

Waiting for the train to take us home.

Our last look at the Cirque from the train platform.

Celebrate Merlot, Walla Walla

We’ve always favored full-bodied reds, such as Cabernet Sauvignon and Zinfandel, over lighter choices such as Merlot and Pinot Noir. But after attending a couple of Winemaker’s Dinners at the Butcher’s Table restaurant, arranged by Merlot-enthusiast Jason Sanneman, we began to appreciate that varietal more. We’d also become interested in visiting Walla Walla in eastern…

Blind Chanel to Vancouver:

Homemade cinnamon rolls are baked each morning at the Blind Channel store.  They are so popular that the marina limits boaters to two per boat.  We secure our pair of tasty pastries as soon as the store opens as they sell out quickly.   We have a short travel day of 31 miles to our next anchorage of […]

2023 Cruise Summary

Fortunately, we do not suffer from “Triskaidekaphobia” otherwise we might of skipped this year. The cruise was without mishaps and relaxing.  We changed our fishing strategy by moving the salmon fishing the until the southbound BC portion of the trip.  That freed up days which we spent on additional port days or days at anchor while reducing engine hours and miles traveled.

The cruise was 139 days/138 nights long from Saturday, April 29 until Thursday, September 14.  We spent 84 nights at anchor (61%) and 54 nights at a dock.  Of the nights at anchor, for 46 nights we were the only boat in the anchorage (55%).  During the cruise, we traveled 3023.6 nautical miles and put 510.4 hours on our engine.  We ran our generator 22 times totaling 36 hours.

By coincidence, last year’s cruise, 2022, was also 139 days/138 nights.  Compared to 2022, in 2023 we spent 7 more nights at the dock, 103.2 fewer hours operating the engine, traveled 560 fewer miles and operated the generator 18 additional hours.  These numbers document our slower pace and more time spent on docks or multiple days at anchor.The additional expense from days on the dock is offset by the reduced amount of fuel burned.

We still manage to find new (to us) places to visit and anchor. In 2023 we used 14 new places to anchor (alphabetically –  Baker Cove, Chichagof Village, Dorothy Cove, Fancy Cove, Forit Bay, Kah Shakes Cove, Kinahan Islands, Lake Anna, Luck Dragon Cove, Otter Cove, Russell Island Passage, Sundew Cove, Sunny Bay, and Waterfall Cove). We also visited one new marina, Mill Bay Marina on Vancouver Island.

Below is a map of our stops in the 2023 cruising season. Clicking on one of the “dropped pins” will pull up some information about the stop. At the top right of the map is an icon which will open a separate window that may be easier to navigate.

2023 Cruise Summary

Fortunately, we do not suffer from “Triskaidekaphobia” otherwise we might of skipped this year. The cruise was without mishaps and relaxing.  We changed our fishing strategy by moving the salmon fishing the until the southbound BC portion of the trip.  That freed up days which we spent on additional port days or days at anchor while reducing engine hours and miles traveled.

The cruise was 139 days/138 nights long from Saturday, April 29 until Thursday, September 14.  We spent 84 nights at anchor (61%) and 54 nights at a dock.  Of the nights at anchor, for 46 nights we were the only boat in the anchorage (55%).  During the cruise, we traveled 3023.6 nautical miles and put 510.4 hours on our engine.  We ran our generator 22 times totaling 36 hours.

By coincidence, last year’s cruise, 2022, was also 139 days/138 nights.  Compared to 2022, in 2023 we spent 7 more nights at the dock, 103.2 fewer hours operating the engine, traveled 560 fewer miles and operated the generator 18 additional hours.  These numbers document our slower pace and more time spent on docks or multiple days at anchor.The additional expense from days on the dock is offset by the reduced amount of fuel burned.

We still manage to find new (to us) places to visit and anchor. In 2023 we used 14 new places to anchor (alphabetically –  Baker Cove, Chichagof Village, Dorothy Cove, Fancy Cove, Forit Bay, Kah Shakes Cove, Kinahan Islands, Lake Anna, Luck Dragon Cove, Otter Cove, Russell Island Passage, Sundew Cove, Sunny Bay, and Waterfall Cove). We also visited one new marina, Mill Bay Marina on Vancouver Island.

Below is a map of our stops in the 2023 cruising season. Clicking on one of the “dropped pins” will pull up some information about the stop. At the top right of the map is an icon which will open a separate window that may be easier to navigate.