A muted New Hampshire Fall

November 16, 2014February 24, 2026 / Ellen Kolb

November, Naticook Lake. Ellen Kolb photo

I walked to Naticook Lake again this week – a familiar place to me in summer, but I’d never really noticed it in autumn before, so every recent walk there has been a little journey of re-discovery. I came across it in the oddest light late in the day. I saw the last of the colorful leaves floating on the lake, so out came the camera phone for a quick shot. When I reviewed the photo later, there was this muted hazy look. The camera itself was fine; other shots taken that day were sharp as could be. Somehow, I had caught the light on the lake at just the right time for this almost-smudgy look. I used a high-resolution setting, with Auto exposure and no adjustments to white balance.

The park has grown quiet with the athletic field no longer humming with youth football, now wrapped up for the season. Too cold for tennis, I guess, since the courts have been empty on my recent visits. I share the lakeshore with only a couple of people at a time, all of us just passing by on our walks, shedding our workdays one step at a time.

Message from a New Hampshire bridge: connect, slowly

November 10, 2014February 24, 2026 / Ellen Kolb / 6 Comments

I live in a textured place. Nothing dramatic or showy, but interesting. Hills here, watercourses there, ledge all over the place: it adds up to very few straight roads and not nearly enough bridges for convenience. The Nashua River in southern New Hampshire could use a few more bridges, and if you don’t believe me, try driving through Nashua during rush hour. Hollis, the next town upstream, is a much quieter place. It gets by quite comfortably with one bridge over the river, connecting a small quiet town with a much busier one. There’s something about this bridge, though, that speaks to me less about connection than about rest and pause. I wouldn’t be surprised if someday I saw a sign here saying Don’t be in such a hurry to get from here to there. Stop awhile.

View from Stratham Hill Tower, Stratham NH

October 12, 2014February 24, 2026 / Ellen Kolb

A decommissioned fire tower is a five-minute walk uphill from the parking lot at Stratham Hill Park on Route 33 in Stratham, New Hampshire. I paid it a quick visit on a sunny and clear fall afternoon.

Stratham Hill tower can’r be seen from Route 33, but it’s only a short walk uphill from Stratham Hill Park’s parking lot.

Early fall, Weeks State Park, Lancaster NH

September 28, 2014February 24, 2026 / Ellen Kolb

View of the Presidentials and Mt. Martha (right) from Weeks State Park auto road, Lancaster NH — _{View of the Presidentials (center) and Cherry Mountain (right) from Weeks State Park auto road, Lancaster NH. All photos by Ellen Kolb.}

I had the good fortune to have business in Lancaster recently as fall was setting in across the North Country. I stopped for a walk up the Weeks State Park auto road, which is currently closed to auto traffic on weekdays. I wasn’t the only pedestrian enjoying the unseasonably warm day. The leaves are turning; my guess is that peak color in this part of Coos County is still a week away.

From Mt. Prospect: town of Jefferson and Mt. Starr King — From Mt. Prospect: town of Jefferson and Mts. Starr King & Waumbek

The oaks lining the auto road are still in full leaf, with just a hint of color. Squirrels were busy gathering acorns and dropping more than a few onto the pavement (but I dodged ’em). The green canopy was out of sync with all the colorful foliage visible from the auto road’s pullouts.

Since my last visit to Weeks, a small unpaved parking lot’s been added just outside the gate to the auto road. That’s an improvement over having to walk across two lanes of 50 m.p,h. highway to get to the park from the pretty little lot on the other side of U.S. 3.

The fire tower was locked, unfortunately. Perhaps summer weekends are the only time to get a look at the inside of this unique structure.

August at Odiorne Point State Park

August 9, 2014February 24, 2026 / Ellen Kolb

Odiorne Point State Park in Rye, New Hampshire never gets old for me, in any season.

I had planned a one-day “grand tour,” with a stop at Pawtuckaway for the fire tower then Odiorne Point for the beach and then Stratham Park for the observation tower. (Whew.) Eight hours, with three of them in the car. I’m glad I reconsidered. Odiorne Point was all I needed.

From the shore, visitors can see traffic going in and out of Portsmouth harbor.

Pitcher Mountain fire tower, Stoddard NH

May 12, 2014February 24, 2026 / Ellen Kolb / 2 Comments

When was the last time I got to one of New Hampshire’s fire towers? It’s been awhile. The other day, everything came together for a tower expedition: perfect weather, access to a car, and an afternoon to myself. I took a beautiful drive to Stoddard for a visit to Pitcher Mountain. The walk from parking area to fire tower only takes me ten or fifteen minutes. The 360º views from the tower are splendid, and the drive is a treat. Dozens of miles on roads with no traffic signals and not a single Dunkin’ Donuts in sight: how’s that for a Sunday drive?

Pitcher Mountain fire tower, Stoddard NH. All photos by Ellen Kolb.

I couldn’t miss the small parking lot on Route 123 on Stoddard. There’s a sign, and a view of the tower from the road.

First peek at the tower, approaching from the east on Rt. 123.

The walk uphill from the parking lot through woods opens up to a field with a fine view of Monadnock to the south.

Mt. Monadnock in the distance, seen from the path to the Pitcher Mountain fire tower.

From the tower, there was a full panorama. Monadnock was the most prominent feature, but plenty of other peaks were visible as well. I had the second edition of Hiking the Monadnock Region (a fine guidebook by Joe Adamowicz) to help me identify some of them.

Wind farm in Lempster, seen from the fire tower

For more about New Hampshire fire towers:

One of the most interesting local publications in my collection is a little orange booklet called A Field Guide to New Hampshire Firetowers by Iris W. Baird and Chris Haartz (2002). Look for used copies online. The booklet includes a short history of all the currently operating towers in the state, along with notes on other towers that are still standing but have been decommissioned.

The New Hampshire Division of Forests and Lands has a web page that includes information on the Tower Quest program, with a patch available to anyone visiting at least five fire towers. I admit I have one of those patches myself.

Updated 2006 with new web links.