South Deerfield

Views From Mount Sugarloaf (Massachusetts) on a Clear Day by Todd Henson

A wide view from atop Mount Sugarloaf in Massachusetts

In early October my folks and I travelled to Massachusetts for a family reunion. It was a fairly short and busy trip so I didn’t create many photographs, but we did drive to the top of Mount Sugarloaf which is within the Mount Sugarloaf State Reservation in South Deerfield. There’s an observation deck up top that provides quite a view of the surrounding area. On that afternoon there wasn’t a cloud in the sky, allowing a clear view as far as the eye could see.

The photo at the top of this post is a 13-image panorama showing what I thought was an attractive piece of the view, with the Connecticut River and some patches of more colorful foliage towards the right, and some taller buildings in the distance to the left, with mountain ranges in the distance.

The photo below is looking down on Sunderland and the bridge over the Connecticut River. You can see little pockets of colorful foliage here and there, but it was still mostly green. This view is further to the left of that of the opening panorama.

Sunderland, Massachusetts, as seen from atop Mount Sugarloaf

And finally, below is the widest view I captured. It is a 27-image panorama. I handheld the camera, oriented it vertically and slowly rotated, pressing the shutter at overlapping intervals to capture as much of the area as possible. It’s quite a view. Towards the right you can see larger patches of colorful foliage, and all the way to the left you can see the church in Sunderland. I wasn’t quite able to capture the river the entire way over, largely due to poor handheld panning technique.

A very wide view from atop Mount Sugarloaf in Massachusetts

If you ever visit the area and decide to drive up to the observation deck do be careful. The road can be quite narrow with periodic wider spots where a car can pull aside and let those going the other way pass. It was a bit nerve racking. 🙂 Also, there is a fee and they collect it up top just before the parking area, so be prepared for that.


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