Tag: New Hampshire

Wildcat Falls – Merrimack New Hampshire

I had to go in for an MRI and I don’t know, there’s just something about being shoved in a tiny tube and having a jack hammer whip around your head banging, clanking, and beeping at high speeds, that makes you really want to run away into the safety of the trees! So, after I gathered myself and found something to eat (to finally break another ghastly fast) I decided to look up local waterfalls. This one was the highest on the list so I said why not, let’s go,

I was surprised to find the entrance to the trail was situated in a lovely little neighborhood right behind a very busy highway. Since it was raining and very early in the season I was lucky in that the parking lot only had two other cars, the occupant of one was heading in with her dog. I took my time putting on my knee braces so I wouldn’t be stalking just behind her. I must say the new knee braces are AWESOME. My entire life walking and hiking has always put me in pain and lately I hadn’t been taking a lot of hikes because it was taking me up to three days to recover from the soreness. The knee braces were a one-off chance, something I heard EDS patients say helped them (even though my doctors won’t even approach diagnosing me with something that seems so fucking obvious!) This was my first time out in both knee braces and it was weeeird, like I was being propelled by them! And walking was so easy! And not taxing! Is this what normal people feel like?! I was amazed.

But back to the trail. It was decent enough, a little pine forest with a mostly flat trail but being so close to the highway and with the lack of leaves on the trees it was still VERY LOUD. This was not the sort of quiet tree hugging moment of solitude I was looking for. To be frank I was a little put off and I wasn’t the only one. The large German Shepard mix I had witnessed enter these woods with its master was now trying desperately to get out, so much so it nearly bowled me over on the way tot he exit. The owner apologized, “She’s not liking this!”

I continued on until I hit the power lines going directly across the highway. Well.. I could only go away from that noise now I had gotten that close… so onward I went. The path was quite ordinary for a pine forest, nothing of particular note except perhaps the wet moss and lichen on the tree trunks. And then I came up to the waterfall. By then the trail seemed to have split in a hundred different very well-travelled mini paths. I was confused at first but then I went around the corner and found the offshoot to the waterfall with a big sign reading, “Swim at your own risk.” OH! I had found a local swimming hole! But today was not the day for such an activity as the runoff and recent rains of spring had filled the river well past capacity and the waters were raging. I toddled with my knee braces onto the rocks above to take a few photos, concerning whoever lived across the river who probably either thought I was about to topple in or willfully throw myself into the churning waters below. He wandered his yard and kept looking over to see if I was still there. Thanks for the concern but tragic accidents weren’t on my bucket list for today.

I stayed for quite a while just letting the overwhelming sound of the water rushing by completely overtake everything else in my brain. No longer could I hear cars, no longer was I trying to soothe my frazzled nerves, it was all just… river rapids and the sounds coming off them. Ahhhhhhh, that’s what I needed. I felt great after this, so much so I was able to tackle the steep hill from the river back to the path and find my way back to the car from there going back the way I came instead of continuing the loop. This was definitely a different experience. I do think in the summer when the water is calm this place probably is a wonderful hidden gem of a swimming hole and if that’s what you’re looking for I would definitely recommend it!

0

Cidar Mill Trailhead – Brookline New Hampshire

It’ the beginning of the season so I was looking for something easy and beautiful to get myself and my mother out if the house and into the fresh air. I had chosen a trail a few days prior and then forgot what it was…. I don’t think I ended up at the same place. I thought I’d be trekking around a pretty pond. Nope!

The Cidar Mill Trail is easy to get to with ample parking, a lovely map on the board, and a series of plaques throughout explaining the wildlife in the area (though I’m betting the bobcats and bears are a lot less frequent visitors than the turtles and foxes!)

I had decided to take the Cidar Mill Trail to its end (at a different parking lot) and then come back, pick up the Sergeant’s Trail, and end up in a nice little loop going by the heron rookery. The map made this look like a piece of pie and upon seeing how wide and road-like the trails were I didn’t think this would be a problem. We read the wildlife boards on our way and then kept going until we started seeing other trails jutting off. Other trails that were not touching each other on the map. Confusing. With an assortment of red and green markers… er… travelling further still we never reached a parking lot and it was really quiet out there which freaked my mother out a little bit. She’s always worried about getting lost. We’d only walked straight so this was not really possible but nonetheless we turned around. (And why is it only when I have her with me that we get lost?!) I found the entrance to the Sergeants and off we went. We walked for a little way until we found the heron rookery and took this little offshoot to see it. Only thing is my distance vision is absolute shit at this point in my life and peer as I may out into that forest of dead trees in the swamp I could not see a nest. Turns out it was directly in front of me. I don’t think it would have been a challenge to see for people with reliable peepers.

From here we left and were met with three options. Go the way we came back up the Sergeant’s Trail, take a little connector back to the Cider Mill Trail towards the car, or wander aimlessly off on another unknown/unmapped trail going in the opposite direction. Clearly, we had to accidentally chose the latter because neither one of us have a sense of direction. We walked past another couple wildlife boards and two little bridges but the trail markers had stopped and everything was getting quiet again. I tried to get my phone to tell me where I was and what direction I needed to be heading but it was being a shit today and would only answer what town I was in. THANKS, THAT WAS NOT HELPFUL.

We walked back to the rookery and found and the four way intersection it formed. Should we go back up Sergeant’s since we knew where that trail went or try this other trail we thought was the connector? My phone, finally giving me a tiny bit of something suddenly claimed we were walking back towards the car. OK… let’s just do that then. The connector was way longer than it showed on the map. In fact the map on the board at the entrance was goddamn horrible. I don’t know if they rerouted the trails and didn’t update it or what but it did not reflect any current reality. Finally, out of breath, we managed to get back to the Cider Mill Trail and to the car. During this whole time we were the only ones out there.

Later I’d find a much better map online from a different blogger. All and all it was a decent walk, very easy with little no elevation, that seemed to be a good place to bring a gaggle of kids or maybe a leashed dog but otherwise wasn’t particularly breath taking or unique. Maybe I’m just jaded but I was sort of hoping to see the foundation of an old cider mill or something. Nothing. And the rookery was nice but we’d arrived far too early in the year to see it occupied by baby herons. We did however hit Aquatic Creations LLC on the way home.

0

Hiroshi Loop Trail – Dublin New Hampshire

Well, I FINALLY have my car back. I haven’t gone out exploring since before Christmas and to be more than honest I have been going out of my mind! I needed some trees!! So off I went to the woods.

I decided on the Hiroshi Loop Trail because it was a loop and claimed to be easy with no more than a 3% grade incline. After my winter torpor it’s probably best to start off easy… It was very wet but GORGEOUS. I had no idea such a lovely trail was hidden here! Moss and lichen grew on many of the trees and tree roots, beavers left their handywork everywhere, and I even scared a pair of grumpy ducks and two Canadian geese. I also found a geo cache signed by sooo many children with little doodles on some of the pages. It was quite darling! I wish I had something to leave with it. I did sign it. It seemed right to do so.

I was the only one on the trail for most of my journey. I travelled through a mixed woodland and passed the “singing stream” although I don’t know why it’s called that. It didn’t seem to be singing today. It did however give me a gift – or rather the beavers did. I found THE PERFECT walking stick in one of their piles. It was hardwood, heavy, exactly the right height for me, and they’d done me a great courtesy in eating all the bark off it first making it smooth and pretty. Also it was chewed to a spike at the end whcih was great for traction! I’d need the stick later on as the loop was longer than I had anticipated. Luckily it wasn’t difficult with only two parts that seemed to have an incline and they were short lived.

I met a woman and her dog as I was getting close to the end of the trail. The trailhead board did say that dog’s were welcomed here. Other than that I didn’t see or hear a soul. It was just this slightly drizzly Saint Patrick’s Day and I completely lost myself taking photos of the raindrops on the water and leaves. It made this place sort of magical.

This was the perfect first hike of the year and I look so much forward to the next one!

0

Cranberry Meadow Pond Trail – Peterborough New Hampshire

Today was just one of those days that everything I touched did not work so I decided to stick close to home with this one and when I told my mother of my plans, she decided she wanted to come along too so off we went!

The first adventure was finding the parking which I did not find on Cheney Street as promised. Then I went to find the parking on East Mountain Road and again failed. Then instead of using my GPS I just asked google maps on my phone which brought me to someone’s yard on Old Street Road. Obviously, that wasn’t it either, so I kept driving and then I noticed some cars parked on the side of Old Street Road. There and behold there was a small kiosk blending in with the woods. I probably drove by it several times trying to find it.

ANYWAY, as I got out of the car several other hikers came out with a series of very happy, very wet dogs. This was a good sign! This path must be both beloved and dog friendly! A sign at the beginning told us this path cuts through private property and as such we should be respectful. No problem! We just wanted to see this beautiful pond it spoke of.

The beginning of the trail was a fairly long boardwalk that brought us over a bog (cranberry bog? Maybe…) It was a mostly flat and well-marked but there were a lot of roots jutting up, which my mother tried very hard to trip over but this time she came prepared – with a walking stick! Luckily all these trails are getting her in better spirits with loser joints and less overall physical problems. That’s why I walk too! Well, that’s one of the reasons…

The trail is 2.2 miles and not a loop so if you take the whole thing, you’ll walk 4.4 miles from beginning to end, back to the beginning. Mum wasn’t up for that, and I wasn’t sure if I was either, so we walked to the pond which is just about the center between both ends of the trail. We had to walk up a small incline to get there and that was enough! Beyond it was a little cut off that showed a fantastic view of the pond and had a little place to sit. A couple was there but they scattered when we showed up which is fortunate as mum needed a rest. It was quiet out here. You couldn’t hear anything from the nearby town and neighborhoods, just the rusting of the wind through all the dead leaves of fall. This scenic outlook was well worth it. Absolutely gorgeous. And it was at the perfect point in the trail to turn around.

I would absolutely encourage others in the area to check out this serene and peaceful place. It might even be worth a little bit of a drive if you want a mostly river path and a view of a breath-taking pond.

0

Gramwick Trail – Mountain Brook Resevoir – Jaffrey New Hampshire

It’s really strange to find a trail no one seems to have heard of only a few miles from home. And you wouldn’t believe how I found it – accidentally by looking at a realty map of the area. Why it was listed as an attraction I do not know but curiosity got the better of me.

The Gramwick Trail was already an adventure before we even got there – having once again decided to drag my unwitting Prius down another sketchy dirt road, this time COVERED in leaves to the point I couldn’t tell where the road was and it was slippery, as heaps of dead leaves generally are. FUN.

And when we got the parking lot I was actually kind of surprised – it seemed well plotted out and had room for quite a few vehicles considering the remoteness of this place. That being said the trail kiosk was faded almost beyond being able to read which is odd considering the information on it claimed the Gramwick Trail is pretty much a baby – born in 2016! It winds through 395 acres all along Gilmore Pond and ends at a series of sweet little swimming and/or fishing holes. And if you want to continue on from there and do a whole loop it does attach to a different trail that’s mostly used for snowmobiling, but I did not test this theory.

I brought my mother with me as she wanted to go and get some exercise and fresh air. She was however a nail-biting challenge to watch do this trail as it is currently covered in slippery leaves, mud, and roots jutting out of the ground, none of which she missed as she tried desperately to topple over. We ended up having to find her a hiking stick. Luckily there were plenty to be found and she did better from here.

Despite our early troubles this path was kind of magical. It had gorgeous scenery, not a soul in sight, and it was SO QUIET out there, like we’d trekked many miles away from civilization. The only other critter we saw was a mourning dove. This was an introvert’s delight! And the swimming holes were darling! Had I been out here in summer I definitely would have dove in! What an experience!

Eventually the trail ended at the beginning of another trail. Rather than seeing if it looped back around (which I think it does – although we would have had to walk along the road for a little ways) we turned back and went the way we came. Mum was getting tired, I knew this would have been less than a half-way point, and my phone was being no help at all finding the map I was looking at when I was home! That’s OK though, I am content we explored a new corner of Jaffrey and that it was so beautiful.

This was a mostly flat path with bridges over the muddier bits. It was easy, dogs were allowed on leash, but I wouldn’t suggest it for anyone with balance problems. Too many slippery bits and roots for that! Otherwise, this is a great little jaunt for anyone in the area or beyond who has reasonable fitness and health.

0

Ford Nature Preserve Rindge New Hampshire

Good news is I am getting very close to my goal of posting one Catching Marbles entry per day for the whole month of October! Bad news is my body has really not been happy with this aforementioned goal and now I am near the end I’m really scratching the bottom of the barrel for easy entries.

This one was supposed to be a hike but when I got there I realized it’s more of a cute oasis and meditation spot. The driveway into the parking lot was so sketchy I wasn’t even sure it was a driveway and the parking lot? Hilarious. A cute little grassy area that was trying so hard and allowed for way more parking than anyone could possibly want here.

There was a big bulletin board and trail maps — of other trails in town, heavily spattered with mold, dead spiders, and debris, clearly no one had come by to change them in a dog’s age.

Beyond the parking lot was a field full of birdhouses and the scrappiest cold weather flowers I’d ever witnessed. Beyond that was a little bench that overlooked a tiny, cute pond. To either side were big old farmhouses so I suspect this plot may have once been that too before being turned into a tiny bird preserve.

Is this spot adorable? Yes. Is it a good place to enjoy a slice of nature and unwind? Yes. Beyond that though it’s probably not anything to write home about. If you live in Rindge by all means check it out but it’s not worth any farther a drive

0

Common Burial Grounds – Jaffrey New Hampshire

It’s been many many years since I went to Jaffrey’s Old Town Center. I’m not sure I ever went into the cemetery but on this day I did! I had heard that there were two famous people buried here: Amos Fortune and Willa Cather. As a child I had heard about Amos Fortune, a formerly enslaved man who made quite a name for himself, but Willa Cather was news to me. She was a Pulitzer Prize winning novelist.

I’ve been trying to do more Catching Marbles entries this month than usual, but my body has NOT been happy with this new goal, and I was knackered even before I arrived. Still, seeing this place again brought back some fond memories of my childhood. The Old Jaffrey Town Center looks more or less like it did 200 years ago, a small cluster of churches and big farmhouses sitting in a neat little circle, a big grassy common in front of them all. It’s quaint and sweet. They even kept the carriage house intact behind the church as well as the absolutely tiny one room schoolhouse. Plaques and memorials are scattered about making a self-guided tour very easy. The atmosphere was absolutely charming and the Old Burial Grounds behind the church were no different. They were nestled in a quiet spot with a gorgeous view of Mount Monadnock beyond. The perfect place for eternal rest.

Out front of the gates there was a big plaque stating that this was a stop on the Black Heritage Trail because of Amos Fortune. I was told online maps of the cemetery would be at the entrance. There was…. sort of… one big map but it was not laid out in a user-friendly manner. On it several graves were marked out under letters although you pretty much had to read this huge thing about all of them to figure out which was which. I passed because I could see immediately beyond a big number one sitting next to one of the graves. Cool. Surely the two graves I was looking for would be on this numbered tour, right? Right?

I had wandered around and enjoyed all the old slates and got a feel for the place when I realized none of the 13 clearly labelled stops were either Amos Fortune or Willa Cather. What?? I managed to just bump into Willa Cather on accident at the corner of the cemetery not far from the gates. I’d only gone to look at her monument because I saw a ton, and I mean a ton, of rocks on top of her stone. I wanted to know who was so well loved! And I was happy to see it was her. Novelists rarely get that much attention after death. From what I gather she had a claim to fame by writing a series of novels about pioneer life back in the day.

Before I found Will though I found a bizarre monument at the other end of the cemetery in the back that was like nothing I’d ever seen before. It seemed like a vault grave but different somehow? On it the face of a woman was carved as well as a series of religious scenes below. It was chunky and odd, like a folk-art representation of the ostentatious wealthy Catholic memorials I sometimes see. I knew from one of my cemetery books that this monument was carved by a man driven mad by grief from the death of his first wife (whose face it was at the top.) After some drama in creating this… unusual display he eventually lost interest, moved away, and remarried. Doesn’t make for the greatest story but it does make me want to ask a lot of questions!

After all this I was having a hard time standing. I sat on a huge tree trunk near the crypt and rested. Where was Amos Fortune?? I had consulted the map earlier on in the day. He was labelled as “J” but seeing as I have no sense of direction I read the map all wrong and didn’t find him. Asking my phone also resulted no results so I went back to the map and realized it wasn’t oriented in the way I thought it should be and tried again but only after looking up what the memorial looked actually like. It was distinctive in that all the slates in this cemetery seemed to be in perfect condition except for his. His looked as if at some point it has cracked diagonally and snapped in half. A repair effort had fused the pieces back together but not in the most delicate of ways – a large white cement crease could be seen as well as some rusted bolts. Not to be bitchy but this was the worst attempt at stone repair I’d ever seen.

And so I tried again. From the gate I walked forward until I came to the stone wall on the opposing side and then I took a small left and it wasn’t long before I recognized this unique stone. I’d been looking for something drenched in pennies but it didn’t look like anyone had been here. Not a single penny, rock, or trinket, lay testament to a man whose name is burned so heavily into this town’s history. I apologized for this and amended the situation leaving a penny on both his and his wife’s stone.

So who is Amos Fortune? Well, he was an African man who was sold into slavery in the 1700’s and brought to Boston where he labored until he was able to purchase his own freedom at the age of 60. After this he moved to Jaffrey, founded a successful tannery, bought the freedom of his wife and adopted daughter, and lived what looks on the outside to be a good life until his death at 91 where upon he bequeathed a substantial amount of money to the church and community. In 1950 he was once again remembered with Amos Fortune, Free Man a Newbury Metal winning biography by Elizabeth Yates.

0

Phillips-Heil Cemetery – Jaffrey New Hampshire

I was having a weird day today. Ended up accidentally crashing a funeral! Hoooow? How did this happen? Well…

Last week I was reading in one of my cemetery books that there was a beautiful cemetery in Jaffrey NH. Really?? I mean I live very nearby and had never heard of this cemetery. The book also denoted the driveway to it was easy to miss and basically said it was in the middle of nowhere. It was called the Philips-Heil Cemetery which is not an unusual name as many of these older cemeteries are named after the original families that buried their loved ones in them. Seeing as it was in the middle of nowhere, likely a family cemetery, and very old (I’m talking slate stones here) I did not expect to find anyone out there.

It was indeed a bit of trouble to find but the sign out front was big enough to see coming from one direction. It was up a long narrow dirt driveway in the woods, so you could not see the cemetery from the road. As I drove up I found a parking lot. And it was FULL. I mean really full… there had to be thirty cars here. Whaaaat was going on?

I found a tiny slot where I could squeeze my Prius. A dirt road continued onward but I wasn’t about to get my wimpy ass Prius stuck and unable to turn around with so many witnesses. Later I’d learn it was only a short drive to overflow parking where there were spaces. Wish I’d known that.

Do I get out or turn around? People were already looking at my car. Hrumph. I got out. If I had to I could bluff in this odd Harold and Maude kinda moment. Upon getting out I realized this cemetery was TINY and there was no real way I could just wander by the services and pretend to be there for someone else, but I had no other option. I walked up to road by them getting dagger eyes from whoever was leading the ceremony. It was just wrapping up. I was not dressed for this sort of thing and was clearly an outsider.

By now I was uncomfortable and so were a great deal of others. I tried not to make eye contact as I walked to the opposite side of the cemetery and peered at the stones intently. Sadly, all these stones were super old and I couldn’t pretend I was here to leave flowers for a great uncle or something. By now I could smell the faint aroma of decay. That was odd. I’ve been to funerals before, I never remember smelling the dead. Then it dawned on me, I thought Heil might be a Jewish surname. Great. Did I just crash a Jewish funeral in the midst of that clusterfuck between Israel and Palestine? When tensions are at an all-time high?! YEAH, that might explain why the person leading this (the rabbi? The funeral director? Not sure) was watching me with such intensity it was burning a hole in my neck. I swear I was not here for any nefarious reasons. I couldn’t give a shit what anyone’s religion or ethnicity is – I just like the pretty stones!

As people were leaving a friendly man and his wife approached me smiling. Oh fuck, here it comes.

“Just out taking pictures today?”

“Yes, I like to take photos of historic grave markers.”

“Oh! Well! The newer stones are up front. You can see many generations of the Philips family here.”

“Thank you!” I smiled and wandered off.

Later I heard a girl and her mum speaking.

“Why is she here?” She asked, obviously referring to me.

“She might know someone buried here. Or she’s out taking photos of the old stones. People do that!”

“WHHHHHHY?!”

“Because they’re gorgeous!”

Touché, ma’am. Touché.

This cemetery was very small. Around 150 or so stones. Most were very old and in this setting, they were quite charming nestled away in a quiet corner of the woods. It was VERY New Englandy! Most were pretty uniform although there was one monument that stuck out at the back near the overflow parking. It wasn’t a headstone. It was a chair. Made of marble.

Later on in the day I looked up this cemetery’s history and found this note about the chair, “A striking memorial is that in the north end of the yard, looking across to Gap Mountain. It is a great stone chair, fit to be the throne of a monarch of the hills. It is a memorial of the Ross family, three generations of whom lived hereabout. It is said that according to the belief of a descendant, spirits often return to the scenes of their earthly existence, and so, with filial respect, he placed for them this chair, facing the sunset, where in seemly fashion they may sit at ease when they return to muse upon the scene of their earthly existence.” (You can find the rest of the article here.)

Basically, this cemetery was the remnants of a farming enclave that lived in between Jaffrey and Fitzwilliam, too far away from either to be fully incorporated. Very interesting! And without further ado here is the very scant few snaps I took.

0

McGregor Pond Trail – Converse Meadow Nature Preserve – Rindge NH

Today was a weird day. I knew I needed a walk but I didn’t want to go too far and besides this I knew my mother could do with an outing as well. So I grabbed her and we headed out to the Rindge Town Forest. When I got there all I saw was an unmarked dirt road (driveway?) with a lot of no trespassing signs on both sides. She was not in the mood to push this so we went back to Converse Meadow and I used this opportunity to check out the last little bit of this loop that I did not get to see on previous occasions.

As it turns out McGregor Pond is like a 250-foot offshoot trail off the normal loop. It was SHORT but that was perfectly OK! We were happy to find a bench there and we sat and chatted while looking over this pretty little scene. Actually it was just the right amount of walking for her so it all worked out well. As it is Autumn the weather was perfect and the trees were beautiful. I had a really lovely time and if you happen to be in the area doing this loop, make sure to check out the McGregor Pond offshoot!

0

1810 House B&B and Antiques – Wolfboro New Hampshire

Main street antique stores with well-arranged display cases are fun but as for myself I prefer the quirkier establishments – basement antiques, mill antiques, and of course barn antiques. Much to my delight this store was in a barn out back of a cute little B&B. It was so quintessentially White Mountain-y.

And for being a barn it was WELL ventilated and cool. We saw all sorts of antiques, most of which were clearly linked to the local area. Ancient toys, old farming tools, a couple accordions, even a wooden opium pillow. What wasn’t to love? It was halfway like shopping and halfway like visiting a roadside country museum. I loved every bit of this place from its rustic inventory, to the chickens out back, to the cute little inn next door. It was the perfect way to end our journey into the white mountains and if you’re in the area go check it out! It’s a lot of fun!

0

Proudly powered by WordPress | Theme: Baskerville 2 by Anders Noren.

Up ↑