DAY 37 - SUNNY AT SUNAPEE

August 6, 2012

Yesterday was HOT and HUMID (90 and 90%) and miserable (to me) yet people were coming into the park and wanting to hike.  Only a few started at the bottom … most drove to the top and hiked to the summit.

I love that we hiked the Slot and Slab because now I can talk knowledgably about them!  A young family came in with two boys, 9 and 11 and a dog and wanted to hike from the top.  I recommended that they head off for the summit and take the Slot Trail describing it as very interesting “slot” in the mountains that the kids would enjoy learning about; do the tower and then hike up to the summit and then take the “Slab” trail back down.  I said I thought his boys would love it,  both trails offer a different experience and they’d have fun.  The Dad asked whether I thought their dog would have any problems …. he was a big dog … so mentioned that our 45 lb Border Collie scrambled up way ahead of us.  He laughed, said great and off they went!

Several hours later they came back down the mountain.  He waved and stopped in front of the Ranger’s Booth thanking me for the suggestions and said, “Those trails were tough, they’re a challenge!” then laughed and drove out of the park.     I was validated!   A young, fit family also found the Slot and Slab challenging! Hey! Hey!

We had a spate of rain during the afternoon but did nothing to cool the air down or alleviate the humidity.  By the time my shift ended yesterday I had to peel my work shirt off my back.   Somewhere around 10:00 there were sounds of rumbles and the rain came.  Not sure how long it rained, but I know I feel asleep to it.

This morning it was beautiful!  Skies were clear with the most vibrant blues I’ve ever seen.  A very different color blue than the Carolina Blue I’m used to seeing.  Temperatures were in the low 70’s …. Glory be!  It’s back!  NE weather!

It was a perfect day to spend outdoors and so we headed over to Sunapee NH to the Annual Craftsmen’s Fair advertised as the Oldest Craft Fair in the US.  This is a huge craft show held at the Mount Sunapee Resort and the foot of the ski area.  It’s a nine-day event, so although a big crowd, it was a move-around crowd.   

The exhibits ranged from jewelry, pottery, woven materials, wood working to demonstrations in chainsaw carving, metal work, furniture making blacksmithing and more.  There are 350 League juried craftspeople in 200 booths and five exhibitions.  Many of the exhibits were typical of what we’d see at Images in NSB but many,  many more of them. 

MAKING GLASS BEADS FOR HER JEWELRY

CHAIN SAW ART!  

WHATTA YOU LOOKIN' AT!!!!!

I LOVE THESE GUYS!  

LAMPS AND SHADES ARE MADE FROM WOOD.   THE SHADES ARE PAPER THIN!

SALT & PEPPER ANYONE??  (I THINK THE DOG SHOULD HAVE ITS HIND LEG UP!)

The Mount Sunapee Resort is part of the New Hampshire State Park system and this region is known as the Dartmouth-Lake Sunapee Region.  This ski area is owned by the State of NH but managed by the Okemo Mountain resort.

LAKE SUNAPEE

Lake Sunapee is about 8 miles long and between .5 and 2.5 miles wide covering about 6.5 square miles with maximum depth of 142’.   It has eight islands and several peninsulas and lake fingers so you can imagine how fun the boating is here.  The lake is 1,093 above sea level.   The lake contains three lighthouses on the National Register but, unfortunately, they are best viewed by boat!  Argh!!!  Oh well,  we’ll catch our lighthouses in Maine!

We drove down to the Lake Sunapee Harbor and had lunch at the Anchorage.  Alongside the restaurant on the pier are tie-ups for all the small power boats coming in for food or ice cream.  It was a beautiful day and everyone was out. 

Interestingly enough, just about every boat that came in to tie up did not have their lines out.  Every single one had people hanging off the sides of the boat grabbing at the pier to hold the boat until the Captain could find his lines! 

If the “stern” folks weren’t able to grab the pier (or paying attention) the inevitable usually happened….. the guy on the bow would be straddling the boat with one foot on the pier and one foot in the boat stretching as far as he could go while the stern of the boat would  swing away from the pier.  I know that bow-to-pier stretch!  It’s inevitable! 

Eventually everyone got it together and had their boats tied up without damaging anyone else’s property!

LOOK AT THAT BRIGHTWORK!!!!  

There is a fairly good-sized harbor with about four piers of boat slips.  Mostly the boats were small power boats under 20’ and the sailboats were around 20-24’.  Our  24’ Starwind would have worked perfectly here. 

I did notice, however, how beautiful the sailboat’s teak was.  No salt water damaging the wonderful finishes.  They all looked as though they had just been sanded down and varnished!  The pleasures of freshwater boating!  (Reminds me of what we have to look forward to getting done this winter when we get home).

CIRCA 1831

I was thrilled to see Ipswich Clams on the menu.  These are as much of a delicacy to me as Lobsters and I ordered up a plate full.  

The only place you can get Ipswich Clams in Florida is at the Boston Seafood restaurant and the last time I was there, they weren’t as good as they were originally.  Boston’s has the clams flown in from NE.   So…..my diet this fall, while we travel to Maine and Massachusetts, will probably be lobsters and Ipswich Clams.  (Much the same as when we go to the Bahamas and I eat mainly cracked conch!)   Lobsters and Ipswich’s are my cracked conch in New England.

We headed back to Mt Ascutney around 3:00 with full bellies and our culture for the week. 

It was a good day !