Fall in North Georgia

Fall is just my favorite season. Spring is a close second, but autumn has the cool temps and the bright colors, especially in the north part of the state where I lived for a decade.

In fact, even though the Alpharetta area where I lived wasn’t really in the mountains or anything, it was far enough up to have some great color. This is a picture of a scene I used to pass everyday on the way to work. This old farm shed had seen better days but it was actually on what must have been one of the last farms near the Windward subdivision. One fall in particular, I was getting to work early in the morning and every day I passed it, the above colorful scene bathed in sunlight is what I saw. So, I made plans to get up the next Saturday morning and go record this for posterity.  The last time I was there, there was a new subdivision across the street and a big for sale sign in front of the brick ranch where the farmer had lived. And as another autumn rolls around, I wonder if this remnant of the rural life in North Fulton has finally bit the dust?

When I lived in North Fulton, I was always on the lookout for places where it didn’t feel like suburbia had completely taken over (which it more or less had). One of the places I discovered and enjoyed frequently was a nature trail along Vickery Creek. I was rarely alone here, but most who came seemed to enjoy the silence. Ironically we were all walking pretty much in the history of Roswell. The waterfall seen here in this Autumnal picture is not in fact natural. It’s an old dam that was part of the ruins of the mills that operated here. Roswell King, the father of the town that bears his name, started mills here. I’m not sure if the dam was built by him or his descendants, but this beautiful sight is still owed to their innovations.

Another view of the same falls, this one from further downstream. The water fills the foreground but there’s some good autumn color around the sides and top of the picture. I was literally lying on a rock in the stream with my tripod to get this picture. The water is so soft from the longer exposure it feels sort of painted.

One last autumn picture from along Vickery Creek. This is one of the most intact of the various ruins of the old mill. Where most of the remains are just random walls or flumes, etc., this building near the trail head probably doesn’t look much different than it did many years ago. A new roof and covered windows show it’s being kept from collapse at least! In this view, the darkness to the left is actually the deep drop to the creek below. The effect is definitely a piece of art you wouldn’t expect to be in the midst of suburban Atlanta.