Looking up the lift line on Rams Head Peak (with Snowshed base lodge in the foreground). 

Cooler nights and shorter sunny days have set in motion the ritual transition of the Green Mountains from their namesake green to a bright melange of color. Fall Foliage season has descended upon the mountains and the surrounding countryside. What was but a glimmer of color less than 7 days ago has now burst forth upon the mountain sides all around Killington.

The mountains of Killington are literally exploding with color. The maples that make up the forest on the lower elevations of the mountain have all started to turn crimson. Random birch and poplar trees mixed in with the maples are sowing hints of yellow. Oak trees are still predominately green, but some early oaks are starting to show some orange rust in amongst their greenery. And of course, the high altitude conifers look down across the scene below maintaining their majestic green, waiting for their turn to be camouflaged by Mother Nature with early morning frost and some soon to arrive mountain snow.

If you are planning to visit the Green Mountains to see the fall colors, now is the time to finalize and execute your plans. You will be rewarded with one of the greatest shows Mother Nature puts on anywhere on the planet.

Where ever you may be keep it in the fairway, and pull out that rule book to review the "fallen leaf rule".

Green Mountain National Golf Course from the air looking north down Route 100. 

In the next day the northern hemisphere of the earth will experience the Autumnal Equinox. This year astronomers calculate it will take place on September 22 at 2:49 PM GMT. In simple terms, it means what we have already known at Killington for several weeks : Fall is here. In a more complicated discussion, it means that the sun for the next 6 months will lie south of the equator; delivering less energy to the atmosphere of the northern hemisphere leading us into winter. (Which if you live at a ski resort in the northern hemisphere like we do is a very good thing!)

Yesterday I had the privilege of getting an aerial view of Killington and the surrounding Green Mountains of Vermont via helicopter. The 15 minute helicopter ride is one of the signature elements of a golf tournament hosted each year by Casey Crompton and the Sante Fe Steakhouse in Killington. The helicopter takes off and lands in the driving range of Green Mountain National. In earlier tournaments, it shuttled golfers back and forth between the Green Mountain National course and the Killington Resort golf course. For the last several years, instead of acting as a between course shuttle service, tournament players were treated to a scenic ride around the Green Mountains.

Every time I see the Green Mountains from the air, I am struck by their beauty. On every turn the change in seasons in the mountains is making a statement. The bright green of the manicured lawns of the golf course shine like a jewel in a forest whose green canopy is starting to turn rust colored. The azure blue of the many large and small ponds in the area reflect the bright sunshine. You get the sense looking down on the mountains that a huge fuse has been lit; that the whole scene is just moments away from exploding in star burst after star burst of brilliant color.

Fall is definitely settling over the Green Mountains... and it's going to be one helluva show!

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!)

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!