“Autumn carries more gold in its pocket than all the other seasons.”
~ Jim Bishop
~ 1907-1987
~American journalist, author &
New Jersey native
Autumn has spun its golden beauty in the towering trees that reach for the bright morning sky on a beautiful mid-October day at Upper Saucon Township Community Park, Upper Saucon Township, Pennsylvania. Dedicated in 1996, the park covers approximately 50 acres and includes nearly two miles of walking/jogging trails that segue into the Saucon Rail Trail.
“The life in us is like the water in a river.”
~ Henry David Thoreau
~ 1817 ~ 1862
~ “Walden”
~ published 1854
Folks enjoy a sun splashed late July afternoon on the Lehigh River along the Delaware & Lehigh National Heritage Corridor (D&L Trail) on a perfect day in summer, my most favorite of seasons.
I captured this shot this after setting out from the Cementon Trailhead of the D&L Trail in Cementon, Pennsylvania, part of the Asher F. Boyer Eagle Trail section of the D&L.
Running from Wilkes-Barre to Bristol, the D&L Trail passes through the Lehigh and Delaware Rivers and their canals in Pennsylvania.
“Memory believes before knowing remembers.”
~ William Faulkner
~ 1867 ~ 1962
~ one of my favorite authors, Southern American author and Nobel Prize Laureate
~ “Light In August”
~ 1932
It’s a sunset to remember as the summer sun radiates a gorgeous light over the rolling hills in late August surrounding the rooftop observation area of Trexler Environmental Center.
The trees in the foreground have reserved seating to witness the splendor that God paints in the sky as the day segues into night.
Located in the Central Range of Trexler Nature Preserve, Schnecksville, Pennsylvania, the center is at one of the preserve’s highest elevations and one of the spots that offer spectacular views at the 1,100 acre preserve.
Solar panels provide a significant portion of the energy needs of the building.
When the late General Harry Clay Trexler (1854-1933) established the preserve in the early 1900s, he did it to save the American bison, elk and white-tailed deer from extinction and assure the species’ survival.
A conservationist along the lines of Theodore Roosevelt and John Muir, General Trexler understood the importance of nature and preserving wildlife in its natural habitat.
A successful businessman who amassed a fortune in the timber and cement industries and founded the Pennsylvania Power and Light Company, General Trexler began purchasing small farms in the low hills of Lehigh County in 1906. By 1913, he had transported eight bison and 20 Virginia white-tailed deer to the preserve. The elk followed soon after.
When General Trexler died in 1933, he bequeathed the property to the residents of Lehigh County. Today, the Trexler Nature Preserve is open to the public for passive recreation and nature watching.
“It’s always summer somewhere.”
~ Lilly Pulitzer
~1931 ~ 2013
It’s always summer somewhere ~ what a wonderful thought, as summer is my most favorite of seasons!
Kayakers in the distance drift through the beauty of a serene summer afternoon on a beautiful mid-July day on Leaser Lake, in shadow of the northern Blue Mountain Ridge, New Tripoli, Pennsylvania.
Leaser Lake’s namesake is Frederick Leaser, an American patriot who in September 1777 with his farm team hauled The Liberty Bell from Philadelphia to Allentown where it was concealed in Zion Reformed Church for protection during the Revolutionary War. His homestead is located one mile north of the lake.
Leaser Lake was built by the Pennsylvania Fish and Boat Commission for water-oriented recreation and opened for public use in 1971. Lehigh County leases this area from the state and operates and maintains the park. The land north of the lake was purchased by the county in the early 1970s. It is entirely wooded and is used for nature study and as an addition to the State Game Lands No. 217.
