Most of the adventures I have posted have been for big trips to far away places, but during my one and a half years in New England, I have also had a number of wonderful local adventures. To get an idea of all of the fun that New England has to offer, here are some pictures and notes.
April 2006: Nantucket Island
Soon after we both arrived in the Boston area, Jen Sather and I went on a weekend trip to Nantucket Island. It was a bit pre-season, so all the shops had sales as it sprinkled down upon us. I really liked getting my orange rain hat and the whale museum.
Nantucket Pictures
September 2006:
Peterborough, NH
My friend Karron Graves was in a lovely play called Fallen Angels in Peterborough, NH as part of the Peterborough Players Summer program. This was my chance to see a bit of New Hampshire and the concept of summer stock.
Nantasket Beach, MA
On September 30th, I went with Joy Erikson down to Nantasket Beach for the Fantastic Nantasket Triathlon. We had an amazing time swimming in the ocean, biking along the beach and then running in the sand. It was great to do a local triathlon.
October 2006: Fall Colors, Vermont and New Hampshire
I actually wrote this adventure up here: Fall Colors
March 2007: Rockport and Gloucester, MA
There are lots of quaint New England towns, like Rockport and Gloucester. We stayed at a B&B in Rockport, wandered the shops, and visited a cool lighthouse. I like quaint, not enough for forever, but definitively for a weekend trip.
Summer 2007: New Hampshire
I had many short trips to New Hampshire. From a Memorial weekend trip to Far Mountain with the Shen Family, where I went swimming in the local stream with Phoebe and got pulled along playfully by the strong currents.
Rachel, my first flat mate in Brookline, and I went hiking at Mt Monadnock for the Fourth of July, hiking all the way to the top, and then hurrying down as it started to rain. After the hike, we went to the Jaffry, NH Kimball Farm location for some of my favorite ice cream. The great thing about New England is all the truly wonderful ice cream.
Rachel at the top
In August, Rachel and I headed up to Hampton Beach for a spectacular day by the water. While the water was cold, it was very lovely out.June 2007: Berkshires
The Berkshires are wonderful, and I am not just saying that because I had a great massage at the Cranwell Resort, found a lovely cider Mill and bought some hard cider, or even saw great views. Life is a little slower in the Berkshires and that is nice. It was also WONDERFUL to go to Tanglewood. I have been hearing about Tanglewood all my life, but nothing prepared me for the lineup for the lawn seats, a personal picnic, and then seeing my favorite radio show - Prairie Home Companion - live, with guest James Taylor. There was even a post concert sing along. It was a wonderful weekend.
August 2007: Connecticut Peach Picking
I made it down to the Connecticut countryside for a weekend with Matt & Kellie and their new baby Maricela. We picked peaches, then made peach butter, a peach meal and just had a peach of a time.
August 2007: Maine
One afternoon, I decided to just drive north. After a lunch at Bob's, per the recommendation of the Greens from Camp Blue, I headed up to Boothbay. I eventually found myself a place to stay at the Lawnmere Inn on Southport Island. It was great to just hang out at the Inn, go kayaking in the bay, taking a long walk (3 miles) into Boothbay Harbor, where I got to chatting with the older local named Everet about local life (really slow when it is not summer), and just enjoying a few foggy days. One night, I went to Robinson's Wharf for a fresh Lobster dinner (with claws!).
On the way home, I stopped in Freeport and other towns along the way home, enjoying some sunny weather, after of few days of fog. I took myself apple picking at McDougal Orchards and then headed to a beach in Kennebunkport to just sit and read by the ocean. It was nice to have a good adventure in "Vacationland."
Summers: Local Fun
During the summer's in Boston, I would also have local fun, going to baseball games at Fenway, exploring the Emerald Necklace, walking home from the Cambridge office along the Esplanade, biking down to the Arnold Arboretum
Often I would head out to Bedford for a bike ride with the Shen's in the area, sometimes to Kimball Farms for ice cream, sometimes to Walden Pond for a swim.
There were lots of sports, from softball, where the Princeton Alumni won the Boston Ivy Alum Championships, to volleyball, indoor, outdoor, and by the river, to ultimate leagues, teams and tournaments. When the weather was good, there were many fun sports to play.
There is so much to do and so much beautiful land in New England. I am so happy I had a chance for some lovely local adventures.
