Here are some highlights of our summer "stay-cation" in New England.
A long-time friend from Bend, Angie Jackson and her daughters were in Massachusetts for a few days visiting relatives, so we met them for a day at the beach in Glouster, MA. We had a great time catching up and talking non-stop for a few hours while the kids played in the water.
The last three weeks of summer we did some day trips on days I wasn't working. We discovered some fun places nearby and took advantage of activity passes from the library. This is America's Stonehenge in Salem, NH. We went with our friends, the Hensch's. Marvin's hiding behind the rock.
This is one of many sites in North America where archeologist & anthropologists have discovered places where native Americans lived thousands of years ago. Above is an sacrifice table and a marking stone for sunset or sunrise at a specific time of year (i.e. winter solstice).
The next Friday, we went to Charmingfare zoo. It's a working farm with farm animals and also some wild animals (camel, bear, wolf). Trevor's trying to feed the cow without getting slimed. He kept pulling his hand back and the cow's tongue kept getting longer. The goat's about to jump in on the action.
Curtis thought the mini goats were stinky but liked picking them up anyway. It was a cute farm and we had a fun afternoon. I was thinking it would be a fun place to bring a grandson to in a few years:)
On Saturday we went to the Fells Estate on the shore of Lake Sunapee in Newbury. This was the summer home of John Hay. There are well maintained gardens surrounding the house that were built by John Hayes son (John II). We toured the gardens and house and walked the trail down to see the lake.
There were still lots of perennials out, but I want to visit again in the spring to see all the Rhododendrons in bloom. John Hay was a private secretary to President Lincoln and secretary of state to McKinley and T. Roosevelt. There was an exhibit about his work with Lincoln inside. The estate remained in the family for three generations and is now run by a foundation. The outer acreage is now Forest Service land with trails. It's very beautiful and peaceful there.
I forgot my camera, but the following Saturday we went to a WWII museum in Wolfeboro (on the shore of Lake Winnepesaukee). They had a lot of artifacts and posters and even some tanks. I liked the museum exhibits that explained how the war changed American culture.
A final summer hurrah: the boys and I went to the local amusement park, Canobie Lake. The photos aren't that great. I went on a few rides with the boys and decided I'm getting too old for that. We went on some huge rollercoasters and I was too scared to scream. I really enjoyed the Michael Jackson tribute concert, bumper cars with Curtis and of course, fried dough. We went on a drizzly evening to get the cheap tickets and there were almost no lines!
I already put some pictures on Facebook, but the highlight of our summer "stay-cation" was a day trip with Jonathan to Maine. We sailed on the Silver Lining and went about a mile out in the ocean on the two-hour cruise.
Curtis loved standing on the bow
The "Silver Lining" in the harbor at Ogunquit, Maine
We walked the mile-long path from the harbor to the beach and back. There's a huge beach here. Next time we come, we'll plan to hang out on the beach. The Maine coastline is much prettier than New Hampshire's and reminds me of Oregon.
I wanted to see the famouse Nubble Lighthouse in York, Maine on the way home. It isn't open to the public and is on an island--very picturesque.
