Friday Finish!

 

This week I got the stitchery of the month, from Kathy Schmitz, so of course I had to make that. I decided to make myself a pillow to enjoy for the season. I love how it came out, but it really clashes with my primitive pieces, so not sure if I want to stain it darker.

Last weekend we spent a day at the ocean. We still had winds from the hurricanes, so the waves were up at the lighthouse area.

This week, Bill took a couple of days off for a long weekend. We had plans to head to New Hampshire and a friend said we could park  our rv at the house is is Renovating. But, I had a bad spell this week and it took a few days to recover, so I didn't have the time to get everything ready. So, we decided to do some trips from home.

We headed to the Airline trail In Connecticut, along the Salmon River. Along the way I stopped for a few foliage photos, lots of colors popping in some areas.

The trail was really nice to ride and I was able to do over 7 miles. Just a few gradual slopes, and nicely graded trails, that ran along wooded paths and waterways.

At the pond, we stopped to watch a Heron, when he caught a snake for lunch.

Today we went up to another part of the trail and started in Willimantic. The trail starts along the railroad and runs past the river and into the woods. We only did 5 miles today. Bill forgot my juice drink at home and the food in the car, so I had nothing but water and my energy died out. It was still a nice ride though.

On the way home we stopped at the apple orchard and filled another bag. On the way back, we stopped at Lantern Hill and hiked up to the first ledge, always a nice view. A long the way back, we pass several farms. Tomorrow we may take a break to get some things done and maybe a few hours at the beach. The weather will be cooling down again, so perfect days for hiking or biking. I hope everyone has a nice holiday weekend and enjoy getting out and finding new places to enjoy, in your area.

Weekend Wanderings!

Even with the rain, we had a wonderful weekend to get out. We headed into Connecticut just as the rain was ending, so we were able to enjoy a nice ride and visit a few places. I wanted to stop at Mystic Village which has a quilt shop, but it was no longer there. But we were still able to enjoy a walk through town and get a few goodies at the Christmas shop.

One place in Mystic that I love to visit is the Elm Grove Cemetary. I was hoping to see more foliage, but most of the trees had turned. It is still beautiful to drive through though, it is a garden cemetery on the Mystic river, a peaceful place to walk through.

What a beautiful setting for a family plot.

Since we were in the area, we took a drive to Ender's Island, where there is a Catholic retreat center. It was so windy, it was hard to enjoy the views and take photos. I love the buildings on the island, all made of stone, like the church.

There were still flowers in the gardens and views from Block Island to Fisher's Island in New york. In the distance I could see Latimer Reef Lighthouse.

The great thing about being out later is, we were a half hour from sunset so we headed to Napatree Point. What I didn't think about was, the wind. Coming over the dunes, I was hit with blasts of sand and close to the water, the ocean spray, so it was hard to stay still or get good shots. I was able to get a decent one and you can see the waves coming in. It was so beautiful, but hard to enjoy with the sand getting all over my camera.

Sunday was a beautiful day and much warmer, so I decided to hit the beach, while the tide was out. There weren't too many people in the morning, so I found a lot of nice treasures laying on the rocks.

And with the time change, it was still early enough to go for a ride. I needed more apples so we headed to the orchards to buy them from the store.

Along the way I spied this steeple and stopped for a look. The banks of the river were over flowing, so it was hard to get a shot, since we had to stand in the tree line.

We also stopped on the Thames river, where  you can walk out to the old train tracks. Another nice place to go for a stroll.

Since it was getting late, we decided to do a short hike up Lantern Hill. I wanted to see if I could spot the foliage from the first lookout. Of course the views were limited, so we went to the next height and the next, where we had nice views, but still hidden by the tree lines. So our short hike took us up the hill to the top, which was well worth it. The views are spectacular and you can see all the way to the Atlantic Ocean.

The sun was getting closer to the tree line and I really wanted to watch it set, but not from the top. It is a steep climb, so we went down to a lower level to watch it set. Since my photo  had a lot of black space, I added a saying I found on the web. We were able to get down before it got too dark, and my muscles are killing me today, but it was nice to finally get in a real hike.

I hope you all had a nice weekend and your own adventures.