Trip Report

A Visit to Lancaster, New Hampshire /  by Todd Henson

Main Street, Lancaster, New Hampshire

In June of 2025 my father and I spent some time back in Lancaster, New Hampshire. He grew up there and I recall visiting many times throughout my youth, so it’s always interesting to return to the town and see how much it continues to change over the years. And though it is very different from what it once was, it still retains much of the look and feel I recall from younger days. Originally chartered in 1763, it appears to be thriving today and successfully adapting to the times.

Main Street

Crossing the Israel River in Lancaster, New Hampshire

Both photos above are of Main Street, Lancaster. The first is a wide view facing the bridge over the Israel River. The yellow building on the left is now home to The Yellow Deli, a new location to us and one with fantastic sandwiches (I had the best salmon sandwich I’d ever tried there).

Continuing down the left side beyond the nearest side street is the old bank building (Lancaster National Bank) with the vertical “Lancaster” sign that now houses the Copper Pig Brewery, the W. M. Rugh Gallery and possibly more. Just beyond that, over the Israel River bridge is the Masonic Lodge. The yellow building on the right side used to have a great candy store downstairs, S.N. Evans, though it’s now vacant, and my father’s family lived just upstairs. I have lots of great memories in that building heading down to the candy store.

The second photo is facing the opposite direction from atop the Israel River bridge. You can see the old bank building with the brewery on the right side, and my father’s house the second building on the left. The town has managed to retain the classic “old town” feel even as old businesses close down and new ones move in.

Mechanic Street Covered Bridge

Historic Mechanic Street Covered Bridge

If you drive past the old bank building, over the Israel River bridge, and turn left on Mechanic Street, you can see Lancaster’s beautiful red Historic Mechanic Street Covered Bridge, which also crosses over the Israel River. It originally dates back to 1862 and is the last remaining of three covered bridges that once spanned the Israel. It’s interesting to note that as beautiful and iconic as it is today it was apparently a lesser bridge than the grander Main Street/Double Barrel Bridge also constructed in 1862. But being the last one standing it’s now much more appreciated.

Rialto Theatre

The Rialto Theatre

Returning to Main Street, and heading further into town you’ll find the Rialto Theatre, just visible in the first photo on the far right hand side. For the photo of the theatre I chose to give it that older monochromatic feel to go along with its age. The building it resides in was constructed in 1930 by Homer Graves and the Rialto Theatre opened its doors the next year. It’s fantastic to see it still in business and showing movies on Main Street.

William D. Weeks Memorial Library

The William D. Weeks Memorial Library

The Lancaster Public Library dates back to 1884, but it wasn’t until 1906 when John Wingate Weeks began construction of the beautiful building we see today, in memory of and named after his father, William D. Weeks. It opened to the public in 1908. And as the town grew so did the need for more books, so in 1999 they completed an expansion behind what you see here that tripled the size of the library.

Lancaster Congregational United Church of Christ

Lancaster Congregational United Church of Christ

The Lancaster Congregational United Church of Christ is one of many landmarks along Main Street. This building dates back to around 1911 and was rebuilt after a fire in 1910, from which they salvaged the original stained glass and organ. Looking further back in history, the previous building was constructed in 1840, and the church, itself, the first in Lancaster, dates to 1794.

The Old County Courthouse

The old county courthouse in Lancaster

The old courthouse is a grand building constructed in 1887. It replaced the previous 1869 courthouse that was lost in a fire in 1886. Over time the county outgrew this old building and in 1995 they razed the old Lancaster Academy & High School and in its place began construction on a new county courthouse. The old courthouse still stands though it’s privately owned and home to a credit union and other businesses.   

Lancaster United States Post Office

The Lancaster Post Office

There’s something about post offices that draws my eye, especially when in an interesting building, and I quite like the one in Lancaster. It’s more recent than most of the other buildings mentioned, having been built in 1935. We drove by it on a stormy day and I chose to photograph it from within the car which resulted in the suspended rain droplets scattered across the photo. I like the look that creates.

Fuller’s Sugarhouse

Fuller’s Sugarhouse selling all things maple syrup

And finally, any trip to Lancaster, New Hampshire, wouldn’t be complete without a stop by Fuller’s Sugarhouse. A family-owned and operated business, they eventually grew enough to open a location on Main Street in 1998. They tap maple trees in the area and create several grades of maple syrup. Of course you can also find all kinds of other goodies in their store (maple syrup candy being a great one, loved those as a kid).

I hope you enjoyed this brief look at Lancaster, New Hampshire, both photographs of what it looks like as of June, 2025, as well as a little history of the town.

Have you ever visited Lancaster, New Hampshire, and if so what were your favorite parts of town?

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Beaver Brook Falls, New Hampshire /  by Todd Henson

Beaver Brook Falls, New Hampshire

My father and I were fortunate to visit Beaver Brook Falls State Wayside in Colebrook, New Hampshire, on a somewhat overcast and rainy day. All the recent rain resulted in a lot of water going over the approximately 80-foot Beaver Brook Falls. Granted, it also meant the water was perhaps a bit more brown than it usually would be because of the strong runoff. But it also resulted in more saturated greens from the wet leaves. It was a bit breezy so there was some movement of the leaves and flowers.

Beaver Brook Falls merging into North Fork Beaver Brook

The falls are on Beaver Brook and just below the falls the brook merges with North Fork Beaver Brook seen at the bottom of the photos flowing left to right. The water eventually flows into the Connecticut River in the town of Colebrook. The Connecticut River defines much of the border between New Hampshire and Vermont.

Floral accents at Beaver Brook Falls

One of the best things about this location is its accessibility. It’s located along Route 145 north of Colebrook with the parking area right along the road and the falls easily visible from the road. There is a small area of mowed grass with some picnic tables and wooden fencing between this area and the water. There are trails on both sides that lead over wooden walking bridges and take you to the falls.

Beaver Brook Falls State Wayside, New Hampshire

Signage at Beaver Brook Falls State Wayside, New Hampshire

I’ve only been to this location once so I don’t have a feel for how crowded it can get, but given how beautiful it is, how easily accessible, and how many folks travel to this area for vacationing and outdoor adventure, I’d guess it can get crowded. The parking area is very small so it can only accommodate so many people. We saw several cars of people arrive and leave while we were there but for some periods of time had the area to ourselves. The rainy day likely helped with this. This is certainly a location I’d visit again if ever back in the area. And I can only imagine how beautiful (and busy) it might be during autumn with all the colorful foliage New Hampshire is known for. 

Photographic Lessons Learned

As is often the case when reviewing my photographs I find things I would have done differently if I had the gift of hindsight in advance. And I find items I’m glad I thought to do. Here is a short list of lessons learned (or re-learned in most cases), as well as general comments based on my experience:

  • On rainy days, and when approaching strong waterfalls, don’t forget to check the front element of your lens or filter for water droplets, and carefully wipe them off when you find them. Do this OFTEN. It’s so easy to overlook these while looking at a small image on a viewfinder or LCD panel, but they become far more obvious when viewed on a larger screen or on paper, especially if you are using smaller apertures (larger f-stop numbers).

  • Even if you’re able to get slower shutter speeds just by adjusting your aperture (because it’s a darker day) it’s still worth the effort of trying a polarizing filter because it can reduce glare and reflections on both the water surface and that of the green leaves.

  • When it’s windy try to keep track of when the breeze is blowing and when there are short gaps with less wind. This can help you create images with less movement of leaves, flowers, etc.

  • I don’t recall which photographer I learned this lesson from but it’s a gem. When is the best time to make a vertical image? Immediately after making a horizontal one. That way you have both a vertical and horizontal view of that scene and can choose which you prefer for which usage.

  • If possible it can be worth it to create some images that include slightly more of the scene so you don’t crowd in too much around the edges. Granted, this isn’t always possible. There are images here where I’d have liked to include a little more of the trees above the falls, though without including the washed out white sky. But even at the widest focal length my lens was capable of, 16 mm, I was constrained by what I included at top and/or bottom. I’d have loved to have owned a wider angle lens for this scene. I sort of wish I’d thought to try my fisheye, see how that worked. Granted, it would have been more difficult to shield it from any rain because of the extreme curvature of the outer glass.

  • Don’t forget when using a tripod with a locked down head you should almost always assure you’ve turned off any vibration reduction or image stabilization feature in your lens. There may be cases with newer cameras/lenses where this isn’t necessary, but it often is as the VR/IS features can sometimes actually introduce vibration when on a locked down camera. Read your camera/lens manuals to better understand the capabilities and limitations of your own gear.

  • Don’t forget to create images of the wider scene to show more context of the location.

  • Don’t forget to zoom in and create some detail images to show the depth and variety of the location.

Can you think of any other lessons worth learning from this sort of experience? Have you ever visited Beaver Brook Falls in New Hampshire? Do you have any similar falls in your area? Leave a comment below and let me know.

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A Virginia Road Trip in Late May (2025) /  by Todd Henson

Today I don’t have any standout artistic photographs to share, but instead wanted to take you along for a Virginia road trip my father and I made in late May of 2025. I tried to capture moments on the road that appealed to me, perhaps because of a curve in the road, hills or mountains in the background, or just about anything else of interest. The photos begin on Sperryville Pike (522) after leaving Culpepper heading west and end on John Marshall Highway (55) east on the way towards Haymarket. I hope you enjoy this little excursion

Click on any of the photos for a larger view.

West Towards the Blue Ridge Mountains

We began the day by taking a left at an intersection where we’d only ever taken a right, with no idea what to expect. After passing through some rolling hills with plenty of farm land and taking a few more turns we found ourselves in Culpepper. Instead of hanging out in town we ended up on Sperryville Pike heading west towards Sperryville, and from there heading west on Lee Highway (211) over the Blue Ridge Mountains.

Heading west on Sperryville Pike after leaving Culpepper

The closer we got to Sperryville the more hilly it became

Between Blue Ridge and Massanutten Mountains

After we passed over the Blue Ridge Mountains and through part of Shenandoah National Park we continued west on 211 through Luray (known for their caverns), past Cooter’s Place (for any Dukes of Hazzard fans out there), and then over Massanutten Mountain which bisects part of Shenandoah Valley.

Driving 211 west past Luray and towards the mountains

Continuing west on 211

West on 211 approaching the mountains

Taking 211 over Massanutten Mountain

North Through Shenandoah Valley

Once we hit New Market we headed north on Route 11, taking a brief detour onto Caverns Road to stop by the Route 11 Potato Chip factory. From there we returned to Route 11 by way of Wissler Road which took us through the historic Meem’s Bottom Covered Bridge. Once back on Route 11 we headed north through Mount Jackson and eventually got on 55 heading east through Front Royal.

Passing the 54th Pennsylvania Volunteer Infantry Regiment Monument on Route 11 north

Driving on Cavern Road over 81 and looking south

Approaching Meem's Bottom Covered Bridge from the west

Main Street (Route 11) heading into Mount Jackson from the south

We saw this old Texaco pump in Mount Jackson

East on John Marshall Highway

After leaving Front Royal, instead of taking 66 back east, which would have been faster, we opted for the smaller John Marshall Highway, 55. There’s generally a lot less traffic and just as much if not more scenery. It also passes through several towns, such as Marshall (originally Salem) and The Plains, though I didn’t capture any decent photos of these towns on this trip. But I did slow down the shutter speed for a little fun with the final photo.

Heading east out of Front Royal on Route 55

The Barn off Grove Lane (55), approaching Marshall

Driving on 55 somewhere between The Plains and Haymarket, with a slower shutter speed to show some motion

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