Vacation: Part two

We got to see a lot of things and visit new places, too many to show. A lot of the views were on the ride and a lot of places have no place to stop for photos, so I just enjoyed the ride and the mountains in the distance. Lots of river ways and lakes are in the area. 

The bad thing in NH is most lakes and ponds are private, but we did find one that was free. Surry lake is a large lake with a boat launch and beach and it is free to the public. We stopped and let Bean get out for a walk but it was a little cooler and windy that day, so I wasn't in the mood to swim.

We started that day with a ride up the river to Bellows Falls. It is a historic town on the Vermont side. I wanted to see the old mill and get a photo. I was surprised at how beautiful the area was and also a lot of industry with the dam and fish ladder.

What I loved was the paintings on the buildings. This one depicts the town in a time, gone by.

At the mill area, I spotted a lot of paintings along the walls.

The mill museum.

As we walked by the building, I noticed a road and pathways along the river. They had a park in the back with gardens and viewing areas. This town is definitely worth a stop if you are in the area. The only thing I regret is, I found out I missed something. When I got back on Facebook that evening, a link popped up for the area. There are petroglyphs on the rocks below the dam area, I wish I had been able to see them.

After that, we headed inland to check out another place I found on the map. It is called Vilas Pool Park. They were getting ready to open next month, but we were allowed to walk around. It is another free place to picnic and swim, but they do have a donation box.

It has a small parking area and you walk across the falls, on a bridge.

The surprise was a bell tower up on the hill. They opened it up for us and the girls rang the bell. I asked, shouldn't it play a song, there are multiple bells. I guess the girls were new and when I walked inside, I saw the mini piano. So, I played a bit of the first noel, which was fun. As we walked back to the car, I heard the bells ringing and playing different songs. Now that the girls learned it could play songs from the charts they had, they were trying them out, lol.

I pick an area I want to visit and look for things along the way. The last day we took it easy and drove to the Connecticut river and found a nice path along the river. When we got back I rested, since I was still a bit sick. Then I hopped in my kayak and took a leisurely ride up river. I always feel better on the water and I got a nice surprise. I spotted a young Green Heron, fishing on the shore. 

On the way home we took the scenic route. I wanted to take a midway break at the Quabbin reservoir in Massachusetts. We took the wrong way in and got confused on which was to go for a parking lot and there was no reception in the park, so we had to turn around to get out, not easy to maneuver a trailer on park roads. I did enjoy a few views and plan on going back. We can camp closer to the area and visit all the towers and viewpoints at the park. Sadly, no dogs are allowed, so car watching is all we can do.

I hope you enjoyed seeing the beautiful places we visited. Enjoy the rest of your week and hopefully I will have my project I started, finished by Friday. I have been busy cleaning up and getting ready for the fourth. 

Friday Finish!

 

First I want to thank those who comment, I appreciate them all, even though I don't always reply to them all. This week was a lot of catching up, but I always like to have a project to do. Since we are going on trips and getting into hiking weather, I thought I would make up a few rocks to hide.

I found the designs on the web and I hand draw the design as best as I can, with my fabric marker. I have been using my paint pens, since I have quite a few and I want to use them up before they dry up. I do think I like painting better, for better control on colors and shading, but the pens are easy to use.

Last weekend it was cool enough to go for a walk at the bird sanctuary. We saw turtles enjoying the sun and an Osprey hanging out in the cove.

In another side I spotted a group of swans and an Osprey flew over with a fish, but I didn't catch him in time and had to shoot from a distance when he landed in a tree.

The nice surprise was when we came inland and spotted a Green Heron, fishing in the pond.

Another shot after he had his meal. He had dove in and caught a huge frog, but hid in the bush to eat it. I couldn't believe he ate something that big.

Down the road, at another beach area, I found a large group of egrets. Lots of birds are migrating now and will gather in the cove areas.

And sitting above them were a few Blue Herons. It is nice to have an extended summer and this weekend will be warm again. Hopefully we can get into the launch and get some swimming in and a little boating tomorrow. This week I will be getting ready again, we have a site at the local camp again, and this time we have back to back weekends. After that I am hoping to get out for some fall foliage tours. 

Friday Finish!

 

Since I never got a chance to do any drawing at camp, I decided to whip up a stitchery from one of my photos. There are so many birds at camp, but most are hard to catch. I happened to spot a group of Goldfinches and caught one who sat for a few seconds.

I decided to make a stitchery from a photo I too, which you can see in the photo below. It is not as detailed, but perfect for a little pillow sachet. I would like to do more ideas with my photos and add sayings to them, for patterns.

During our walk, we saw a lot of birds and critters. The area is beautiful and even though the camp is full, the back areas are quiet.

I also got to paddle one day. I went under the bridge and around the corner, I spotted two Green Herons. 

And in the inner cove, an Osprey was hanging out on a post. We got a lot of walks in and even on the rainy day, we had breaks so we walked in the cove, during low tide. Bean loved that, could walk for miles and never go over our lower legs. This week we are resting, catching up around the house and planning our next trip. We want to take a week and head north, so not sure yet. I hope everyone had a good week and enjoying the cooler fall weather.

Weekly Wanderings!

 

This has been quite the week with activity. Vacations at home, are easier in one way and on the other, I still have to cook, keep the house clean, laundry and all the planning. So, I am exhausted and seem to be sick again, I think I got too much sun this week.

Our first day on the weekend, we went to Jamestown. It was too wavy and cool for swimming, so we did some beach combing and just enjoyed the cool air. I took this photo of the light in the fog and added a saying.

The next day, we went to the farm and picked up some veggies for dinner and checked out the animals.

After we headed to the ocean, to see the kite festival and go for a swim. The fog was heavy, so only a few kites and you couldn't really see them well. The fun was swimming in the ocean. The tide was up, so it was easier to get in and the waves were fun to surf in, I haven't done that in ages.

Monday we went back to the seaport. It was a nice day and we enjoyed seeing exhibits, we missed the last time.

We went into more buildings, but they were all musty, so I didn't stay in them, too long.

This is an exhibit we missed and will have to take the boys in this one, interesting and a bit creepy. These were on the bows of the old ships.

We took a break on Wednesday to get things done around the house and the next day we headed to a river that goes to the ocean. The sky was ominous but it didn't rain and the sun was out enough to keep it warm.

Along the way, we saw a lot of birds, still migrating so we have more than usual. 

Seen as we paddled, along the shores.

And at the end is the ocean. It was low tide and still going out, so we could go in the channel and float out to the end. A great place to rest and have a snack.

Of course the seagulls see people and see food, so we had company.

I enjoyed paddling so much, that we headed to another salt water pond at the southern end. We enjoyed the paddle, bird watching and some time across the dunes, at the ocean. 

Today we are getting winds from the storm, coming up the coast. We went for a ride to the south shore and walked along the beach. The wind was stronger and the sand was blowing on us, so we went to the end with more rocks and views of the breakers. I was able to get some shots of the surf and surfers who were brave enough to venture out. 

Tomorrow will be windy again and some rain, so a good day to rest. I haven't had any time to work on projects or energy, so I can work on finishing my halloween piece and cutting out the appliqués for my Christmas piece.

I hope everyone had a good week and not in the storms path. It has lessened, but it will still pack heavy winds and storm surges.

Weekday Wanderings!

This week has been a whirlwind of activity. Our weatherman seems to have lost his knack for predicting the weather and when we thought we had rain, we had nice days. One day we decided to go paddling at the salt water pond, but the wind was horrendous. We paddled around a bit of it and I gave up, my arm was killing me from pushing too hard.

We did get to enjoy the inlets and the wildlife. We even saw a deer frolicking through the marsh, enjoying the open space. We also spotted an Osprey nest, high up in a tree.

I also spotted a Green Heron in a little cove.

Another day rain was predicted, so we went to our local cove. This time I used my peddle board, which was much easier for me, than paddling. We paddled into the town and around the inner bay. This is a view of a surprise I found.

And a close up, of that surprise. Someone has made their home in someones boat. I am not sure if the boat is usable, it looked pretty beat up.

And a close up, of the mail on the left. Love the face he is making. I had to use my hsuband's boat to paddle back out for a photo. One bad thing about the peddle board, you can't take photos while standing. It was a bit windy, so it was hard to grab shots as I rolled in the waves.

More views of the harbor area.

Today we took the boys out for a few hours. They loved taking rides on my board and they swam for a bit, but it was cooler and they got cold. More rain predicted but it seems we get out and it never rains, so hopefully we can get out some more this weekend. I hope everyone has a nice weekend.