Thursday, January 29, 2026

10/19/2025 - Seneca Mills Falls

Just a quick stop at a wonderful little waterfall on a warm fall day.  We were expecting some nice foliage but, as you will see, we were a little disappointed.  The short walk is very pleasant and easy.  We did attempt to find another waterfall on the creek but weren't successful.  I'm going to have to do a little more research on the area as I'm pretty sure there is at least 1 more.  We did go to the top of the falls to take a little different view.  The cloud cover made it a little difficult to get the exposure correct so this is a small post.

Parking Location: ///worry.stuffy.traitor
Site Notes: The trail is accessible with a good view of the falls.

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S
Note: The view upstream from the falls.

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Sunday, January 25, 2026

9/28/2025 - Whiteface Mountain

I had heard that leaves were 60% changed so I decided it would be a good destination for a motorcycle ride.  I didn't expect it to be a 4.5 hour ride each direction just to get to the entrance of the road to climb the mountain.  Gorgeous view as you will see, but the leaves weren't even close to 60% changed.  There are several pull-off places along the road for you to pull off to safely take pictures.  I did not make it all the way to the top because the elevator was out and climbing there was going to take too long since I still had to ride home.  Would have been different if I drove a car since they have heat.  The ride home was quite chilly as the temperature dropped below 50F well before I made it home.

Site Notes: Most of the place is accessible, and that includes the cafe.  The cafe is a little pricey but at least it was good food.

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S
Note: Lake Placid.  Yes, the Lake Placid Olympic site associated with the Miracle on Ice.

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S
Note: That is the observation castle near the peak though roughly 200 feet below the peak.  Gorgeous place to grab a bite to eat!

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S
Note: That is the "guardrail" to prevent motorcycles from rolling down a steep drop...

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S
Note: Over the top of observation castle where the cafe is located.  This is about as far up the mountain as I made it.

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S
Note: A view of the parking area.  They request that motorcycles to park where there is the large bare spot on the slope.  Made me a little nervous when I left since you can tend to roll backwards a little when starting up.

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S
Note: The curve in view there is where I took the picture of the observation castle.

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S
Note: Tighter view of the same curve.

Monday, December 22, 2025

9/27/2025 - Rainbow Falls, Tug Hill State Forest

We were up in Lewis County to check out some fresh cider.  After, we were looking for something quick to do after and this wasn't all that far away so we decided to check it out.  Google Maps wasn't a whole lot of help getting there as it kept telling us to turn where there wasn't even a walking trail!  Using my link, it should put you in the lot where we parked.  From there, it isn't that far of a walk.  As you will see, there wasn't much water flowing so it wasn't the best sight to see.  I also wish there was a way to get to the base of the gorge to see it from there, perhaps some day I'll explore some more.

Parking Location: https://w3w.co/chess.departments.derailed
Site Notes: This is a hiking area though the trail is not a really difficult one.

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Monday, December 15, 2025

9/20/2025 - Old Forge Area

We went for our fall drive a little early this year so the colors were a little muted and hadn't really changed much.  Still some wonderful views though.  After stopping in Old Forge itself, we considered going up to the Bald Mountain fire tower but the lot was full and we decided we likely didn't have time considering we needed to be home by a particular time.  We did head down the road past the parking area and found a little pond with some nice reflections.

As a side note, I've decided I'm not going to put so much detail in the notes for the pictures.  If you have a question on the settings used for one of the pictures, please add a comment to the post and I can fill you in.  I've just been thinking that some of the details don't really matter since there is always post-processing done on them, even if it is minimal.

In the village of Old Forge:

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

The little pond we found:

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S

Friday, December 12, 2025

9/6/2025 - Letchworth State Park

We were looking for a different place and my wife suggested a dam that she had read about.  As we got closer, I realized that I had been there before and that we were close to Letchworth State Park.  For anyone who has never heard of this place, it is often called the Grand Canyon of the east.  I've only seen a small portion of it though it was more than we saw on this day.  My understanding is that there is a lot to do here, including a hotel!

Parking Location: https://w3w.co/variation.dispute.times
Site Notes: There are a lot of views that are accessible.

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S;
Time: 15:06; Focal Length: 25.5mm; Shutter: 1/320sec; Aperture: f/4; ISO: 100

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S;
Time: 15:07; Focal Length: 70mm; Shutter: 1/500sec; Aperture: f/4; ISO: 100

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S;
Time: 15:14; Focal Length: 24.5mm; Shutter: 1/400sec; Aperture: f/4; ISO: 100

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S;
Time: 15:16; Focal Length: 70mm; Shutter: 1/400sec; Aperture: f/4; ISO: 100

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S;
Time: 15:20; Focal Length: 24mm; Shutter: 4sec; Aperture: f/22; ISO: 25

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S;
Time: 15:21; Focal Length: 25.5mm; Shutter: 1/2sec; Aperture: f/22; ISO: 25

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S;
Time: 15:25; Focal Length: 24mm; Shutter: 1/60sec; Aperture: f/4; ISO: 100

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S;
Time: 15:31; Focal Length: 64mm; Shutter: 1/160sec; Aperture: f/4; ISO: 200

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S;
Time: 15:42; Focal Length: 58mm; Shutter: 1/60sec; Aperture: f/4; ISO: 200

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S;
Time: 15:42; Focal Length: 58mm; Shutter: 1/60sec; Aperture: f/4; ISO: 200

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S;
Time: 15:44; Focal Length: 59mm; Shutter: 1/100sec; Aperture: f/4; ISO: 200

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S;
Time: 15:44; Focal Length: 59mm; Shutter: 1/125sec; Aperture: f/4; ISO: 200

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 24-70mm f4 S;
Time: 16:02; Focal Length: 70mm; Shutter: 1/640sec; Aperture: f/4; ISO: 100
Note: Inspiration Point

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3 VRS;
Time: 16:08; Focal Length: 180mm; Shutter: 1/200sec; Aperture: f/5.6; ISO: 100

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3 VRS;
Time: 16:09; Focal Length: 180mm; Shutter: .4 sec; Aperture: f/32; ISO: 25
Note: My first long exposure with this lens.

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3 VRS;
Time: 16:13; Focal Length: 280mm; Shutter: .4 sec; Aperture: f/32; ISO: 25

Camera: Nikon Z7 II; Lens: Nikon NIKOR Z 180-600mm f/5.6-6.3 VRS;
Time: 16:14; Focal Length: 180mm; Shutter: 1/250sec; Aperture: f/5.6; ISO: 100