October 19, Muscle Man Trophy

Overview: Thacher State Park, Baseball Hall of Fame, World’s Largest Kaleidoscope, stone houses.

Who knew the trophies for muscle man body building competitions are bronzed muscle men? I had no idea. It was also fun to see baby pictures of my friend and stuff from his childhood, but it was time to take off.

Our first stop was a drive past my friends childhood home. Next we headed to his grandparents house a little un announced. His grandparents were great, especially his grandma, and their old farm house was amazing. We were on a slight time constraint and just stopped by to say hello but there was enough time for a tour. The old farm house has slowly been redone and is decorated like a cozy antique home. I hope to visit this home again when I have more time. I loved the high baths.

Our next stop was at Thacher State Park where my friends work when its season. This place had a great view, school group, and news broadcast. It is a very popular place and even if the state doesn’t have enough money for all its parks it should keep this one. Not wanting to take a “hike” in the cold or deal with the school group I headed out of town.

Thanks to my GPS I made my way to Cooperstown, NY on all windy, pretty back roads. Wow does this town revolve around baseball. All the stores on main street were baseball themed and had memorabilia. Rightfully so, this is the birthplace of baseball, and home to the Hall of Fame and Museum.

The Hall of Fame and museum was crazy crowded. The intro video was so cheesy it made me smile but people seemed to enjoy it. I learned a little more about baseball, got to see some world series rings, and a few great exhibits. I like how they honored true dedicated supporters from back in the day. I am not giving away anything. You have to go see it for yourself.

Not in the mood for historic mansions I headed to Mt. Tremper in the Catskills to see the world’s largest kaleidoscope. WOW. After a stop in a random cute town for gas I was n my way. This town seemed like the hub for rafting and floating in the Catskills. I should probably look at a map to get its name. Once in the Emerson compound I found it. I saw an old barn and wondered if the mill was it. Sure enough it was. Once inside the old mill I paid my five dollars to lie on the floor and experience the show inside the world’s largest kaleidoscope. That is all I will say.

After the show I moseyed around the very strangely decorated Inn, Spa, and five shops in this Emerson Campus thing. I guess in the summer this is a very popular place. The Inn and spa were Buddhist Zen meets antique country. The shops were art, antiques, kaleidoscope, market, and house ware all in an old barn. Why not?

As I made my way back to the other side of the Hudson I stopped to see the Huguenot Street Stone Houses in New Paltz. Unfortunately I arrived late and the museum/visitor center was closed. Not wanting to hang around until the next day I snapped a few shots of their exteriors and left. Time to head home.

October 18, Childhood Memories

Overview: Made muffins and rice crispy treats, drove Route 9 through NY towns, met friend in Albany.

There were tons of wild turkeys on my friends land all morning. That was cool to see. We got caught up on the news, watched some sports highlights, made perfect blueberry muffins and later rice crispy treats. In the early afternoon it was time to say goodbye. I had a wonderful time in Jay New York with my friends, speaking Spanish and catching up but it was time to say goodbye.

Although maybe cutting it a little close I chose to take route 9 all the way from Jay to Albany. I really like scenic roads and not having to drive crazy fast. I passed some wonderful lakes and very small towns. I went through Lake George and was reminded of a family vacation we had there. The stores and main street seem to be less honky tonk than I remember. Maybe because it was off season or because I was young when we were there.

I hit traffic in the nice small city of Glenn Falls. They seemed to have a few museums but I wasn’t in the mood for art. Also, because of the traffic I was running late. I hoped on the Interstate, hit more traffic, and had to pass on Saratoga Springs due to time.

I somehow made it to the mall in time to meet my friend and we headed to his house on beautiful back country roads in NY. I really had no idea where I was until I looked at a map.

While his mom made a delicious dinner I got to play with animals and cars. Not too shabby. We ended the night with some fun conversations and funny TV shows. Thanks guys!

Oops, I missed out on Saratoga Springs and Albany. Oh well.

October 17, I’ve Fallen and Can’t Giddy Up

I am sorry the titles do not always make sense. Nor are they a good representation of what I actually did that day.

Overview: I went shopping in Lake Placid

After seeing a beautiful sunrise from my bedroom window it was time to leave my warm bed. The morning was spent catching up on some work and planning the next part of my trip. Once my friend arrived home from church we had a buffet lunch of leftovers and hit the road.

The entire afternoon was spent shopping in Lake Placid just us girls. I got a very cute card and my friend got a great glass butterfly nightlight. Dinner was delicious take out from a nice Italian restaurant while watching TV. Perfect end to the day.

October 16, Gallo Pinto

My Nicaraguan friend made a delicious typical Costa Rican breakfast that I happily ate and greatly enjoyed. After breakfast we all readied ourselves for a museum. Who would have thought there would be a billion dollar state of the art Natural History Museum of the Adirondacks in Tupper Lake, NY. Tupper Lake is very small and not near any large cities. It’s about 25 minutes outside of Lake Placid. They do have the state mental hospital which it is huge, and now this museum.

Back to the Museum. The Wild Center is in thanks to one woman who had a dream for the Adirondacks and GREAT connections. After billions of dollars raised the Center was opened and we got to play. Although small it is a very informative hands on location where I was able to play. We were allowed to touch, crawl and play. If you like fish it has some amazing live displays of all the fish in the area. Throughout the day there were several short movies to watch. They also offer trails to walk on and some beautiful new wetland areas to see.

Even before the museum we made a few detours. Our first detour was to the base Whiteface Mountain so we could play in the snow. A few snow balls were thrown, some snow eaten, lots of crunching going on, and a sort of snow angel made. Our next detour was through downtown Lake Placid. I have a few memories from this town so it was nice to get a refresher. Who knew it only has about 1,500 residents but swells to 40,000 during seasons. Our last detour was at a farm stand. The colors of the fruits and veggies really popped in the cloudy weather.

After our day of play we headed back to the house for more hot cider and relaxing. A beautiful ham dinner and baked apples were prepared for us ladies. As our chef retired to watch football us ladies chatted, giggled, and got caught up on America’s Next Top Model. Tyra really loves herself.

I now know that the town of Lake Placid is not on Lake Placid.

And today’s high was 35!

October 15, SNOW!!!!!!!

The rain started last night. I awoke to rain like most in the Northeast and it did not stop. Not wanting to take a ferry across Lake Champlain in strong winds and rain I decided to drive down to the Crown Point Bridge. On the way I stopped at Dakin Farm. This place smokes their own meats and produces their own cheese, maple syrup, and more. It was a wonderful rainy stop.

Once close to Crown Point I got a hold of my friend I was going to see and he informed me the bridge no longer exists. Several months ago the bridge was blown up. This information was confirmed in an old school general store where they sold homemade chocolate and baked goods on top of regular general store stuff.

The attendants in the general store also informed me that in place of the bridge there was a free ferry. The plan was to avoid a car ferry in the wind but that is what I ended up having to do in order to cross the river.

Once on New York soil and an hour late, I made the way to Jay New York to see my friends from Costa Rica. Along the way I saw some very nice rainy views and SNOW! In the mountains of Keene, NY it was fully snowing and accumulating. It was beautiful to see and made me smile big.

Finally arriving at my friends beautiful country home it was time to get out of the rain. I spent the afternoon indoors, drinking hot cider by the fire, and having a lovely afternoon with my friends.

It feels good to speak Spanish .

We ended the night watching the new Robin Hood movie which I really enjoyed. I like when old stories get new twists and they aren’t too farfetched. I recommend this one.

October 14, Lots To Do Today

Waking up early I said no to a warm breakfast and headed out of town. The scenic road wasn’t very scenic due to clouds/fog. If you are looking at them they are clouds but if you are in it its fog. What do these people do out here?

I stopped for a picture in Montpelier but didn’t want to hang out. This city looked like it was thriving which is nice.

Not knowing I could have stayed on Route 2 I took the highway for the first time in a week to Burlington. Who knew I was so close. I got some good information at the Visitor Center and took some very pretty back roads to the Shelburne Farm. Here I got an amazing open wagon tour of the Vanderbilt/Webb grounds. What a great place for students and the world of agriculture. I now want to stay at the Inn here. It’s like all the houses I have been touring but you are actually allowed to touch stuff! Not to mention it has beautiful grounds right on Lake Champlain.

Our tour ended in the education center where we watched them make cheese. We then got to have a cheese tasting for our tour group only. I was amazed by the people eating the visitors samples when they knew the groups were coming in two minutes.

I bought some cheese for a friend, a hot pepper cream cheese dip which sounds gross but is way yum for me, and headed out.

I arrived at the Shelburne Museum not knowing what to expect. I thought it was an art museum. Boy was I wrong. This museum was the best representation of the United States I have ever seen in one place (mainly east coast). All buildings came from the East Coast or were exact replicas of buildings. They were filled with either amazing art or time period artifacts. The amount to see and take in was overwhelming and almost too much. Your ticket allows you to enter for two days. I think the best plan of action as to not get burned out would be to do half one day and the rest another. Regardless, it is a must see.

I skipped the beach art buildings, maybe one other, and rushed the circus and ceramic exhibit. I think I did well for over thirty buildings in two hours. I rushed to finish in order to go on a tour of the Magic Hat Brewery.

I arrived very early but was worried about being late. This brewery, although small is amazing. The entire vibe, decoration, and employee moral is visible to everyone. Videos of the owner and by the owner are enjoyable and make you smile. The tour and samples are free.

For nostalgic purposes I drove through downtown Burlington then called it a night.

So… Your next overnight to VT should include Ben and Jerry’s Factory Tour, the two Shelburne attractions, Magic Hat, downtown for dinner, and stopping at some local farm stands for maple syrup. They are all so close to each other. Yes its VT and on a beautiful lake but who needs a hike.

October 13, This Car Climbed Mt. Washington

If I were a bumper sticker kind of girl that is what my car would say. After a quick stop at the White Mountain National Forest offices in the Androscoggin District, based in Gorham, NH I made my way to Mount Washington! The drive up was not as intense as the drive down. I wasn’t too worried about my car over heating or going over the edge but it was still existing. I was completely enamored with the summit. The way the ice had formed around all structures due to the wind was just beautiful. Although cold it was so fun to walk around and be on the highest point in the Northeast.

After spending who knows how long on the summit I made my way down the eight miles. It was then time to hike. It took me awhile to break tree line on my Glen Boulder hike and I had to stop quite often, but it was worth it. I should have never let myself get out of shape, or eat beef jerky before a hike. I chose not to summit the mountain because it didn’t make sense. I just wanted to break tree line. After a rock climb to the cold, open boulder, it was time to hike down.

Once down in the parking lot I made the .3 mile “hike” to Glen Falls. This was such an easily accessible gem. You park, walk a little, go down some stairs and there is a powerful waterfall awaiting you. No wonder lots of people do this walk. I was thankful I had hiking boots and wished there weren’t so many people so I could sit there feeling the spray. I felt I had to move to let others take pictures.

I then took a nice warm shower at the Appalachian Mountain Club center in Pinkham Notch. This place is great and so helpful for travelrs, hikers, students, and anyone else. Good to know where it is located.

Side note: I would like to someday hike the entire AT consecutively but think those people are crazy. I am going to need some serious conditioning before that.

After my nice warm shower I headed through the cute town of North Conway onto the scenic Kancamagus highway. This road traveled along a river and was crazy picturesque. There were tons of picture ops but I did not stop for any of them. I wanted to get to Montpelier by 6:30 to see a movie. After passing through the skiing village if Lincoln and continuing on the scenic highway I saw a moose. I turned around to get another look, left my car for a picture, and it ran off. Oh well. At least it fears humans so it won’t get killed by a hunter, hopefully.

It was now getting dark and I knew I would not make it to my movie. Back in Lincoln I saw a theater so went there. I treated myself to “Life As We Know It.” I loved this movie! Funny and sad, and even though I normally don’t like love stored with happy endings, I liked this one. I then drove around doing circles in this town looking for a suitable place to spend the night. There was no Wal-Mart. I must have looked like a crazy person but who cares.

I found a good place for the night and settled in. Who knew the White Mountain Forest was littered with so many nice, large, or regular hotels and resorts. It must be a popular ski area because it wasn’t too crowded with leaf peepers.

October 12, A Day To Drive

Not in the mood to hike really at all I headed across the state of Maine into New Hampshire. Goodbye Acadia.

The drive across the state took me a good four hours, maybe more. When I was almost at the Maine New Hampshire border and on scenic route 26 I passed a few small state parks. At these parks I got to walk a little, see three waterfalls and a cave, and be outside on this gorgeous day. The air is just so clean and cold. Many trees have already lost all their leaves and leaf peeping was better on the coast but it was still gorgeous.

My favorite part of the drive was a pedestrian crossing sign. In the middle of nowhere Maine there was a pedestrian hoola hooping. This made me smile and turn around for a picture. It made me smile even more because I know what it means.

The reason for my long drive was to see, and possibly stay, at the Balsams Resort. As I rounded a corner I was surprised by its grandness in the middle of nowhere. It really is in the middle of nowhere. No wonder they offer food packages. I chose not to stay but am so so so happy I drove to see it. The grandness of the outside is not matched by fanciness on the inside. It truly is historic and I felt I was in the past. I took a self guided tour of the place, saw the famous Ballot Room, the old billiards room, game room, and all the old photos. I was by far the youngest visitor there and they didn’t appear to have many guests. Maybe another time.

I left the resort to drive some more. I knew I was close so I attempted to drive the Mount Washington Auto Road to watch the sunset. Last trip up was at 4:30 so now that will be for tomorrow.

Berlin, New Hampshire is not such a pretty town.

I was sooooo close to Canada

October 11, Sun

Following the tips from the local I went to check out the Bar Harbor Lighthouse. Although small and crowded it was great to see. I feel bad for the family that lives there though. They constantly have people in their back yard. I took a small walk along the cliffs and was able to get a nice view of the lighthouse. Who knew it was the Northeastern most part of the Island. Thank you informational signs.

Following another recommendation by the local I headed out to Seal Cove. I almost missed the turn and I am so thankful I did not. This spot was perfect. It was exactly what I was looking for (minus the cold wind, damn I am hard to please). For the first time while being in Maine I actually found calmness. No tourists, no crowds, no foreigners. This cove was beautiful, equipped with picnic tables and bathrooms. Perfect. The wind blew me away to the free buses again. Here I got to see some more views and hop on and off. I chose to walk along some of the most well maintained horse carriage trails in the U.S and around Jordan Lake. I wasn’t feeling an ascending hike so I stuck to beautiful flat foliage land. Loved it. On the bus home I met some more travelers and a photographer who has taken two years to get from California to Maine. I am not the only one.

I am now back in Bar Harbor at a very nice Victoria friendly coffee shop/café. Not too hipster new age but also not too yuppy. Perfect.

October 10, Holy Cold

Everything is so close here yet it is taking me a long time to get from one place to another. There is so much to see that rushing is not needed.

I awoke thinking I would hike to the summit of Mt. Battie in Camden Hills State Park to get a breathtaking view of Acadia National Park. However, the weather had other plans. It was so cold that I drove the car road, took a few pictures and hopped back in the car. No morning hike for me.

I than slowly made my way to Acadia. Holy crap was it busy. Maybe the four cruise ships and countless tour buses had something to do with it. Lucky for me they have a free bus service, The Island Explorer , within the park and on the entire island. Given that the day was so cold and I was a little sore I chose to ride around on the buses. I got to see a great overview of the entire Island, laugh with some Germans, did some good leaf peeping, and didn’t have to drive. I took a ride out to the farthest point thinking I could make the 6:30 bus back to my car. That didn’t work.

I ended up in the town of Bar Harbor with a few hours to kill. It’s really too bad I don’t like to shop or go to bars alone. Luckily I got a hold of a friend and we chatted until my bus came. I wish I were more outgoing when alone so I could have made friends. Oh well, next time. I did talk to a local woman on my long bus ride out to Bass Harbor and she gave me some good tips for tomorrow.

October 9, It Smells Like Winter (and Feels Like it Too)

I rode a boat this morning for an hour and a half in rough surf. No I was not selling hot dogs. I made my over to Mohegan Island on the last ferry of the year. Okay that was a slight exaggeration. It is however the last weekend the ferry is running. Does that count?

I am so happy Scott made the recommendation I visit this place. I had never even heard of it and now will recommend it to everyone.

This entire trip I have been constantly amazed with the beauty and quaintness of each town I have been through. How is it possible that all of Maine’s towns are cute?

The Island is 11 miles off the coast of Maine and has two ferry ports you can leave from. I chose to leave from Boothbay Harbor. I wish I had the personality to go to a bar alone because this place seemed very lively at night. Many people were driving in and they seemed to mostly be dinner eaters. Not the point. Maybe I will work my way to just hanging out in bars alone. Will that make me an alcoholic? Back to the Island.

It is mostly a Land Trust so no new structures can be built, it is an artist colony (Boothbay Harbor appeared to be one too), and has amazing trails and scenery to see. It is peaceful and pretty much untouched. Some locals were friendly others were not. Trails weren’t crazy well marked which made me nervous at one point, but it was still very very enjoyable, and cold. It's not flat, it's actual hiking. The ferry ride home was freezing so before I walked around Boothbay I had to put on my winter jacket, gloves, and headband. Haven’t had to do that in years.

Not wanting to go to a bar I rather quickly decided my next move. As I raced the setting sun past amazing foliage I arrived in time to see the Pemaquid Point Lighthouse (this is the lighthouse on their quarter). As the sun set I took some pictures and walked around this gorgeous point. Now that it was dark I could not stop at the beach, or fort, or take the scenic loop back to Route 1. Oh well.

Retracing my steps through Damariscotta I had the time to stop at their pumpkin festival. I LOVE FALL!!! It smells so yummy too. These were not your ordinary painted or carved pumpkins but they were all on what seemed to be prize winning sized pumpkins. So creative and artistic.
Not wanting to go to any bars I strolled around the town looking at pumpkins, the restaurants, and left. I made my way to Rockland again on Route 1. I now think all of Maine’s towns are cute and other states should take notes. I passed through a few small towns and even though I can’t see yet Rockland has some promise. They have a Doorways of Rockland poster in the McDonalds. That to me is a good sign.

Driving at night is no fun because I am missing stuff. You can’t see the stars in a Wal-Mart parking lot and not much is open. I like tree COLORS

October 8, I Like Colorful Trees

Question of the day: How do I capture the beauty I am seeing as I drive by?

I awoke early and forced myself to lay in bed knowing nothing would be open. When the sun heated the car and the frost was gone from my window it was time to get a move on. I had a feeling it was still too early but wanted to get going. Using my intuition I found a place to park. I them embarked on a self guided tour of Portland.

Being early in the day there was a lot of traffic but nothing open. Which I am fine with because I don’t like to shop. I was going to wait it out in a coffee shop but that’s just not my style. I saw some great places and this city seems like a lot of fun. Old Port is definitely a place I would like to visit again and there is tons of industry on the water front. Like a cruise ship.

On my way out of town I stumbled upon this gorgeous park. Along the railway and waterline north of Portland is a beautiful park. Tons of people were out walking their dogs or running. The neighborhood above the park looks very Victorian and beautiful.

I then crossed the bridge into Falmouth and luckily stopped at a Visitor Center. Not only did I get some good info but was told about DeLorme just across the street. Here I was privileged to see the world’s largest revolving world globe. I still need to look up what exactly DeLorme does BUT they have this globe and an amazing map shop. Of course the maps I wanted to purchase were out of stock, but I took down there stock numbers to order them.

After maps I made my way to Freeport to do some shopping. I know I don’t like shopping (in fact I am pretty sure I hate it), but I couldn’t pass the opportunity to stop in Freeport, home L. L. Bean. Who knew L.L. Bean was this monstrous! I liked the L. L. Bean places and a few of the outlets like North Face, but it’s very boring when you don’t actually need anything.

I than sat in the car trying to figure out my next step. I think I am used to the mid west where everything is far far apart. I forget that this is the East Coast and its all relatively close. After much debate I made my way to America’s Quaintest Town, Wiscasset, Maine. Minus the traffic I see why this town has been given this name, or chosen it. I stopped at the Castle Tucker but chose not to do the tour for fear of the other house run by Historic New England closing. I made it to Nickels-Sortwell House in time for a tour and a very nice man allowed me to park at his gorgeous antique store. This town is full of antique stores and beautiful historic homes. Many of the home are for sale. They need a lot of work but if you have a lot of money it’s worth it.

The Nickels House was neat and had some awesome features. Like all the hand carved wood work on every floor and spiral stairs. I liked it. If the town didn’t have the worst traffic in Maine it would be the perfect small town on the outside.

After asking someone how far it would be to get to Augusta I headed there. While looking for a freaking coffee shop with internet I was able to see the rather sad downtown of Augusta and the cute small town of Hallowell. After being frustrated I asked for some advice at a Super 8. They have been very helpful on this trip and here in Maine that proved very true as well.

This state is CRAZY busy with tourists. All the hotels are filled and the out of state license plates are fun to see.

Why don’t young people go leaf looking?

October 7, Drive

I said goodbye to the animals at my friend’s apartment in Portsmouth, NH and headed out to Maine. Of course I had to stop for a few pictures first. For some reason I did not bring my camera with me on my strolls.

I drove through the small town of Kittery and wasn’t too impressed. Maybe I somehow missed the actual downtown because I have heard good things. I then took off without much guidance expect the knowledge of the route number I wanted and the desire to be near the water. I found Fort McClary State Park in Kittery and loved it. At first I wasn’t sure what to expect. As I got closer the sun was shining brightly off the water and an old wooden fort was up on a hill. You could walk around the fort and see remains of many buildings that used to be on the site. They also had this cool structure underground that had window lookout holes to the ocean. My goal is to be thin enough to fit through these windows. Very cool place.

I than headed off to South Berwick in order to visit The Hamilton House. On my way I saw some awesome leaves and wanted to stop for pictures. I am driving very slow and doing lots of leaf looking! So the Hamilton House is this gorgeous Georgia Style home at the tip of two rivers. The best part are the house were the hand painted walls decorated to look like Rome, Ancient Greece, and the area. I LOVED this. The trip to this very small town is worth it because of these walls! Not to mention the tide line outside matches the tide line in the mural wallpaper.

I then made my way back to the coast. I followed the road along the coast on my way to Old Orchard Beach. I noticed some beach access so decided to randomly park. I hit the beach walking and just kept walking. A few hours later and some good phone conversation it was getting dark and time to find the car. Finding the car was interesting but beautiful .

Once again in the car I headed to Portland. It was now dark and I wasn’t exactly sure where I was going. After a few turn arounds I started my journey looking for a coffee shop downtown. Downtown looked cool but I was in no mood to find parking at night. So… no coffee shop. I ended up at my place for the night rather early. Did some very unproductive driving in circles and called it a night!


I wish I could take pictures of all the pretty colors I see.

A woman said you can take the New Englander out of New England but never New England out of the New Englander. She moved back after five years. I would like to think about this more.

It makes me smile to see all the people with cameras around their necks.

Lots of foreigners.

Old Orchard Beach is filled with hotels and none are chains. I like that.

Places in Maine close when it gets cold. Not much is open now or after October 15. Good to know.

October 6, Rain

Do you remember the commercial for pizza bagels? Well I remember the song. If you know the song than please sing along but substitute the word pizza with rain. Let us all try:

Rain in the morning, rain in the evening, rain at supper time. When Victoria’s in New Hampshire she can have rain anytime!

Now that we have sung together, I want to tell you about the sunny weather I we have been having. Just kidding.

I did not want to let the rain interfere with my plans. So I didn’t. It was the wind that made things difficult. Instead of heading off to Maine I luckily got a hold of a friend from Peace Corps. She drove the two hours up from Salem to hang out with me in Portsmouth for the day. We got caught up at Breaking New Grounds, did some fun card shopping, found a great art gallery store place, and had a lunch at this great organic place she knew about called Cere’s (or something like that). Brett Lee would have loved it.

After our lunch we attempted to brave the rain and experience Strawberry Banke. That’s when the wind really started to pick up. We entered a small walkway that lead to Prescott Park and it was gorgeous. The landscape, colors, fountains, and trees were beautiful. If the weather wasn’t so bad we could have spent the afternoon here. But…we took one look at the size of Strawberry Banke, and knew it would just be too cold and wet.

We made our way to the coffee shop for the second time. A little later it was time to depart.

Once my other friend arrived home from work we headed out to have a delicious homemade dinner of Beef Wellington. Her friends were so fun, welcoming, and we had some good laughs. I would like to be like that when I am married. Minus the cute twins.

I love meeting new people!

October 5, A Kittens Purr

Although not the most beautiful day in terms of weather it was a beautiful day for me. I took off, as scheduled in the clouds and rain. All along the highway I could see the changing colors of fall. Visibility wasn’t that great, but I saw some nice leaf changing going on.

My first stop on this gorgeous day was to the Beach. What better to do in the rain than visit Hampton Beach State Park. I walked onto the beach, then turned right around. Once in a headband, hair pulled back, and a monstrous rain coat, I was ready for my walk.

The walk was short and at first I was the only one. After ten minutes there were many walkers on the beach but when the rain started they disappeared. Luckily the State Park had weather proof areas and I was able to catch up on a little work. The beach wasn’t bad, and the town looked like a fun beach town. They are doing crazy amounts of construction along the beach and main road so it will be interesting to see it when it’s all done, and when businesses are actually open.

I then drove along 1A between Hampton Beach and Portsmouth. Who knew New Hampshire had such a beautiful coastline. Who cares if it’s the smallest coastline either. There are tons of rentals, gorgeous oceanfront mansions for sale, and surfers. What more do you need. One of the mansions is a given.

Once in Portsmouth I walked around the adorable little town. There are so many my kind of fun, random shops. Not to mention art places, clothes, and restaurants. I am so glad I stopped here. On my way out of town, while sitting watching the waves the break, I made an out of the blue phone call to my mom’s friends daughter .

I then got to see another part of Portsmouth, have a delicious dinner, and enjoy Portsmouth at night. We headed to Ri Ra where we enjoyed our wine, special treatment, and new friends. Great bar, location, and bartenders. After the evening at the bar I spent the night with the best nighttime companion. A very tiny kitten, up for adoption, curled on my neck and purred all night.

A very successful day back on the road!

Beginning of October, Frustrated

I thought I would be gone by now on the second loop of the trip, but have run into a few complications. That cold I caught a few weeks ago turned into a few infections and bed rest. Now that I am feeling better it is time to get on the road. A week behind schedule and not 100% healthy, but ready to go.

However, I have already hit a few snags and haven’t even left the house. The car has been fully packed for a few days and has not left the driveway. More than a week behind schedule I actually think I will leave tomorrow.

The Yankee Siege Trebuchet is not being operated this year at all. It leads me to believe something not so good has happened in their family, which makes me sad, but I am very disappointed I will not get to see punkin chukin at its finest. This snag has made me have to change my route and re think some things.

Than my friends outside of Boston were not home or did not answer their phones. No point in leaving that afternoon. Next issue was with Walgreens and filling a prescription. I know it may seem I am making excuses, but cannot justify leaving in the afternoon. I like to leave in the morning when I am high energy and have the entire day before me.

With all that being said I am finally all ready to leave. I have not seen the leaves change colors or a true New England Fall in eight years, and nothing is going to stop me. Tomorrow if I awake and my leg is broken or I have a fever, I do not care. It is time to see Fall.