Day 4.. The Legend of the Unimoose

High up on Ellsworth Hill

Bright and early Sunday morning Bri (my daughter) and I took off for Ellsworth Hill by way of Rumney, N.H., where there are some bogs that we have frequented in the past hoping to see moose. If you've read my past posts, Bri and I have 2 theories about moose. #1 They should be called Unimoose as they are really a fairy tale animal used to attract tourists to New England. #2 There is one moose and he is rented out between Vermont, New Hampshire and Maine. Nonetheless we never lose hope that one day it will be New Hampshire's turn to have the moose and we will spot him. So up Ellsworth Hill we go, past Stinson Lake to the first bog, (no moose) past the waterfall and down the hill to the other side where there is a spectacular bog.. I believe it's actually Ellsworth Bog.

Ellsworth Bog

 Notice, no moose....

Bog Grass - Moose supposedly love this grass

A brook coming from the bog

Beaver Hut at Ellsworth Bog 

 

 

 

 

 After leaving Ellsworth Bog and coming to the bottom of the mountain we headed into Thornton to one of our favorite places, Benton's Sugar Shack. It's quintessentially New England with a feel of the 50's or 60's, and they serve the best pancakes with pure maple syrup. The inside has all sorts of interesting things hanging on the walls and ceiling and lots of goodies for sale such as jellies and maple syrup.

If you should decide to go to the Sugar Shack for breakfast, plan on going early or waiting for a table as it's one of the most popular places in the area.

Once again the Pillsbury Dough Girls hit the road, off to Chesley's Glory Station, a favorite place to shop on Route 3 in West Campton. It's a good sized building full of every sort of country treasures.

Very rustic and quite beautiful

A sweet little basket terrarium

Jewelry displayed on and in a lovely birdcage

Carefully chosen clothing

Anyone for an upside down Christmas Tree?

The legend is perpetuated...

Lots and lots of goodies

 
Plan to spend some time, as it takes about an hour to see everything in the store... plus you have to struggle with whether you will have some of their homemade fudge.

A little lighter in the purse we left to head home for a swim in the river that is on my daughter's property. We could have easily zipped down Route 93 but I opted to take the back roads instead. We came down through Plymouth headed towards Rumney where there is a traffic circle. As I was rounding the circle I noticed quite a few cars parked on the side of the road and people milling about. We both thought... 'OMG.. it must be a (the one and only) moose!' I stopped and asked a couple walking back to their car and sure enough we had just missed the moose. Devastated is a good word to describe how we felt having just missed him. They said he had just walked back into the woods.

Everyone left the area but we decided to hang around for awhile to see if maybe ... just maybe... he might come back out where we could see him. Sure enough, within minutes my daughter gasped "There he is!" and just as quickly he was gone. All I saw was a tree bending over where he had been rubbing his rack. Now I'm really devastated! So close... all I wanted was a glimpse... but no... no moose for me... I'm ready to go home now. We stayed a little bit longer (thanks to Bri) and the next thing you know people were stopping their cars all around. Not 20 feet ahead of where we were sitting, behind a group of trees.....  it was HIM!

What an immense and gorgeous creature!

Getting a cool drink on a hot day.

Posing for the camera

He's REAL!

He stayed around for probably 10 minutes or so, not at all disturbed by all the excitement and picture taking. Moose can be dangerous creatures under normal circumstances and can charge at any given moment if they are disturbed, but this guy just nibbled at the grass and sipped water from the bog. It almost seemed like he was posing for the cameras. A highly unusual sight to see and we saw it! I guess by now he's been taken to either Maine or Vermont for their turn, but if you should be near Rumney Circle look down in the bog on 3A..... he may be back. ;o)


The excitement over, but not the thrill, we headed back home for that swim in the river. It was about 90 degrees and I was so looking forward to it. It's a lovely little river with no one around so we have it all to ourselves. A perfect end to a perfect day, just my daughter and me...  life is good.

The perfect way to cool off on a hot summer's day.

I love the gorgeous colors of the rocks in the river bed shallows.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Tomorrow I head home....  *sigh*

Day Three - It's a dirty job.....

 Now it's day three of my trip to New Hampshire ... 

Idyllic weather, early morning dew... off we go to Aunt Kathy's house. We'd already called Aunt Kathy to ask if she would mind if we snooped around her old shed for treasures. Not gold coins, real treasures like rusty tools, wooden boxes, metal bits and the remains of a shoe shop. The shed is leaning now and probably won't survive too many more New Hampshire winters so now is the time to rescue anything possible and I of course am happy to volunteer for the 'New England Pickers' job.

Our first stop is Aunt Kathy's kitchen, the quintessential New England country kitchen full of the aroma of rising dough and cinnamon. This morning she is making homemade fritters and cinnamon buns. Now you have to understand that when you are away from home none of the rules apply and calories do not exist. So with that in mind and a dish of pure maple syrup in hand, we dive into these fluffy still warm delights with vigor. Of course it starts out with 'Oh, I'll just try one, have to be good you know.", to "Well, maybe just one more.. a small one." and "Oh gee, I still have some syrup left, I need something to clean it up with."

It's a good thing the cinnamon buns were still rising or we never would have made it to the shed. As it was we were walking Pillsbury Dough Boys Girls trodding off through the field. Once there, peeking through the window, the adrenalin kicked in and we were ready to dive in. I should clarify, 'we' is me and my daughter, who in the past would 'ew' at anything relating to getting dirty and who now sees 'junk' in a whole new light. She's already an accomplished jewelry designer (Mystikal1981) but I see her one day creating her own assemblages from found objects.

Unfortunately I got so caught up with the search that I neglected to photograph the inside of the shed. There are still amazing old free standing tools with beautiful ornate cast iron  wheels and gears, tiny cupboards and drawers and still more things in the loft. The only picture I have from inside is of a spider web that was glistening in the sun.

You can barely see it in the picture, but it was quite pretty. I don't like to think about who occupies that perfectly geometric home, I just admire the workmanship from afar.
After a whole lot of precarious climbing, digging, sneezing and lugging we came away with some very inspirational pieces, my favorites being the little wooden boxes. Here's just a few of the things that we brought out of the shed:

Gorgeous patinas, old labels, lots of rusty bits.... a little piece of heaven.. studio heaven that is.

Now I want to know what's in the other shed!

I can't think of anything more fun than rummaging through an old barn or shed with my daughter... unless it's the next day when we head out to.....

Happy treasure hunting!


Best... Canace
p.s. Stopped by Kathy's that evening to say hello, left with a whole pan of homemade cinnamon buns!

Day Two - Friday - A Day With the Whales

 We're back in New Hampshire again! This is the second day of my trip and my daughter and I have taken off bright and early for a whale watch leaving from Rye, New Hampshire. The day could not have been more perfect, the weather was sunny and cool with gentle waves on the ocean in the Bay of Maine. Cameras in tow we eagerly boarded the 'Granite State' whale watching boat. They take you out about 1 1/2 hour to what is known as Jeffrey's Ledges. Apparently there is a great deal of food in that area which of course draws in the whales. Here we are, on our way out to sea leaving a gorgeous turquoise wake.

 Why is the theme song from Gilligan's Island in my head? That's right.. that was only a 3 hour tour, this one was 5 1/2. :o)


We passed a couple of islands on our way out, one with a lighthouse.

There is a narrator on the boat continually keeping you up to snuff on what there is to see, the fact that we should expect to see Humpback Whales and the statistics about the different types of whales. There were members of the Whale Conservancy on board ready to observe and note recognizable whales as well as troll for a sample of the food that the whales are eating in a big cone shaped net. While on this trip they actually found a tiny sea creature that they'd never seen before. We're watching closely all the way out to get a glimpse of a dolphin or whale.. such a broad expanse to watch.. no land in sight and nothing so far.

It was a lovely ride out to the ledges and before long we saw spouting in the distance. The narrator lets you know right away....  "Spouting at 2 o'clock!" so everyone dashes to look at 2.. then she shouted "Dive at 10 o'clock!" and so on. I highly recommend if you consider going to go on the early morning excursion. There were very few people on board so it was very comfortable and easy to move from one side to the other to view the whales.

As it turns out even the narrator was astounded because this immense FinWhale was suddenly right in front of the boat. They backed off the engines immediately as they would have hit it otherwise. I can't even begin to describe the feeling of seeing such a huge creature...I was in complete awe. These animals are rare in the area. They are the largest whale off the East Coast measuring 70 to 88 feet long.. imagine! And one of them just rose up in front of us like Jules Verne's Nautilus!

The Fin Whales are so huge they rise gently and then submerge like a submarine. You won't see the whole splashing tail in the air display like the Humpbacks. If you watch closely you will see a large band of water turn a vivid turquoise just before the Fin Whale surfaces. The most amazing thing was there was not only one Fin Whale, there were four! They said it was a rare privilege to have seen them as we did as they are the second largest whale in our waters.

We watched the Fin Whales travel together, coming up for air regularly, then we left them alone to go looking for the Humpbacks. Sure enough, within minutes we caught sight of them.  This one was one that they could identify and had named 'Chickadee' and she was full of showmanship this morning. She repeatedly did what they call a tail breech out of the water, with a loud splash back down. She was traveling with another whale that just quietly blew from his blow hole along side of her.

 Keep in mind that even though the Humpbacks are smaller than the Fins, these whales grow to 52 feet and weigh in at 30 to 50 TONS!

 You can just see Chickadee's mate blowing a spout of water to the right of her tail.

 We watched Chickadee and her mate for some time, then headed back to shore. We'd been there for a couple of hours and it was time to head in.

 No land in sight for about an hour, then we get a glimpse of the islands, one with a wind machine.

Then before you know it we're nearly to shore where all the sea birds congregate to gossip.

 Back on land, here is a picture of our boat. It was a thrilling experience and I highly recommend these people for the trip. They're very friendly, know exactly where to find the whales and are very knowledgeable.

Now off to Ray's for some lobster!

Ray's Seafood Restaurant

We sat out on the porch overlooking the ocean eating the  most delicious Lobster Pie! After lunch we had a pleasant walk in the surf, then off to Concord N.H. where Bri was getting a henna tattoo and I was having a 1 1/2 hour massage courtesy of my daughter. Does it get any better?  I don't think so!

I hope you've enjoyed Friday's whale watching trip... two more days to go!

Have a great weekend.. keep cool.
Best... Canace

Come with me to New England!

Last Thursday I headed up to New Hampshire to visit with my daughter Brianne and I thought you may like to tag along as it was an incredible 4 days with lots of pictures. This was a weekend that couldn't possibly have been more perfect, the weather, the excitement and of course the treasured time with my daughter. 

So, off we go!

Thursday:

My route of choice is up through New York and into Vermont, then crossing over into the Lakes Region of New Hampshire.  Have you ever taken pictures while you're driving? Not recommended, but rather necessary when you're on your own, so please forgive the shots through the windshield.

Route 7 N in Vermont is such a beautiful and welcoming sight with black eyed susans in abundance and the mountains ahead.

Up and over those magnificent mountains, all the ski lodges and maple sugar shacks coming into view. Oh and don't forget the 'Moose Crossing' signs. No moose, just signs. At this stage I think that there may be one moose in all of New England and he's traded back and forth between Vermont and New Hampshire. I can't tell you how many hours my daughter and I have spent sitting in bogs hoping to see even just a glimpse of a moose. We now call them 'Unimoose' as they seem to be more of a fairy tale than reality.

After about 5 hours driving I cross over into New Hampshire for lunch at Mickey's in Enfield N.H. My daughter and her husband meet me there for their oh so good Lobster Corn Chowder. No counting calories on this trip! Mickey's is a great family friendly place with a menu that will surprise you for sure.

It's become a tradition for Bri and I to go to this totally hidden away gem and bead store in Enfield by Crystal Lake. (Background music from Friday the 13th) Gemstar Gemstone 427 Shaker Boulevard Enfield, New Hampshire. They have everything imaginable for the serious jeweler to the hobbyist.
Outside the shop are these wonderful towers of Amethyst.

There is such a huge inventory of gems that I can't begin to remember half of their names so I'll just show you a small sampling. If you know what they are then perhaps you could leave a comment for everyone else. Of course nothing is as breathtaking as seeing these stones in person but it will give you the idea.

This is the walkway, filled with smooth round gemstones. Every home should have one just like this!

Piles of immense crystals!

Giant chunks of Rose Quartz

Tables full of stones in their natural form.

I believe this is Citrine.. gorgeous!

Not sure, but I think this could be Azurite.. such a deep rich blue!

Stones scattered everywhere in amazing colors

 
If you can pull yourself away from the wide array of stones outside, then let's go inside to the jeweler's paradise.

It's a rather small store, but it's packed to the rafters with every conceivable bead, stone, (semi precious and precious) pearls and findings.

I managed to keep within budget both for myself and the Biff believe it or not. :o)

Off we go to Bri's house past the Shaker Museum

 

and later on the Smith River.

It's such a lovely, peaceful reflective river.

Just a few miles down the road we arrive at Bri's house to sit (after 6 hours of driving) quietly in her lovely new gazebo. I'd love to sleep out there but there is a Fisher Cat hanging around and I think a visit from him would send me flying into the house... or out of my mind... one of the two. ;o) There are many audio video recordings of Fisher Cats online, as it's one of the most eerie and blood curdling sounds you could ever hear in the middle of the night.

 

A snack and a spooky movie and I'm off to bed (inside).... in anticipation of tomorrow (Friday). An unbelievably perfect day ... wait till you see!

All best,
Canace