Up to the White Mountains

Work detail up at the Omni Mount Washington in December.  Decided to add another night so that we could go skiing or hiking depending on which way the weather was leaning.  

Snow was a little lean so we ended up doing a small hike and later that evening ventured into the town of Bethlehem.  A quaint town just outside of Twin Mountain.

 They were having their Christmas in Bethlehem weekend which included music, bonfire, greetings from Santa then topped off with a fireworks display.  We joined the festivities and felt the Christmas spirit come alive.  

Next day off to the Omni Mount Washington.  The Grand Dame of the North Country.   

There is a beautiful stillness in being outdoors in the winter...  something we truly enjoy.  

And how could this guy not make you smile while eating your breakfast sandwich!

Even got a little snow to go out and play in.   

Same job coming up again this year - and I'd say we'll be adding another night and go have us some fun! 

Always find time to play....

enjoy,

k

City Slickers for a Day

 Heading into the city for Boston's Snowport.  A day of fun and food along the water.  

Laughed a lot... ate good food    Got a bit of Christmas Spirit

As though we hadn't had enough - made a pit stop in Somerville for a visit to Mike's Pastry so we could bring more home with us!  

Oh Canada

A trip over the border to the lovely town of Old Bromont.  We stayed at the Auberge Nuits St Georges rich in history dating back to 1881 and located in the heart of the village.  

 Traveling on the Montreal we found the Boulangerie Patisserie Canal just outside of Bromine village.  Quick stop for some provisions and made our way towards the city.  Our picnic stop at Fort Chambly was a wonderful choice.  Watching the geese fly in V-formation and joining hundreds of their fine feathered friends along the river while enjoying our tomato tarte was perfect.  

Afterwards a walk around the Fort...   had to work off some of that lunch!

then to the City of Montreal we go.  

The main purpose of this trip was to see Bruce Springsteen "the Boss"  at the Bell Centre.  

What an amazing show! If he comes back again to Montreal we will be there.  

Traveling towards home had us stopping in Magog for one last night to enjoy our Canadian neighbors' hospitality. A short walk from our room put us in a downpour.  Turned in to Alessa Trattoria .  Little wine and a little food and all was well.  The food - the service - the atmosphere ~~ the Rain God did us good! 

Saint Benoit du Lac includes an abbey, cheese making and a glimpse into Monastic life.  

We walked the halls and listened to the rhythmic chants. 

Learned a bit about cheese making and of course had to sample and bring some home with us.

enjoy,

k

40 Years - How can That be?

 Happy Anniversary to "US"  youngsters! 

We celebrated our 40th anniversary with an overnight to The Tides Beach Club on Goose Rocks Beach in Maine.  A lovely oceanfront hotel with a casual elegance that feels like "home".  Weren't thinking a "beach" location for our anniversary -being October 20th-  but they were having an anniversary special on our anniversary therefore making a perfect combination.  

Mother Nature joined the party and gave us 80 degree weather for two days in Maine late October. 

Could not have planned that getaway any better if we had tried! 

enjoy,

k

The Cape - Off Season

 I've always loved the idea of heading down to the "Cape".  But being someone who doesn't like crowds so much when I travel it always seemed to get put on the back burner.  

Well, the secret I've found is....

                                                        ....go just after Labor Day.  Who'da thought!

The weather is still perfect - the crowds were gone.  Literally the photo above was a busy day at the beach!  We brought our bikes and stayed in Wellfleet area.  Everything was close by and easy to get to.

The bike path there is wonderful.  If you find yourself up to the northern end of the Cape Cod Rail Trail be sure to stop in PB Boulangerie for a sweet treat.  Always a waiting line.... but in this case so worth the wait.  

We took a trek over to Lieutenant Island to watch the sunset.  It was a beautiful night but the icing on the cake was seeing a few folks walking back over the bridge with some back just-hatched Diamondback Terrapin turtles.  They have a Protection Program and these three needed a little leg up on their journey.  They'll be returned to a suitable, safe area to give them a better chance of survival.  Good luck guys!  

September days bring a quick decline in temperature as the sun begins to go down...

but the solitude and colors of September bring their own special charm.  

The kids were able to join us for the weekend.

    Brought them to what we felt were our "private" beaches. 

Rode to the Three Sisters Lighthouses 

and the Chatham Fish Pier.  Seals were having a nice snack when the fisherman came in.  

These two always bring their sense of fun!

I'm thinking when we can make a little September getaway happen - this will be put on the front burner from now on.

enjoy,

k

Tourista's

I love that our family likes to partake in good ol' fashioned fun.  Living in NH we have many opportunities to go explore and play tourists for a day.

Today was a visit to the Lost River Gorge in North Woodstock.  

 Lemon Squeezer   --  Bear Crawl  to name a few

We let the youngsters have at it and watched them maneuver through some of tight spots. 

Loving their sense of fun...

...enjoying time with our flock.

enjoy,

k

Maine... Shipbuilders to Lobster Boat Races to Granite

July in Maine.  Doesn't get much better...

A visit to historic Bath.  A quaint city steeped in shipbuilding.

A visit to the museum with a boat tour aboard the Merrymeeting on the Kennebec River.  

 

We were able to see up close the making of these amazing ships at the Bath Iron Works and learn of the history and process building and launching them.  

A city picnic and then it's time to cross another bridge...

Next stop for a few days is Little Deer Isle.  

As soon as you cross over the bridge and breathe in the salt air you know you've landed somewhere special.

Sand Beach was a favorite stop after exploring the Deer Island and Stonington for a refreshing swim. 

We've known about the weekly Lobster Boat races along the coast of Maine.  But this is the first time we

were able to sit and watch.  These folks work hard all week long lobstering and you can see come Sunday it's all "fun day"....

Barred Island is a little treasure of a place to go exploring.  The rugged beauty of the Maine coast always surprises me in delightful ways.  

Settlement Quarry is one of the many quarries we've visited during our Maine travels.  It's great when a history lesson is thrown in to our travels now and again.  The techniques used to cut and transport these beasts of granite is hard to comprehend and amazing to learn about.  Granite from this particular quarry was used throughout NY and Boston.  Her last shipments went out in the late 60's.   

One of my favorite places to stop is Camden.  We found The Drift Oceanside Inn a few years back and stay frequently as our overnight at the beginning or ending of our trip.  It's a 3 1/2 hr drive to or from home and makes for a relaxing drive.  Cabins and motel rooms directly on the water lovingly restored by a young family.  

This photo was taken from our balcony - literally a stones throw to the ocean.  I saw a couple heading to the "hot tub" but if you've spent any time in Maine you know that it probably is not "hot"

enjoy, 

k

Recoup Time

Knee replacement surgery for Jim had us slowing down in our adventures. 

Certainly didn't mean we couldn't find some fun adventures~!

A trip up the Cog Railway - for me a first.  We've hiked and skied there but the Cog was a good choice for this trip.  

Could not have asked for a better day...

Another day trip was to Barre, Vermont for a visit to the Rock of Ages Quarry.  Learning how in their day they were the Granite Capital of the World bringing in many European immigrants along with their centuries old techniques.  
 

The industries peak has since passed.  If kept alive they could have pulled granite out of Barre for years to come  

enjoy,

k