Tag: fallfoliage

North Country ATV Adventure

On By careofmonIn Trips2 Comments

This weekend we headed up to the Great North Woods of NH to a friend’s family camp for some ATV fun and beautiful foliage. We boarded the pup so that she could have fun and socialize with other pups while we played out on the ATVs. We got up there on Friday night and headed on the ATVs Saturday morning. Up in North Country NH, there is an awesome trail network for ATVs called Ride the Wilds established in 2013. There are 1000+ miles of trails connected, which include town roads and sections of highway when necessary to connect sections. Eleven different clubs within the region take care of the trail system with donations only- no tax dollars were spent on them.

Before 2013, the trail network wasn’t as connected and was really dependent on permission from private landowners. The signage along the trails was amazing and really helps keep people on the trails and off land that the landowners would like to keep private. There are restaurants, lodges, general stores, and campgrounds along the way. For this adventure I wore my LLBean fleece, Harding Lane mountain hat, buff to cover my face for the dust, jeans, my old Merrell boots, and my Fox mountain biking gloves.  It was definitely a day for functional clothing that you didn’t mind getting dusty/muddy!

Our first stop on our ATV adventure was the Blueberry Hill Inn & Cafe for breakfast. The food there is fabulous- our party got blueberry pancakes, grilled blueberry muffins, bacon, homemade corn beef hash, home fries, and endless cups of coffee. The blueberries for the pancakes & muffins come from blueberry fields right on the property and of course, the maple syrup was locally produced.

Such a cute homey feel
View from the inn/cafe

From there we headed up the Cree Notch Trails to a great lookout/picnic spot. Along the way we rode along a railroad, saw glimpses of the Connecticut River, & rode through a Christmas tree farm.

img_7112img_7114

img_7116
Along the railroad trail was the most dust, but I liked it because it was cool to see the old school telephone poles still standing

img_7120img_7121img_7123

img_7130
Feeling like a bandit through the dusty parts
img_7180
The Christmas tree farm!

The views from Cree Notch were amazing. The foliage was just breathtaking.

img_7142img_7147

My husband Jon and I rode on a Polaris Sportsman ATV. He drove the whole way out, and I drove part of the way home. Our friend was on a Kawasaki ATV, and then his parents, our amazing hosts, were in a Polaris side by side. They have had their camp up north for about 30 years and have really been there since the beginning for ATVing up there. img_7219

From there we headed to Bear Bait Mountain which also had some beautiful views. As the day progressed, the clouds rolled in and there were even a couple rain drops but thankfully nothing that disrupted our day. We saw a juvenile moose alongside the trail coming down from the notch view. It was early in the day for it to be out and about, and it didn’t move when we approached. Sadly the poor thing might be sick with something. We didn’t stick around too long in case mom was close by. It may have had some sort of tick borne disease like lyme. It was still a pretty cool encounter.

img_7165img_7173img_7192img_7201img_7197img_7199

After our amazing day of four wheeling, Jon did some fishing at the brook right near camp, and we had a campfire to warm up before dinner. He caught and released six beautiful brook trouts to hopefully grow and increase the healthy trout population.

img_7208
Beautiful brook trout, caught & released

img_7203img_7216img_7210

We had such an amazing day and made it home on Sunday in time to watch Tom Brady play with the Patriots for the first time this season. I am pretty sure this weekend is the peak foliage for northern NH, but southern NH still has a week or so. I am just loving all the fall colors, and secretly I am totally getting excited for snow and skiing in a few months hopefully!

Signature 2

Halloween Mt. Major Hike

On By careofmonIn Hiking, LifestyleLeave a comment

This past weekend we headed up to NH for a hike and an Oktoberfest/Halloween get together. Its true we are past peak with foliage in NH but its still gorgeous out there. Past peak still means a lot of yellows and rusts and browns. Its still so colorful out there. Mt. Major is a little guy, and there are a couple ways up. There is a steeper & quicker route and then a more windy & gradual route. We had my future inlaws with us so we decided to take the more gradual route. Our pup was staying with them while we headed to the party, so we had to make sure Mizpah was tired and not crazy for her babysitters.

Nice wide trails here
Nice wide trails here
Golden morning
Golden morning
Lake Winnipesaukee, amazing colors
Lake Winnipesaukee, amazing colors
We forgot my LLBean backpack but thankfully Jon had his from elementary school ha
We forgot my LLBean backpack but thankfully Jon had his from elementary school ha
Girls on the summit
Girls on the summit, wearing my LLBean Sweater Fleece pullover, so comfortable and a great top layer for this hike!

I don’t know, I feel like the leaf peepers miss one of the best phases of foliage after Columbus Day weekend. It was so gorgeous Saturday. After the hike my amazing fiancé made homemade soft pretzels for the Oktoberfest/Halloween party. I bought pumpkin bread from my favorite country store and he made homemade perfect pretzels, he’s definitely a better cook haha.

Homemade Oktoberfest Pretzels
Homemade Oktoberfest Pretzels

For the party I wore an old Oktoberfest beer girl costume that I got years ago, and my fiancé Jon wore his waders as waderhosen with a fishing buddy and they both had the German hats with the feathers. It was fabulous.

It was a great weekend. The hike cost us nothing but gas, we didn’t have to buy anything for our costumes, we just bought stuff for the pretzels, the pumpkin bread, and some German beer which was delicious.

I hope you all had a lovely Halloween weekend! The last horse I wrote about was a tragedy. Tomorrow I will write about a horse that is an inspiration, and a triumph, and thankfully has a very happy ending coming to him 🙂

Signature 2

 

Hiking the 7th Presidential…Mt. Jefferson & Nat’l Dessert Day!!

On By careofmonIn Hiking, Lifestyle1 Comment

My fiancé doesn’t normally get Columbus Day Monday off, but he took it off this year and we are so happy he did. We hiked Mt. Jefferson in probably the best weather you can ask for on the Presidentials for this time of year. We started up the Jewell Trail at the Cog Railway Base Station. Oh my goodness, it was so crazy. I wonder how many people took the train or drove up Mt. Washington this past weekend.

The trail is beautiful, just roots, some rocks but not too bad. The trail eventually pops you out above the trees though and you are exposed with the most beautiful views for the rest of the hike. There were some rocky sections above treeline. It was in the 50s, and a little windy above treeline. It was really sunny, which I love, but you have to be careful with sunscreen up there because there’s nothing shielding you. It was a beautiful hike, definitely a long day after hiking the Osceolas just a couple days before. Jefferson was the last mountain of the Presidential Range that I had to hike, #35 over all of the NH48. The colors in the mountains were beautiful on Monday, I think that was the official peak of colors for foliage in the Whites.

Chocurua Lake- I couldn't resist stopping to snap this on the drive up to the trail head
Chocurua Lake- I couldn’t resist stopping to snap this on the drive up to the trail head
Love fall in New England
Love fall in New England
View on the way up the trail
View on the way up the trail
View from the top looking down over the base station and past that, Mt. Washington Hotel
View from the top looking down over the base station and past that, Mt. Washington Hotel
View from the top
View from the top
IMG_1299
Looking over to Mt. Washington, see the observatory station on top?
Mizpah chillin in the alpine meadow
Mizpah chillin in the alpine meadow

It will be a few weeks before we can head back up to hike again, probably not until November. In other news, today, October 14th is National Dessert Day!!! I swung by my favorite local bakery in my area, Bliss Bakery, to grab a couple dessert items to celebrate the occasion. If I am going to spend money on bakery items, meaning I am not just making it myself, I would always rather go to a nice local bakery. This past Easter, I had a lot of family over for lunch and we got a lemon custard tart topped with berries and a macaron assortment from Bliss. Here are some of the beautiful Easter egg macarons:

IMG_0224

It’s Wednesday, just two more work days until the weekend AND you have an excuse to go get a little treat. Another reason why I like getting my treats at a cute local bakery is that I like to look at the selection and pick something. It’s fun! It’s also good for my diet though because one special cookie is better than buying a whole bag of cookies that I wouldn’t enjoy as much. Happy National Dessert Day! Hopefully you have had a sweet day!

Signature 2

 

Hike up East & Mt. Osceola, #33 & #34!!

On By careofmonIn HikingLeave a comment

Sorry I have been MIA, it has been a busy weekend of hiking, horse shows, & football!! I love Columbus Day Weekend because it usually the peak of the fall foliage in New Hampshire. This year did not disappoint. Saturday was a cooler day, and the trail was a little wet from rain on Friday, but we managed to get up and down East Osceola and Mt. Osceola, 2 4000 footers on my list 🙂

I have never seen as many people leaf peeping up in the Whites as we saw this weekend. Sunday night they were estimating ~660,000 people were traveling in NH for the foliage. That’s crazy, and really awesome for NH’s economy. Many inns/hotels/campgrounds that we passed were full up and many parking lots for scenic overlooks were packed with traffic causing lines to get a picture of the beautiful colors painted across the mountains that have become like a second home.

Anyways, here are some pics from the hike!

There are no views from East Osceola, just a cairn signifying that you made it, and even then you are supposed to walk down a small trail for about 60 yards to the true summit, something you would only know from reading the Appalachian Mountain Guide site. Mt. Osceola is where the views are at!

Standing up there on the summit, the colors transform the landscape. Its hard to see in the foliage in the pictures, definitely easier to see at the lower altitudes. Up in the 4000 footers, what you see is evergreens. I got some better foliage pics on today’s hike!

We went up via the Greeley Pond Trail to Mt. Osceola Trail. We think that coming up from the other side might be easier? There is a chimney (rocks that are arranged so you have to climb and squeeze through like Santa) between the Osceolas and a slide thats a pain when its wet…which it was…on the Mt. Osceola trail just before you summit East Osceola. This was actually my third attempt at the Osceolas. Once, it was wayyyy too wet and I was tired from a hike the day before, and the other time, the trail had new snow and was a mess with post holes and we couldn’t deal. That happens, we always say, “to hike another day”, meaning make sure you are hiking in a way that will allow you to hike another day, the mountains will be there.

Hiking is one of the most rewarding ways to spend a day, physically & mentally. We saw lots of families and groups of friends which always makes me happy. There were lots of dogs as well, which makes Mizpah happy too!

I will catch up on the rest of the glorious Columbus Day weekend over the next couple days, promise! Hope you all had a great weekend, and to my Canadian friends, I hope you had a nice Thanksgiving!!

Signature 2