Autumn-That-Almost-Wasn't

Here, in the middle of November, we've finally come to the visual apex of fall. A bit late but hey. Better late than never. And I really, really thought it was going to be never this year. Looking back through my photo files from last year tells me, surprisingly, that the colors really aren't any later than they were last autumn. If it weren't for bulging photography files I could have sworn to you that the colors this year were so much later than they normally are. When we got that snowstorm in late October and everything was icicles and frost and the boys were out in the yard swinging their snow shovels around for old time's sake and A and I looked around at all the trees, still green in the leaf and though, "Well, there goes our fall color show!" I was sure that once the snow melted and the air warmed up again all the leaves would turn brown and insta-drop.

Heh. Never second guess Mother Nature...she is her own boss. Looks like all that really happened is that we got an early taste of winter spirit to put a little extra spring our step and then we went back to our regularly scheduled autumn show.

Maples are my favorite trees, second only to beeches, I'm so glad to have several of them on and near our property. In the back yard, over the garage a big grand sugar maple and her neighbor has gone school bus colored and are starting to drop leaves in a pile the boys like to jump in every morning. 

In front of our house, we have two Japanese maples, one on either side of our front walk reaching up towards our bedroom window.They spread their double canopy right about even with our second floor and specifically my bedside window. They are now the most amazing flame scarlet and waking up in the morning to see the sun rising out my window in cotton candy wisps and swathes of pink and gold through those bright red leaves is completely surreal. I wish I could paint it or photograph it for you but it is one of those breathtaking things that makes you leave the camera where it is and just open your eyes a little wider instead. There is no capturing certain visual moments except with the mind. This Autumn-That-Almost-Wasn't is a really beautiful thing.

Sugaring Festival

Image via Wikipedia

We drove a great deal this weekend and managed to get all the way up to the top of the state to the part of Connecticut where there is still snow. Far away, up there it is still the end of winter and the maple sap is flowing. A generous farm decided to host a local sugaring festival for free for anyone who wanted to come celebrate. We had a grand time.

There were pony rides (Ru was a very smug fan. I wish I still could fit on a pony.), there were sap and syrup tastings, there pancakes hot off the griddle, there demonstrations of maple cookery and a big evaporator steaming up the attic of the sugar house with the effort of cooking down the farm's arboreal takings.

And then they made sugar-on-the-snow, just like in Lara Ingalls Wilder's story about sugaring off in Little House In The Big Woods.

I've never actually seen it made or tasted it, although I grew up in a family that made maple syrup. I totally get why it is described so fondly in the book. Wow.

The syrup turns into this lovely, moist taffy stuff that is a glowing gold as it spins on your fork (you twirl it up off the snow after it is ladled out) and it mixes with the cold crystals from the snow and ice and gives you this warm/cold feeling as you eat it. So great.

We left remembering just exactly how fond we both feel of this local, American product and decided that next year, maybe we'll try tapping the  maple trees by our house. There are two that would be unobtrusive to tap, in our back yard and then if we got brave we could tap the two others along the street in the front yard. Do you know any stories of urban tapping?