Fall Photos of the Boss's Nowhere

There’s a certain magic that only happens in the fall — when the air turns crisp, the trees blaze with color, and even a familiar road feels new.

I used to ride my bike to work a couple times week. The route wound through Colts Neck, a rural town known for its rolling farmland and quiet beauty. It was the kind of place where the morning fog settled low over the fields, and sunlight filtered through rows of old maples and oaks.

I’d often carry my camera along on these commutes. The ride was sort of daily meditation, and I brought the camera on the chance that around a bend, I'd find something worth capturing.

There was one farm in particular that drew me back year after year. It sat behind a long gravel drive framed by wooden fences and a canopy of fiery maples. The road curved uphill toward a distant barn, and every October it transformed into a tunnel of color — red, orange, gold, and amber all at once. I’d lean my bike against the fence, set up my camera, and spend a few minutes trying to see if I could capture that scene in the camera.

Over time, I noticed little changes — a new gate, tidier fencing. Then one year, as I was framing the shot, a voice suddenly crackled through a hidden **speaker**:

“Can I help you with something?”

That was my cue to ride on.

Later I learned what changed. The property had a new owner — Bruce Springsteen. The Boss himself had moved in, and with him came the new gate, the camera, and the voice that gently ended my photo shoot.

Still, these remain some of my favorite shots — the mist, the trees, the feeling of being completely alone on that country road. For me, they’re reminders of a time when I carried my camera everywhere, chasing the light before work, just because the world looked too wonderful to ignore.

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About the Photos

These images here were taken on that same rural lane in Colts Neck, New Jersey, in the captured on film during my morning commutes.

If you’d like a print of this scene for your own wall, you can find one of them in my Etsy Shop: https://www.etsy.com/listing/4338204904/thin-canvas-gravel-roadway-early-autumn I can make the others available if you want. Just ask.