The basin area of Killington starting to show color. Click for panorama. 

In just a few short days, fall will officially arrive according to the calendar. At Killington, it is already here.

Last night brought heavy rains thru the area. They were the leading edge of a cold front which, while providing magnificent blue skies overhead, are keeping temperatures in the area in the low 50's.

Even though I am fiercely holding on to my summer shorts until the bitter end, blue jeans and fleeces are starting to make more than a casual appearance around town. Inn guests are starting to adapt. You may have noticed some motorcycles parked in front of the inn in the fall foliage picture of the day the last 2 days. All of the riders visited a local ski shop to purchase some winter thermal underwear this morning, before continuing on their way to points further north in Vermont.

In any regards, the seasons are changing. Summer is briskly moving into fall. A period of unmatched beauty with the pageant of fall colors is just about ready to descend across Vermont around the Green Mountains. And in Killington we have a ring-side seat!

Where ever you may be keep it in the fairway, and don't forget your sun screen!(and depending upon where your are, maybe pack a sweater!)

Winter golf gloves make an appearance for the first time of the season. 

While today is providing us with some needed late summer rain, the signs that fall is getting itself established are all around.

The monarch butterflies which were at the inn in abundance a few short weeks ago have departed for points south.

The family of humming birds who have grazed at the feeder at the front of the inn have also departed. Each day, a new, random, humming bird appears briefly, as if to refuel the gas tank before taking off again on it's southward journey.

And it a sure sign of things to come, Mary got out her winter golf gloves yesterday afternoon while we were enjoying a round of golf in the "Lookout Golf Tournament" at Green Mountain National. There was no snow in the air, but you know it is just around the corner.

Where ever you may be keep it in the fairway, and don't forget your sun screen!(at least for a few more weeks.)

Fall colors lighting up the hillsides behind the Snowshed Pond. 

Brrr... it is starting to get cooler everyday. I contemplated putting on blue jeans this morning, but opted for a pair of summer shorts. Blue jeans will become the standard daytime attire soon enough.

Pictures in the news this morning reported snow on the top of Mount Washington in New Hampshire. It won't be long now before we can say the same thing about the top of Killington Peak. Everyday it is getting a little cooler. Every night, it is starting to get cold. While we have not had a frost yet, there have been several nights already where we have flirted with one.

All of this is, of course, pointing to a season of change. The trees all around central Vermont are starting to take on fall hues of varying intensity. While it is several weeks early for brilliant color, you can tell in your travels around the area that change is afoot.

The trees on Killington Peak are starting to take on some color; as are the trees behind the inn. A couple more cold nights and cool days will set the process, starting a cascade of color which will ripple across the area like waves at high tide. It is all a beautiful site.

Where ever you may be keep it in the fairway, and don't forget your sun screen!(at least for a few more weeks.)

Church Steeples in Rutland Vermont from the 17th tee at Rutland Country Club 

I know we live in a special place. Every night on television when we watch the evening news we see jarring reminders of how strange the rest of the planet can be. But the people of Vermont get by.

We have had the good fortune to play golf several times the last few days. On Sunday we played at the Rutland Country Club.

Rutland Country Club is a great example of an old 'New England" golf course set on rolling hills just outside of the center of Rutland. The course is filled with beautiful, if not idyllic, scenes of the surrounding countryside. Perhaps none is prettier than from the 17th tee looking out over the city of Rutland. In a world where religious intolerance seems to be trying to push the world back to the dark ages, the idyllic scene from the 17th tee of multiple church steeples from many different faiths all co-existing in a small city in rural Vermont speaks volumes about the greatness of our country.

We hope you have a chance to visit Vermont this fall to partake in be annual ballet of nature we call Fall Foliage season; to get away, at least for a brief moment, from the tumult engulfing the planet and enjoy the special place we call home.

Where ever you may be keep it in the fairway, and don't forget your sun screen!(at least for a few more weeks.)

First Fall Foliage Picture of the season 

Even though it started early... summer has gone by pretty fast in Killington.

I took the first fall foliage picture of the day from the front of the inn this morning. It is a ritual of fall I have been doing for many years. Each year the progression of fall color is a little different based upon how much "stress" the trees have sustained each summer. I am sure that an aborist at the University of Vermont could explain the science of fall foliage in detail, but "a picture is worth a 1000 words" or so that say, so I dutifully take a picture everyday of the inn and the forest behind to show natures progression.

We have already started to receive telephone calls about when will fall colors hit their peak at Killington. Clearly it is going to be Saturday October 6 at 10:20 AM with a sun altitude angle of approx 38 degrees, and azimuth angle of -25 degrees, and a declination of -5. Any bets on that one... no.. me neither...

The beauty of peak fall foliage is literally in the eye of the beholder. It is truly impossible to tell exactly when peak colors will occur. You will know it when you see it, not before, and not after. It is truly one of the "Ah-Ha" moments you experience in life when you are out in the mountains of Vermont in the fall.

Since prediction is an inexact science, the next best thing is to watch the progression of the change of colors and compare this year to past years. I will try to post pictures of the inn every day from now through the end of the fall season, so you can follow along.

Where ever you may be keep it in the fairway, and don't forget your sun screen!

Tight lie.... 

It was a good run.

Congratulations are in order to my presidents cup opponent Scott who dispatched of me this morning on the 18th hole of the Green Mountain National Golf Course. It was a glorious morning to play golf. Scott had me 2 up through the font nine. I was to able close the gap to 1 as we were standing on the 18th tee. But Scott prevailed by making par on the hole, causing me to loose the match.

It has been a good summer for competitive golf. I prevailed through 4 previous matches to make the finals on the Presidents Cup. While I feel good about that, more importantly, I feel good about playing competitive golf with some very nice people who share the joy of a good round.

Golf season in Killington will go another 2 months before the call of the mountains turns our attention to skiing. And with fall foliage colors just around the corner, now is a beautiful time to come play golf in the Green Mountains.

Where ever you may be this Labor Day Weekend, keep it in the fairway, and don't forget your sun screen!

Monarch butterfly sampling a dahlia 

What a difference a year can make....

Last year we were giving witness to the power of Mother Nature to bring down mountains with some rain. This year we are admiring the whimsy of Mother Nature for creating beautiful butterflies to tease us as we walk by the gardens. The contrast could not be more profound.

Today happens to be primary day in Vermont. Who knew! Mary and I dutifully cast out ballots this afternoon at town hall for some politicians who felt it was in their best interest to hold an election where nobody came. Hopefully it does not work out that way.

We were actually tipped off about the election 2 days ago. A republican state rep for Killington sent out an email asking people to take a democratic ballot and write in his name. He was hoping he could snipe the lone democrat on the primary ballot, thus avoiding any kind of election at all for the house seat he currently holds in the fall. Oops... he was found out. Of course, what he tried to do is perfectly legal, if not a bit unorthodox. The real shame is that the democrat kept such a low profile for the primary that the republican thought he would be able to get away with it. A pox on both their houses.

Which brings us back to the butterflies.

A year ago in the aftermath of Hurricane/Tropical Storm Irene, the citizens of Vermont put aside their political differences in the face of tremendous adversity. When Mother Nature moved mountains, the people of Vermont responded with the proverbial "is that all you got!". The bonds formed between people all over the state will be a unifying theme for years to come. If only the political class could figure that out instead of trying to game the system for their advantage....so it goes...

And the butterflies are oblivious.

Vermont is a beautiful state. The gardens all around the inn that Mary carefully tends are an example of working with nature versus fighting it. And, at least for a few days, the butterflies have voted with their wings!

Where ever you may be keep it in the fairway, and don't forget your sun screen!