Finally, the fall...

Geeze, it has been a long summer...and very dry.  The spring in front of the house has dried up due to the lack of rain.  So far this month we have had a total of 1.85" of rain (the month ended with 2.98").

August wasn't much better with only 3.47".

There are two schools of thought as to how the rain or lack thereof will affect the foliage color.

Some folks think the leaves will just give up and turn brown and fall...while others think there will be the usual color but perhaps a shortened season.

Right now, it looks like it is going to be a colorful fall.

We took a drive up Rt 112 today (25 Sep) and had a picnic at "The Beaver Pond" along the road.  It was a gorgeous day.  The sun was bright and there was a good breeze blowing.  The temperature hovered around 74º.

I took a bunch of pictures (see below).

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Earlier this fall we met two of my cousins from Pennsylvania at Cornish, NH and toured the home of Augustus Saint-Gaudens.

He was an Irish born American sculptor.  His home, Aspet, is now a National Historic site  (http://www.nps.gov/saga/index.htm) and has many of his works displayed.  He may be better know for his sculpting the $20  gold coin.
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WOW!!

Have we ever had rain.  It all started yesterday (30 Sept).  In 24 hours we've had over 5 inches.  There are multiple road closures and several areas of town are totally isolated.

Geeze, it is hard to believe I started this entry over a month ago!  Time flies -- especially when the leaf peeper sale is going on at the Church.

Speaking of the leaf peeper sale, we tried something different this year.  We had mugs made with the covered bridge and the church on them (graciously allowed by the photographer that took it).  We also had a mug with pumpkins and a mug with three smaller photos on it (all taken by Linda and I).  We sold them for $7 and did fairly well.  I'll try taking a picture or two and post them here.  If anyone happens to want to buy one, just let me know.   :)

I have a few leaf peeper stories to share...

• Last year I made up some "New England quilt starter" kits.  They consisted of two actual cotton bolls (you can find anything on the internet) in a ziplock bag with a card saying what they were.  There were a few left over and we put them out for sale this year.  Well, we had a lady come in from Alabama.  She saw them and inquired if it was locally grown cotton.  When Linda explained that we don't grow cotton up here the lady countered with the fact that she had seen some cotton fields just down the road.  Linda explained further that what the woman had noticed was milkweed pods that had opened the lady again countered with the fact that no, these were cultivated fields.

        So, to clear up any confusion -- we DO NOT grow cotton in New              Hampshire, however, folks are mighty serious about letting milkweed grow for butterflies to lay eggs on and provide food for the caterpillars.

Another story...

• We had a tourist that was inquiring as to the best date to see fall color.  The simple answer of usually from the first week of October to the week after Columbus day.

But simple answers were not satisfactory for this person.  He wanted the exact date he could see RED leaves.
When he could not be satisified with generalities, Linda in frustration, told him a specific date to see red leaves in North Conway (about 90 minutes from here).  It won't be her fault if N Conway is off schedule next year.

• And finally...A friend of ours was working at a visitor center when a tourist walked in and wanted to know when the deer changed into moose!

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We took a trip way up north to Errol, NH to see the LL Cote store (http://www.llcote.com/).  Nice store!!  They have a stuffed moose (see below).

We also passed the Errol, NH international airport (see below)

Now, it is Halloween.

October ended up with 5.36" of rain!  That should keep the springs running for a while.

It has snowed several times today and is snowing right now.  The first snow occured  22 Oct. which is a week earlier than we have seen it since we've been living here.

I planted the last tree of the season (none too soon) today.  I figured I had better get to it before the ground froze.

Actually several things have been happening earlier this fall.  The Evening Grosbeaks are a month early and the Pine Siskens have returned to the feeders two months early.

The Pine Siskens returned with a LARGE flock.  We counted over 60 on the feeders at one time.  I can't wait to tally up the feed bill at the end of winter...

The bears seem to be staying away.  We have seen two cubs so I guess mama has been wise and stayed away from humans.

Sadly, though, a bear was killed by a car on Rt 302 as it was leaving a corn field.

Another milestone has been reached within the household.  Sadly, Kyra our 15 y/o German Pinscher was put to sleep on Oct 26.  She had her 15th birthday on 26 Sept.  It is amazing how the whole dynamic of the household has changed.

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The fall color was interesting to say the least. It started early, then slowed down. Then we had a heavy rain which brought a lot of the leaves down...but then the late starters finally began changing to give us more color again.

As late as last week there was still color to be seen further south of us.





And now, the pictures...


Lazy river...

The International airport at Errol, NH.  Note the boat (???).  Didn't see any airplanes.

A copy of one of Saint-Gaugan's sculptures. 

The white moose at LL Cote's (note the white porcupine).

Inside the Dog Chapel which was built by Stephen Huneck.  http://www.dogmt.com/chapel.php

All the "post-it" notes are memorials to deceased pets of visitors.

A few of you may recognize the woman on the left.  She is Claudette Clunan.  She was a vacation replacement nurse at the Orlando Plant for a few years.

Finally...fall color

At Beaver Pond.

At first glance, it looked like a wading bird...

A not so lazy river after the heavy rain...

A tree caught on the rocks under the covered bridge...

High water and swept vegetation...

More swept vegetation along the banks.

These are the mugs that we sold during the "Leaf peeper" sale at the church.  We still have some available for $7 plus shipping (Priority mail, of course).

This is the other side of the above mug...

                                                              

That's it for now.  Take care.                                                   ©
Karen